From no education to earning a living: How rural young people get essential life skills for work.
Africa Educational Trust (AET), Somalia
Overview
Years of drought and conflict has resulted in Somalia being ranked in the five least developed countries in the world on the Human Development Index. 70% of the population is under 30 years old and adult literacy is 37.8% (only 25.8% in women.)
A high proportion of young people are unemployed and uneducated, and thus unable to drive the economic development urgently required by Somalia. A labour market survey by AET in 2019 showed a large skills gap in emerging industries, with TVET providers concentrating on skills with which the market is already saturated, and which are dominated by gender stereotyping.
In response, AET implemented the ‘Inspiring Somaliland and Central South Somalia youth through skills training and creation of employment opportunities’ project. The aim is to empower 400 young people to either generate entrepreneurship opportunities or be placed in formal employment. The target group is young people, particularly nomadic youth, aged 15-25 with little or no education, with a focus on young women.
Partnerships with Dahabshiil and Premier banks provide micro-loans for some of the young people to develop their own businesses. The current iteration of the six-year project is to develop non-traditional skills training and collaboration with employers and has ended in February 2022.
AET provides opportunities for education in East and the Horn of Africa, specialising in education in conflict or post-conflict arenas. Programmes include women, girls, nomadic pastoralists, refugees and host communities, internally displaced and disabled people. AET has been working in Somalia since 1996.
Good Practice Approach
AET has used an evidence-based approach to labour market development to provide some of the non-traditional skills required in emerging economies. These include IT , graphic design and digital skills, home decorating, professional chef, fish processing, electrician etc in emerging economies such as fisheries, hospitality and social media marketing, as well as coaching and mentoring in soft skills. Following vocational skills training, students undertake either a work placement to develop on-the-job skills or receive a microloan to develop their own small businesses. Students are mentored to select the vocational skill that fits their aptitude and interest and then this translates into either on the job work placement or SME development depending on the skill they have developed.
The main elements of this two and a half-year project are:
- Selection of students by recommendation from community elders and demonstration of willingness to complete the programme with the support of their families. This is especially important for girls who may have family/caring responsibilities. There is no charge for training.
- A combination of basic literacy, numeracy and vocational training. This enables young people who start from a low base, such as livestock herding, to aspire to formal employment or small business development.
- Vocational training in both traditional and non-traditional skills to meet market demand based on market analysis.
- Supplementation of skills in financial literacy and enterprise, combined with mentorship and coaching, to help young people develop sufficient competence to take up employment or establish businesses.
- Partnerships with local banks have made it possible for young people to receive micro-loans at low/zero interest to develop small businesses. ‘Stepped loans’ allow larger amounts to be borrowed as loans are repaid.
- Partnerships with local employers provide young people with tangible work experience/apprenticeships that in turn leads to formal employment opportunities.
Key Results
In the current iteration from 2019 to 2022:
- 450 youth have been trained in basic literacy, numeracy, financial literacy and enterprise, and coached and mentored in soft skills.
- 400 youth have been placed in vocational training opportunities including non-traditional industries such as fisheries, professional chef, IT and graphic design, home decoration, and greenhouse farming.
Success factors
- Through coaching and mentoring, the narrow aspirations of the young people, especially the women, towards non-traditional employment opportunities have been broadened.
- Through organising skilled and experienced staff from local employers to TVET colleges, the colleges have been assisted to establish courses in non-traditional skills areas.
- Long standing relationships with the banks, developed during previous projects, was key to establishing successful partnerships with them to provide microloans. While agreement on the terms and conditions took some time to finalise, these partnerships are proving fruitful.
Challenges/Barriers
Where it was a new principle, obtaining work placements and apprenticeships with employers was challenging. However, employers are now seeing the benefits of the training, support and investment with which trainees have been provided through the project and several employers are considering the trainees for full employment.
Moving Forward
AET is exploring the upscaling of this programme. However, given the levels of input required for each individual trained, the programme has a high per capita cost and there is little capacity to introduce economies of scale. The high per capita cost is largely the result of participants having very low levels of basic education and therefore requiring intense and lengthy input in order to develop to a point of being sufficiently prepared for employment.
AET has replicated elements of the project in Kenya with the nomadic Maasai community.
Resources
www.africaeducationaltrust.org
Julie Polzerova, Executive Director, j.polzerova@africaeducationaltrust.org
info@africaeducationaltrust.org
Nairobi, Kenya tel: +254 728 607 757 / +254 708 157 677
