A young Afghan refugee’s career has gained a spark thanks to a partnership between apprenticeship provider MEGT and migrant settlement agency AMES Australia.
Syed Ghazanfer Mosavi had been struggling to find work since arriving in Australia in 2019 and striking the Covid-19 lockdowns.
“Now, I’m really happy I have an apprenticeship and it’s going really well. I want to make this my career and maybe one day open my own business.”.
The 23-year-old was hired as an apprentice electrician by Doveton-based K2 Electrix as part of the federally-funded MEGT Employability Skills Training (EST) PaTH Pilot program.
The Afghan Hazara refugee was born in Pakistan where his parents fled because of religious and ethnic persecution.
“Life was difficult in Pakistan because we living there illegally and we had no certainty about the future,” Mr Mosavi said.
“I am really happy and grateful to be in Australia and life is good here.”
His employer Azim Mosawi said his worker was progressing well.
“He wanted to become an electrician and we needed some new people, so we worked with MEGT and AMES to make it happen.
“They made it easier for us to be able to take Syed on.”
Mr Mosavi was a client of AMES’ Individualised Pathway Plan (IPP) which aims to speed up the settlement and employment journeys of refugees.
It identifies gaps between employer expectations and client’s current competencies and helps clients to learn how to apply their skills and experience.
The IPP also finds opportunities to upskill or reskill for the Australian labour market and helps refugees have the confidence to communicate in the workplace.
Syed was referred by AMES work broker Razia Aslam to MEGT, which runs an Employability Skills Training program in Melbourne’s South East.
“Syed was very keen to find a job and he was very motivated.
“The great result of Syed gaining an apprenticeship was a result of our partnership with MEGT but also because of Syed’s drive and will to succeed.”
MEGT PaTh Employment Consultant Emily Harris said the partnership between her organisation and AMES Australia was key to the outcome.
“It goes to show what can be achieved when organisations collaborate and work closely together.”
