1. Alternative Ways for Successful Job Applications
Name: Mr. Retta Getachew, Executive Director, Ethiopian Center for Disability and Development (ECDD) P.O Box, 1530 Code 1250, Addis Ababa, Tel: (Office), (Mobile),

2. Who are We?
Ethiopian Center for Disability and Development (ECDD) is a non-governmental organization (NGO) and a resident charity, established in 2005.
ECDD works to promote and facilitate disability inclusive development- the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the mainstream development- in Ethiopia.

3. What is the Challenge?
Ethiopia’s labor law and employment proclamation stands strong for people with disabilities- affirming the provision of equal opportunities for people with disabilities in the labor market.
Despite this, employment opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities is extremely limited due both the lack of marketable skills on the part of youth and adults with disabilities as well as widespread misconceptions within the community about the abilities and potential of people with disabilities.
The current labor law in Ethiopia stands strong for people with disabilities. The country’s Parliament has adopted a Proclamation concerning the right to employment of people with disabilities which voids any other law, practice, custom, attitude or discriminatory treatment that threatens equal opportunities for people with disabilities in the labor market. However, despite such a legal framework, there is still a great lack of employment opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities. This is due to both the lack of marketable skills on the part of youth and adults with disabilities as well as widespread misconceptions within the community about the abilities and potential of people with disabilities.

4. What did we propose and implement to address the challenge?
ECDD with the support of USAID, launched an “Inclusive Skills Training and Employment Program for and by persons with disabilities” (ISTEP) in 2013 for a 3-year period.
ISTEP Program advances workforce skills development and employment opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities in two city administrations and four regions of Ethiopia.
Focus on:
creating skills training,
internship and
inclusive employment opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities by mainstream skills training organizations and employers.
supports self-employment by groups of trained women and men with disabilities.
The situation called for a concerted effort to promote and facilitate employment opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities. The Ethiopian Center for Disability and Development (ECDD), with the support of U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), launched an “Inclusive Skills Training and Employment Program for and by persons with disabilities” (ISTEP) in 2013 for a 3-year period. The Program focuses on creating skills training, internship and inclusive employment opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities by mainstream skills training organizations and employers. It works with public and private sector trainers and employers to demonstrate the work capacity as well as the benefits of employing people with disabilities. It also supports self-employment by groups of trained women and men with disabilities. The ISTEP Program presently advances workforce skills development and employment opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities in Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa municipalities, and in the SNNPRS and Tigray Regions of Ethiopia.

5. What were the expected results of ISTEP?
Improved organizational policies and practices that are supportive of employment of persons with disabilities;
Increased number of persons with disabilities with employable skills; and
Improved referrals and linkages for assistive devices, access to finance and employment (formal and self-employment opportunities).

6. What were the major accomplishments?
746 TVET instructors and support staffs from 17 TVETs and personnel of other government bureaus were provided with a training on how to provide inclusive skills training;
95 (M=67 & F=28) Human Resource managers were also trained in creating inclusive employment policies and practices;
297 (M=115 & F=182) (PI=170, HI= 91, VI=22 and ID= 14) youths and adults with disabilities were provided with vocational skills trainings and basic business trainings. Areas of vocational training include: Food preparation, Hair dressing, Leather goods, Construction, Gypsum, Auto Mechanic, Metal works, Wood work, Cobblestone, Music, Laundry, Tailoring
168 persons with disabilities (F= 111 & M= 57) were placed as interns in different host organizations.
746 (M=461 & F=285) personnel (instructors and support staffs) from 17 TVETs and other related government bureaus were provided with Disability Inclusive and Employment Training (DIET) on how to provide inclusive skills training; 95 (M=67 & F=28) Human Resource managers were also trained in creating inclusive employment practices; 297 (M=115 & F=182) (PI=170, HI= 91, VI=22 and ID= 14) youths and adults with disabilities were provided with vocational skills trainings and basic business trainings. Areas of vocational training include: Food preparation, Hair dressing, Leather goods, Construction, Gypsum, Auto Mechanic, Metal works, Wood work, Cobblestone, Music, Laundry, Tailoring. 168 youths and adults (F= 111 & M= 57) were placed in an internship program in different host organizations.

7. What was the Impact?
17 TVETs and 71 employers demonstrated performance improvements:
allocating budget to provide educational materials and undertake physical accessibility modifications.
Providing sign language training for instructors.
Revisiting their organizational policies and operational documents (strategic plan, annual plan, and report and data collection tools)
Hiring disability support staff (Professional Guidance and Counselors and Sign Language interpreters) .
17 Technical, Vocational and Educational Training Colleges and 71 employers and other partner organizations demonstrated the required performance improvements. Some of the TVET colleges have started allocating budget to modify the physical accessibility of their campuses. Others also arranged sign language training for their instructors. Likewise, some of the institutions have revised their organizational documents (strategic plan, annual plan, and report and data collection tools) to include disability issues. On top of these, some of the Colleges hired Professional Guidance and Counselors and Sign Language interpreters.

8. What was the Impact?..cont
88 (M=58 & F= 30) have secured formal jobs with employers like the Mosaic Hotel and Kedir Yasin Metal Work PLC.
The major types of jobs include metal work, wood work, welding, food preparation (restaurant), building block production, tailoring, leather goods production, plumbing, laundry service and hairdressing.
93 TVET graduates with disabilities (M=33 & F=60), (PI=52, HI= 33 & VI=8) received support to start their own individual or joint businesses.
Linkages with other ECDD projects for access to finance- provision of 500,000ETB (22,000USD) for start-ups.
The program facilitated the employment of 88 (M=58 & F= 30) youths and adults with disabilities in various companies. The major types of jobs that persons with disabilities typically find include metal work, wood work, welding, food preparation (restaurant), building block production, tailoring, leather goods production, plumbing, laundry service and hairdressing. The support also resulted in facilitating self – employment opportunity for a total of 93 (M=33 & F=60), (PI=52, HI= 33 & VI=8) youths and adults with disabilities graduated from the vocational and Training institutions. Of these, 68 (M=22 & F=46) were organized in seven groups (share holder associations/Cooperatives). ECDD facilitated start-up capital provision that amounts about 500,000.ETB (22,000USD) by creating linkage with other projects in ECDD. The remaining 25 (M=11 & F=14), youths with disabilities are now engaged in individual businesses.

9. What was innovative about it?
Internship placements as a strategy for employment/retention by the host organizations
The inclusion of intellectually disabled youths
The rejection of traditional, stereotypical, discriminatory and often unmarketable skills training model in Ethiopia (embroidery, brush and carpet making etc)
Internships placements were successfully used as a strategy for employment/retention by the host organizations.
Intellectually disabled youths were enrolled for the first time in mainstream TVET institutions.
ISTEP rejects the traditional, stereotypical, discriminatory and often unmarketable skills training model in Ethiopia, which provides persons with disabilities with skills such as embroidery and brush and carpet making, with little market potential.

10. What is next?
Publication and dissemination of success stories for sharing and learning.
Scaling up of this imitative by another program in additional 8 TVETs and working with 11 DPOs and disability focused organizations.
Inclusive skills training and employment program integrated in a major 5 year program in one of regions in Ethiopia
ECDD scaled up the existing imitative by another program in additional 8 TVETs and working with 11 DPOs and disability focused organizations.
Inclusive skills training and employment program integrated in a major 5 year program in one of regions in Ethiopia

11. Selected Success Story
“My old self would not have been able to imagine where I am now. I have started writing a better story of myself and my family - with a new vision to be productive on leather production. I will be a model for others with disabilities.”
Roda Nesredin who is now engaged in leather goods production after training