School-to-Career Workforce Readiness Program

About Save the Children Save the Children is a leading international humanitarian organization whose mission is to create a real, lasting and positive change in the lives of children, youth and families in need. We started in the Middle East in 1953 and work in Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Palestine, Yemen, Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, & Morocco in addition to 100 countries around the world.

Save the Children’s Workforce Readiness & Livelihood Programming Save the Children’s workforce readiness and livelihood development programming work with adolescents and youth in schools, out of school, and local communities through:  Workforce readiness programs in formal and non formal education settings for school age adolescents and older youth between  Youth livelihood programs through active training and “learning by doing” between 12 – 24  Providing opportunities for appropriate access to credit and savings (formal and informal mechanisms) Our programs seek to support adolescents and youth in building skills relevant to the market and being able to identify market opportunities (self-employment/employment)

Save the Children’s Workforce Readiness & Livelihood Objectives Improve the opportunities and access to quality education (formal and non- formal settings) by connecting education to real life demands Support adolescents and youth in building skills relevant to the market Provide hands-on market exploration and learning opportunities to better plan future career pathways or take immediate career decisions Help both identify existing market opportunities (self- employment/employment) Improve access to community-based opportunities for life and livelihood skills development

Why Workforce Readiness & Livelihood Programming in the MENA region? Facts & Figures Young people are about two thirds of the population with 67% below the age of 24; Average population of youth (10-24) in the MENA region is 30 %; Youth make up between % of the unemployed, with 50% of them first- time job seekers MENA region needs to create up to 70 million jobs by 2020, taking into consideration that most job growth is in low wage, low productivity jobs, basically in the private sector Youth from poor households often do not have the option to not work, and often work in low-wage labor With improved access to education & 70% of higher education students majoring in humanities & social sciences; the high unemployment rate is among better educated, first- time job seekers--- skills mismatch!

Save the Children’s Program Strategies Note: Maybe you can insert the diagram with the strategies here – that slide we were looking at the other day from the Getting to Great presentation? I don’t have it….

School-to-Career Part of Youth, Technology and Careers Component (YTC), in Education Reform Support Project (ERSP) Implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Education, CREATIVE Associates Int. and funded by USAID

School-to-Career Target group: in-school adolescents (grades 8-11) Goal: To provide market exploration activities for school age adolescents to help them successfully transition from school into further academic education or careers, through: Career Counseling Youth Livelihoods Mapping Work- Place Internships Other elective activities

interactive career counseling sessions facilitated by the school counselor to discuss personal aptitudes, career planning skills & tools, enabling students to make career choices In-School Career Counseling Sessions

offering students opportunities to explore different work institutions and their various career paths by visiting workplaces and collecting data on labor market resources, opportunities and demands Youth Livelihoods Mapping

Placing students in work institutions, exposing them to the realities of the world of work Summer Workplace Internships

A range of elective activities that deepen and enhance learning as career days and guest speakers Other elective activities

parents, communities and the private sector to increase resources and support for schools and students and ensure educational relevance. Partners