Marriott International Maldives, the Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Community Empowerment, and the Maldives Institute of Technology (MIT) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 7 March to launch the Marriott International Maldives Apprenticeship Program for local youth in the tourism industry.
Marriott International is the first International hospitality brand to collaborate with the government’s apprenticeship program.
MIT will provide the theoretical part of the program, while the participants will receive work experience at Marriott International resorts in the Maldives. Fifty slots are available for the first round of the program, set to begin in late April or early May. Participants will receive a level-3 certificate upon completion of the program.
Some 250 slots will be provided for youth in nine different fields for five years. Marriott International will offer youth training opportunities at their portfolio of seven resorts in the Maldives – The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands, The St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort, JW Marriott Maldives Resort & Spa, W Maldives, Le Meridien Maldives Resort & Spa, Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa and The Westin Maldives Miriandhoo Resort.
“We are honoured and thrilled to embark on these new partnerships which will greatly assist in one of our key talent strategies, which is to hire and train Maldivians. This National Apprenticeship Program, which we are adopting and tailoring as our Marriott Apprenticeship Program, will assist our resorts to secure talent from a young age, to home-grow, nurture, train and develop them to be our future leaders.” said Emma Jones, Area Director of Human Resources at Marriott International (Singapore, Malaysia, Maldives).
“This collaboration will enable us to identify local talent and contribute to their inclusion to the Maldivian hospitality market as a Take Care initiative pertaining to our Corporate Social Responsibility at Marriott International. We welcome and appreciate these new partnerships and look forward to embarking on this journey with MIT & the Ministry of Youth. We are confident that with our continued collaboration, we can build a very successful pipeline of future local talent.” The signing of the MoU represents a significant step towards building a successful pipeline of local talent in the Maldives. Marriott International Maldives is the first international hospitality brand to collaborate with the government apprenticeship program, and the partnership is expected to have a positive impact on the country’s tourism industry.
The MoU was signed at a ceremony held at Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort. The ceremony was attended by Hussain Shareef, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Community Empowerment, Saudath Afeef, Director at the Ministry, Adam Haleem, Director of Programs at MIT, and Emma Jones, Area Director of Human Resources, Marriott International – Singapore, Malaysia, Maldives.
