The National Youth Council (NYC), Singapore Esports Association (SGEA) and sports and event management company IMG are launching the Esports Youth Programme, providing 100 youth developmental opportunities and hands-on experience in the e-sports industry.

It is open to students from Nanyang Polytechnic, Republic Polytechnic, the Institute of Technical Education and other partner organisations.

NYC chief executive David Chua said: "We want to challenge our young people to take ownership of their aspirations."

The first of the programme's three phases consists of workshops and panel discussions with industry leaders and content creators.

The second will see students directly involved in the running of the Dec 15-19 Global Esports Games (GEG) in Singapore, which is the Global Esports Federation's flagship event and features teams from around the world.

They will also learn to curate content for GEG's social platforms.

In the last stage, selected individuals will earn short-term internships with e-sports portal GosuGamers, SGEA, IMG, Global Sports Innovation Centre powered by Microsoft and technology innovation company Refract.

Ng Chong Geng, SGEA president and member of the GEG organising committee, said: "All eyes will be on Singapore as the host of the inaugural Global Esports Games and there's no better time for our youth to be in the thick of the action."

Kennie Chang, IMG's director of business development for the Asia-Pacific, added: "Like every major sporting event, the true essence of the inaugural Global Esports Games is the community spirit and inspiring the next generation."

Students can sign up for the Esports Youth Programme through their schools from Monday to Friday next week.