An educational programme which has reached 7,000 pupils island-wide is set to continue for the next five years.
For the past decade, charity Junior Achievement has been running the ‘Our World’ initiative which combines skills development with raising the topic of how countries trade with each other.
Now, thanks to funding provided by philanthropists and island residetns the Scheinberg family, the charity can continue to run the programme until 2029, reaching every Year 6 pupil in education.
The ongoing support allows Junior Achievement to employ two part-time programme managers who run workshops in each school.
Whilst completing the workshop, pupils learn the importance of teamwork, listening to one another and are encouraged to use their communication skills.
Sue Cook, chief executive of Junior Achievement, said: ‘The support from the Scheinberg family has meant every young person in local education over the last 10 years has participated in the Our World programme for which we are extremely grateful.
‘During that time, we have received wonderful feedback from teachers and parents about how much the children enjoy their hands-on learning experience. Some teachers have also told us how lovely it is to see all children engaged, including those with special educational needs.
‘Pupils are inspired to think creatively to learn what it takes to develop a new product for export to another country. They design a product and a marketing campaign, consider the target market and then present their idea to the rest of the class.
‘We are naturally delighted the funding for this programme will be continued for a further five years.’
The Our World programme helps young people understand why products are imported and exported, as well as the effect of global supply and demand on the value, price, use and sustainability of the world’s resources.
In addition, pupils learn how businesses work together from supplying raw materials to the finished product and the connection between each other, alongside what happens when the supply chain breaks and goods are not delivered.