New Delhi, Aug 11 (IANS): Aiming to train the youth in mobile hardware repair and technical training in computers and peripherals, Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson on Saturday opened a skill centre in partnership with Electronics Sector Skills Council of India (ESSCI) in Uttar Pradesh's Ghazipur.

"I would like to congratulate Ericsson for launching its community building initiatives in Ghazipur today, namely the 'Skill Centre' and the 'Ghazipur Mobile Vaani'.

"The 'Skill Centre' will impart skill sets to youth which will make them employable or self-employed," Minister of State for Communications, Manoj Sinha said in a statement released here.

The company also launched the "Ghazipur Mobile Vaani", a district-level citizen communication and engagement platform, which will make the people aware about government's welfare schemes and help the company understand their grievances and feedback.

According to the company, the Interactive Voice Response (IVR)-based platform enables citizens to give a missed call on 9266300111 to get information on various initiatives taken by the government.

The skill centre has been designed for end-to-end engagement with Ghazipur youth focused on training and skill-building as well as providing placement assistance, guidance and support for micro-entrepreneurship.

"At Ericsson, we believe in technology for good, wherein we use communications technology to make a difference in the lives of communities around the world," said Nunzio Mirtillo, Head of Ericsson southeast Asia, Oceania and India.

"We have set up the ‘Ericsson Skill Centre' in Ghazipur which will not only provide mobile repair and computer skills, but also provide placement assistance and support micro-entrepreneurship," he added.

After completion of the three-month training, candidates will be assessed and certified by ESSCI and those who qualify will be supported for placement as well as entrepreneurship.