One of the most important initiatives in this sense is the National Programme for Access to Technical Education and Employment (Pronatec) being carried out by the Ministry of Education in partnership with the Ministry of Social Development. The programme offers free professional training courses, lasting a minimum of 160 hours, for citizens 16 years and older, focused on those in the Single Registry for Social Programmes. Those who prefer to work autonomously are encouraged to register in the Brazil Without Poverty Plan as individual micro-businesses, enabling the Brazilian Small and Micro Businesses Support Service (Sebrae) to co-ordinate their participation in a programme that offers technical and managerial assistance.