The Regional Director for Labour, Vocational Training and Consumer Defence, Rui Bettencourt, welcomed in Ponta Delgada on Friday 21 trainees that have concluded their professional traineeships in the Azores under the programme of the Assembly of European Regions - Eurodyssey.

The participants, aged between 18 and 30, were from the Spanish regions of Catalonia, Valencia and Cantabria, French regions of Île-de-France, Rhône-Alpes and Poitou-Charentes, the Belgian regions of Wallonia and Brussels - Capital, and the Romanian region of Harghita.

On the occasion, Rui Bettencourt also delivered the traineeship certificates as well as the Portuguese language and culture diplomas.

According to the Regional Director, "these youngsters have successfully completed their traineeships in various sectors: audiovisual, environment, biology, hotel, restaurant, information or communication."

Every year, the Azores, through the Regional Directorate for Employment, Vocational Training and Consumer Defence, "strive to bring European youngsters to the archipelago with skills in several areas in order to integrate them in local institutions and companies. This traineeship represents an asset for the development of their activities, this reinforcing the Region's image while promoting the employability of qualified youngsters," stated Rui Bettencourt.

Under the Eurodyssey programme, various European regions annually receive an average of 50 to 80 Azorean trainees during a period from 3 to 6 months.