HCASSC has officially opened the doors of its new Dakar Vocational Skills Centre — a purpose-built 2,400 m² training facility in the Pikine district that will equip up to 400 unemployed young people per six-month cycle with the market-ready technical skills they need to enter formal employment or launch their own enterprises.
The centre offers four accredited programmes: electrical installation and maintenance, plumbing and pipework, furniture carpentry and joinery, and computer literacy and digital office skills. Each programme combines classroom instruction with a minimum of 200 hours of hands-on practical training using professional-grade equipment, and concludes with a nationally recognised certification issued in partnership with the Senegalese Ministry of Technical and Vocational Training.
The inaugural cohort of 380 trainees — 55% of whom are young women — began classes the same week. All trainees receive a daily transport allowance, a starter toolkit upon graduation, and access to HCASSC's job-placement service, which maintains active relationships with construction companies, electrical contractors, and technology firms across the Dakar metropolitan area.
"Youth unemployment in Pikine runs above 40%," said Centre Director Ibrahima Sow. "What we are doing here is giving young people a concrete skill, a certificate, and a network — the three things that translate directly into income."
The centre was constructed with support from the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa and the Diocese of Dakar. HCASSC plans to open a second facility in the city of Thiès by the end of 2025, extending the programme's reach into the Thiès and Diourbel regions.
