Rio, January 13, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - Today, the city government of Petrópolis, together with the non-governmental organization Viva Rio, gave official start to the Community TV-Course project. The objective of the initiative is to assist needy youth 15 years old or older who haven't completed fundamental schooling (through eighth grade) and to prevent violence. 1200 youngsters will be benefitted.

The course will last one year and will offer a diploma acknowledged by the Ministry of Education. There will also be classes in informatics, human rights, first aid, and disaster prevention.

According to the coordinator of the Viva Rio Movement, Rubem Cesar Fernandes, a third of young people between 16 and 24 years of age did not finish fundamental educationg. In the state of Rio, 700 thousand youngsters in this age category dropped out of school. "300 thousand of these young people are in the city of Rio de Janeiro," Fernandes said. He added that, up to now, more than 50 thousand people have received the benefits of the Community TV-Course. (DAS)