To assist unemployed youth find employment opportunities and work from home with industries abroad through internet, a daylong symposium and career fair will be held in Thimphu on January 29.

The Launch Symposium and Career Fair will be organized by the Bhutan Industry Association for Business Process Outsourcing (BIABPO) for IT-Enabled Services or Business Process Outsourcing (ITES/BPO) industry stakeholders.

The fair will provide an opportunity for those seeking a professional career with a foreign employer to show their interest and be considered for employment by current and incoming ITES or BPO locators.

A press release states that the ITES or BPO industry in Bhutan is ready to create new and sustainable jobs for Bhutanese youth. The initiative is aimed to empower Bhutanese economy and to bring more wealth to the nation by creating a substantial new services export industry.

BIABPO plans to create 3,000 new jobs for Bhutanese youth over the next five years as the first industry association to promote youth to employers abroad from the home country.

The Labour and Human Resources minister, Ugyen Dorji said that the new government accords high priority to addressing youth unemployment. “The private sector has enormous potential to provide employment opportunities for young job seekers by leveraging foreign labour markets to bring jobs here over the internet.”

The press release states that the ITES/BPO industry in Bhutan will improve social stability and the decentralization of employment opportunities.

“The ITES/BPO industry in Bhutan is ready to scale, to create more new and sustainable jobs for Bhutanese youth, to empower the Bhutanese economy and to bring more wealth to the nation by creating a substantial new services export industry,” the press release states.

The fair is themed Bhutan’s New Employment Growth and Export Opportunity as the Solution to Youth Unemployment in Bhutan.

BIABPO’s Talent Development Committee Chairperson, Sonam Choki said the careers fair aligns with BIABPO’s mission of job creation, especially for the youth.

“Exposure to business practices, software, and systems used by businesses in Singapore, Australia, the United States and other countries with advanced business process infrastructure will provide training and learning opportunities as well as stable income and employment for our youth,” she said.

Sonam Choden