New internships for teens to serve the community after secondary school

SINGAPORE - Teens will soon have a new avenue to serve the community even after they leave secondary school.

The new National Youth Internship Programme will give teens the opportunity to take up internships for two to six months with a monthly stipend.

This scheme is targeted at those at least aged 17 who are waiting to join junior colleges, polytechnics or the Institute of Technical Education.

Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, Mr Lawrence Wong, announced the new scheme at a camp for students from uniformed groups on Friday. It will be piloted this year with an intake of 60 members from uniformed groups such as the Girls' Brigade and the National Police Cadet Corps. They will first go through an induction programme at Outward Bound Singapore before starting their internships from January next year.

Mr Wong encouraged some 600 secondary school students attending the camp at the Home Team Academy in Choa Chu Kang to sign up for the programme which will involve not only work in the uniformed groups but helping to lead service projects in the community.

"When you serve, your life will be richer, your community will be happier, and our nation will be stronger," he said.

The scheme, an initiative by the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and the National Youth Council, aims to provide ways for young people to do volunteer work beyond their school years.

It will eventually be extended to other community and youth organisations.

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