Transforming Reality: Opportunities for Young People in Tamandaré

IT course students from 2025

Tamandaré is a beautiful town on the south coast of Pernambuco renowned as a natural paradise with stunning beaches and coastline.  However the town faces significant challenges in the area of education and providing opportunities for young people.

The local economy is predominantly agricultural and just 0.66% of the municipality is urban.  This means a majority of the people live in the rural areas where access to essential services such as health, civil services and especially education are quite limited.

Tamandaré has one secondary school for the whole town.   According to the last set of data issued by the Institute for Basic Education Development (IDEB) in 2023, 28,7% of young people were at least 2 or more years behind on the level of schooling they should have attained.  This gap directly impacts the National Exams for Secondary School (ENEM) resulting in lower marks than the national average and stopping young people from progressing away from a lower social economic background.  As a result few young people manage to qualify for skills based training and enter the labour market. Opportunities for work become even fewer.

An Initiative that Makes a Difference

28 year old Jony , and 26 year old Matthew grew up facing the same challenges: few opportunities for young people to get skilled work.   They wanted to do something about this and decided to act.  In order to get qualified they had to leave their home town and train.  They returned with a clear objective to make a difference for other young people in Tamandaré like themselves.

Today they own a small technology company in the town and 4 years ago they began to deliver IT training to young people from vulnerable backgrounds and through partnering with project Tamandaré.  As wel as teaching IT they also intended to open doors into the digitial market, a sector in Brazil that is constantly growing.

From Apprenticeship to First Employment

Once Jony and Matthew had identified keen young people who showed an interest in their vision then they visited the families of their potential apprentices. Their aim  was to better understand the context of those they were willing to invest in, their difficulties and challenges and evaluate how they could both offer more effective support to each young person.  This approach meant that the young people were not only learning technical skills but also that they were receiving a much more personal and bespoke kind of assistance  to help them overcome their challenges.

Jony and Matthew believe that the digital market can change lives, opening doors to a better reality for young people in Tamandaré.  They notice that, apart from technical knowledge, things like commitment, efficient communication and a genuine interest to learn are essential if young people are going to be successful.

“The technical part can be taught, but dedication and the desire to grow make all the difference”

Matthew dreams of being able to point young people towards university and towards the labour market thus contributing to the transformation of families in Tamandaré who are still experiencing social vulnerability.

Together We Can Change More Lives

Just as Matthew and Jony are making a difference, we need more people and companies willing to support such a cause.   Investing in education and the training of young people in Tamandaré is an essential step in breaking the cycle of poverty and creating a future with more opportunities and dignity for everyone.

If you believe in the power of education to change lives then join us ! Support initiatives that offer real opportunities for young people to thrive and build a better future.

• Written by Priscila Assis

IDEB 

*Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE)