The ILO DWT/CO Moscow with financial support of the Russian company LUKOIL implements the project. The current course was devoted to the design and implementation of active labour market policies targeting young people involving more than 70 PES officials from all over Azerbaijan as well as social partners’ representatives, research community and other relevant bodies. The previous three courses targeted directors of employment centers from all over the country and PES staff working with job seekers and employers. Experienced officials worked hand in hand with the youngest ones beginning their career in the public services, but all expressed satisfaction on how these days changed for better their understanding on how much the PES can do for young jobseekers.

Minister of Labour and Social Protection of the Population Sahil Babayev, Chairman of Labour and Social Policy Committee of the Parliament Hadi Rajabli, Chair of Azerbaijani National Confederation of Entrepreneurs (Employers') Organizations Mammad Musayev, Deputy Chair of the Confederation of Trade Unions of Azerbaijan Javanshir Alkhasov, ILO Moscow Senior Employment Specialist Mikhail Pouchkin, Head of the UN Development Programme Group George Buma, and Deputy Minister of Social Security and Labour of Lithuania Egle Radisauskiene attended the opening of a four-day training course.

Sahil Babayev underlined that strengthening of measures aimed at promotion of decent employment is one of the priorities of the socio-economic policy of the country. The Minister said that one of the directions of reforms is to improve Public Employment Services based on the international standards. "Decent Work Country Programme for 2016-2020" created new opportunities for the reforms to establish an effective mechanism and use more effective tools for creating more employment opportunities for the jobseekers.

PES officials had the opportunity to learn about youth employment promotion programmes in depth, from design to implementation, including lesson learnt from international experiences. The training sessions included a) Career guidance, profiling, counselling and job searching, b) PES training and education programmes: vocational education, apprenticeships and other work-based trainings, c)  Enterprise incentives for hiring young people, d) PES programmes targeting disadvantaged and vulnerable groups, e) PES role in supporting self-employment and youth entrepreneurship, d) Innovative youth guarantee schemes.

All speakers stressed the role of such training courses in increasing the knowledge and professionalism of the PES staff through study of advanced world practice, and in equipping the Public Employment Service with personnel that meets international standards and adequately responds to the labour market challenges.

The training course gave as well a unique opportunity to listen and share questions and concerns with the Ministry and the highest level officials. Open and transparent discussions, lively exchanges, active listening helped making the training course a remarkable experience. The participants thanked the Ministerial and PES officials that helped to moderate different learning modules as well as all ILO project staff for organizing and conducting the important event. As the several testimonies show, it will not be easy to forget and will be useful in their daily working life.

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