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Evaluation on Youth Employability Phase II
Commissioning Unit: Jordan
Evaluation Plan: 2013-2017
Evaluation Type: Project
Completion Date: 10/2014
Unit Responsible for providing Management Response: Jordan
Documents Related to overall Management Response:
 
1. Recommendation: The central question to be raised after the completion of Phase II addresses the role of UNDP as a development agency, thus UNDP is advised to present the methodology and results to MOL to adopt the successful approaches and insure sustainability and benefit from lessons learned
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

MOL were partners in the project and UNDP worked on the capacity building of the related staff A meeting with Senior management in MOL was held to present all the findings and recommendations A follow up meeting will be conducted with MOL and all stakeholders to insure the adoption and sustainability of successful initiatives

Key Actions:

2. Recommendation: The UNDP stated objectives are to address the challenge of lack of youth ?employability? skills, to provide them with the necessary experience and needed skills that would enhance their marketability and employment opportunities and to enable them to compete in the labor market. Hence, the central question and the premise that should drive any potential Phase III of the ?Youth Employment Generation Programme - Jordan Component? is ?employability VS employment?. Accordingly, it is strongly recommended, and based on the experiences of Phases I and II, that UNDP pursues the ?employability? route of youth and not necessarily their direct placement and employment. UNDP is a development programme and not an employment or recruitment agency
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

Based on lessons learned from phase I, UNDP had adopted the demand-driven approach to support the youth in finding jobs, UNDP could achieve around 75% retention rate within the vocational programme which target school drop outs and high school graduates and around 30% retention rate within the programme of employability skills support and internship which was designed for university graduates. Still UNDP has invested in building the capacity of the youth to enhance their opportunities in the labour market

Key Actions:

3. Recommendation: UNDP focus, energy and funds should gear future activities toward preparing committed and responsible youth with a high level of national sense of belonging, identity, national immunity, a sense for civic and public engagement, a sense of self-worth within the community they serve and benefit from. UNDP should energize the youth to become responsible citizens, equip them with the strength and inner drive for self-realization and achievement?to give them the ammunition to face the world, seize opportunities, including but foremost, the ?first job?, and fight for survival
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

Based on lessons learned from phase I,UNDP has introduced the civic engagement component for the youth along with the life skills and employability skills UNDP has submitted a project proposal aims at creating opportunities that bring the local authorities, youth and the local business community together into partnerships for common benefit, and create platforms for pro-active engagement of youth in the development and resilience

Key Actions:

4. Recommendation: In the face of severe competition from the public sector as a ?preferred employment venue? for male youth, UNDP is to shift gears towards female focused programmes especially that Phase II experience shows females have a higher sense of commitment and self-realization due to many cultural and practical reasons. Young women, and against conventional wisdom, are ready today to take that ?risk?, step out of their homes, against all odds, take the first job and persevere
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

Around 75% of all beneficiaries were females Youth who also proved to achieve high performance and commitment levels through training and internship

Key Actions:

5. Recommendation: A ?Financial Literacy for Women? is one innovative training project that can be organized with one financial institution like the Arab Bank for example. Women are trained to keep ?household books?, budgeting and managing simple accounting, for their own household purposes, household informal business but rather for self-employment and micro own projects
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

UNDP offered financial training to the beneficiaries? of micro-businesses and entrepreneurial component and the support will be offered for 2 years after starting up businesses to insure sustainability

Key Actions:

6. Recommendation: It is however not suggested that the ?male component? takes back stage in UNDP development activities. In fact, more rigorous selection criteria for males are applied with a strong focus on ?social? responsibility and awareness. It is highly recommended and for all future endeavors that UNDP exercises a more conscious ?filtering? procedure to attract only the most committed?beginning with a test on public engagement such as participating in national or local elections, social or sports club or association membership, knowledge of the constitution, recognition of national achievements and sense of pride, volunteerism, tolerance and acceptance, fundamental human rights and other ?emotional intelligence? measures. Only the fittest are recruited to join vocational training, internship and otherwise ?orientation? courses
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

UNDP has targeted the most vulnerable youth and partnered with CBOs and Ministry of labour through its directorates at the different governorates. UNDP had to work hard to follow up on the commitment of male youth beneficiaries especially within the vocational programme as the youth are less educated

Key Actions:

7. Recommendation: The micro-businesses and entrepreneurial program with support for starting up period proved be successful at the remote governorates due to limited job opportunities and the preference of youth to work within their communities especially for women ,thus UNDP is recommended to continue with venture-capital funding in other localities and governorates, especially the urban centers
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

UNDP has applied the micro-businesses and entrepreneurial program at 6 governorates within this project and at 2 other governorates within other project. UNDP succeeded in building the capacity of 400 youth on ?How to Do Business? and funded 129 micro-businesses which will offer job opportunities to around 550 unemployed youth. UNDP has also started a new project to support the creation of short-term employment, targeting unskilled vulnerable population which will be translated into sustainable and resilient livelihoods creation

Key Actions:

8. Recommendation: Engaging the private sector in the initiatives was an added value, through partnering with beneficiaries to support them in establishing and sustain their microbusinesses, opening remote satellite factories to respond to the demand of female vocational training beneficiaries, hosting the interns, thus UNDP is recommended to enhance the engagement of private sector in its programs and promote the CSR concept and the vital role of private sector in local development
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

UNDP recognizes the role of private sector in development and seeks to open channels of cooperation within CSR and PPP concepts

Key Actions:

9. Recommendation: A ?First Job? training of one week should be introduced to fresh ?market entrants? such as VTC, community college and university graduates, that tackles the question of first job, its importance as a jumpstart to the realities of the job market, in particular when offered jobs do not match academic or career specializations. Importantly, these workshops should feature ?role models? who ventured into ?a first job? that offered a rewarding career path or life experience
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

UNDP prepare all beneficiaries within this project to the first job. Also will share all recommendations with MOL who is in charge of executing the employment strategy and follow up with all related stakeholders

Key Actions:

10. Recommendation: In the case of hospitality and tourism, banking and otherwise ?stigmatized? sectors, vocational or internship opportunities should engage parents on visits to real job environments where they and their sons/daughters can observe and live a firsthand experience of offered internships/placements in order to mitigate ?misconceptions? towards certain workplaces
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

UNDP will take this into consideration in its future youth employment interventions. UNDP is seeking fund to launch an awareness campaign targeting youth and their families to influence and change the mindset of Jordanians, whether youth or their families, in favor of vocational jobs and stigmatized sectors

Key Actions:

11. Recommendation: Finally, and most importantly, it is strongly recommended that UNDP established a small ?delivery unit? as a necessary mechanism designed to follow-up and monitor the sustainability of initiated and existed initiatives even when the ownership of such initiatives is transferred to Government or private sector partners
Management Response: [Added: 2014/12/23]

UNDP keeps a database for all beneficiaries as agents for UNDP future activities. Also UNDP has agreed with NGO partners to provide progress reports of all beneficiaries and initiatives after closure of project

Key Actions:

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