Announced in 2019, the Unlocking Inclusive Pre-Apprenticeship Pathways continued this year in partnership with the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum to identify and adapt pre-apprenticeship training programs to meet the needs of under-represented and disadvantaged groups. This is especially important in the context of COVID-19, which exposed further skills gaps in the labour market.
We also launched a new program this year called the Skills Compass that will help engage young Canadians who are currently not in employment, education or training to develop the life skills, essential skills and career readiness they need to go back to school and prepare for a career. This three-year program is designed to meet the needs of unemployed or underemployed Indigenous and newcomer youth between the ages 18 to 30 years. In this initial phase, we worked on an environmental scan, which launched in April 2021.