The main objective of the I Training and Job Opportunities Fair (FDEFOL) held at the Centro Andaluz de Formación Integral de las Industrias del Ocio in Mijas (CIOMijas) is to directly connect companies looking for employees with people who are out of work. The event was inaugurated on Wednesday 26th by the mayoress of Mijas, Ana Mata (PP), the territorial delegate of Employment of the Junta de Andalucía, Carmen Sánchez, and the councillor for Economic Development in Mijas, Juan Carlos Maldonado (PMP). 

“What we want is that there is always a connection between employment and training and that all Mijeños have the opportunity to be always training, but also the opportunity of having a job in the municipality that allows them to live with the dignity that everyone deserves”, said the mayoress. 

The aim of this fair is to provide a meeting point between companies and people actively seeking employment, encouraging the creation of job opportunities and professional development in the municipality. “The idea is to offer a showcase of opportunities. There are many companies here that need to recruit people who are interested in working and many training companies that need students to train and then offer their services to the labour market. An increasingly changing and competitive labour market that needs qualified and trained people”, said Sánchez. 

 

For this first edition of the fair, 31 entities have participated, including administrations such as the Chamber of Commerce of Malaga and the Subdelegation of Defence. In addition, there were hotels, social groups, service companies and training academies. Some 200 people attended.

“The truth is that the fair is being a success and I have to thank the thirty entities and companies that have participated in this first fair of training and opportunities because the employers themselves have thanked the Town Hall for this initiative, because for them it is a direct vehicle to recruit those profiles that are in demand in their company”, said Maldonado.

Training and employment

The area of Economic Development in Mijas has promoted the first edition of this FDEFOL. In addition to the stands, the programme was completed with a series of presentations and round tables on topics such as ‘Your employability, your future: attitudes vs. aptitudes’, ‘New paradigm in vocational training: Dual training’; ‘Artificial intelligence and new job opportunities’ and ‘Job orientation with UAS/Drones’.

“It is an important day for CIOMijas and we are proud to host this fair, because we are a training centre and training for employment is our ultimate goal”, said the director of CIOMijas, Raquel Hidalgo.

A range of possibilities

In an increasingly competitive market, many young students are training to face the future with optimism. Alejandro M. Luque and Álvaro Ruiz are students of the Mitur training programme. “This fair is quite good, I have visited all the stands, I am a tourism student and here there are offers for all areas”, said Luque. Ruiz agreed: “When looking for a job, I think that many times we get obsessed with looking for a specific job and in this type of fair you have the opportunity to see more options”. 

“One of the priorities of the Mijas Town Hall is the development of employment promotion policies, so this initiative is aimed specifically at those who want to enter the labour market. We have the collaboration of some thirty entities that are a sample of the rich business sector in our municipality. It is important to highlight the collaboration with the private sector to increase the levels of employability and promote training. This first job fair, which will not be the last, highlights the companies we have and their needs, and connects them with job seekers”, explained the mayoress, who had the opportunity to visit and get to know the offer of the different companies and entities represented. 

Maldonado expressed himself along the same lines: “From Fomento de Empleo we are very clear about this, the entrepreneurs are the real generators of employment and the Town Hall has to be that vehicle for growth, together with the private alliance, which makes it possible for the unemployment figures we have to be reduced as much as possible”.

For her part, Sánchez congratulated the Mijas Town Hall for this initiative: “It is a great day for Mijas, for CIOMijas and, above all, for all those people who are looking for a job. Today is a day of labour intermediation and there are many companies here that need to find people interested in working”. 

 

Unemployment in Mijas

Regarding the unemployment figures in the town, “in Mijas the number of unemployed has decreased compared to February 2024. Last year we were at 6,584 unemployed and now we are at 6,057 unemployed, which means that we are doing something good together”, said the first municipal authority. Mata also added that “within the ranking of self-employed that has grown throughout Andalusia, we are the autonomous community with the highest number of self-employed, in this past 2024, and Mijas occupies the second position in this growing number of self-employed that are making their way”.

 

Mijas in figures

For her part, Sánchez congratulated the Mijas Town Hall for this initiative: “Mijas is the fourth municipality in Malaga with the highest level of employment, currently with 24,929 people affiliated to the Social Security, however, it also has more than 6,000 unemployed, and although unemployment has been reduced by 8% compared to the previous year, we must do everything possible to continue to reduce this figure”.

According to municipal sources, it should be remembered that, according to the Andalusian Institute of Statistics and Cartography, the self-employed in Andalusia represent 16.6% of the total number of affiliations. By provinces, this percentage is highest in Malaga (19.3%). Among the municipalities with more than 10,000 affiliations, 19 have a percentage of self-employed workers above 20%. Mijas is in second place with the highest percentage of self-employed workers, 31.2%, which represents an increase of 1.4%. The year 2024 closed with 8,476 self-employed in Mijas, which is why these fairs are beneficial to encourage entrepreneurship and promote job opportunities.

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