Youth Entrepreneurship Development - Malakal VTC

In line with an Industrial Agenda for Poverty Relief and Transition to Sustainable Development and the Component Strategy to develop vocational training skills for technology acquisition and entrepreneurship competence at the Micro and Small Enterprise (MSE) level, this project is to build on the previous YED project at the MVTC, that has focused on the physical rehabilitation of the centre and the provision of market-oriented new trades/equipment and training of trainers in technical and entrepreneurial skills. Three areas of intervention and upgrading have been requested by the GoSS, related to infra structural support, equipment and technology, as wells as capacity building at several levels.

Therefore, the focus of this project extension phase consists of the following:

1. Further upgrading of the physical infrastructure, which includes technical workshops and training halls, sanitation/water/piping/cabling, and ICT training facilities.
   
   
2. Equipment provision and technology acquisition. It is planned to further complete and upgrade the equipment of selected sectors, such as food processing, welding, carpentry and building/construction. The project will look into addressing the energy issue focusing on renewable energy resources.
   
   
3. Services for capacity building VTC/YED: use of a “bottom-up growth strategy” in demand-oriented short and long-term training at several levels such as VTC management, instructors, and direct training of trainees to build a private sector/entrepreneurial culture with skilled human resources, craftsmanship, administrative, institutional and productive aspects and linking potential entrepreneurs to market opportunities and job potential in a peace building environment. Business development and incubation services are to be introduced. Furthermore, advisory services will be provided to the MoLPS&HRD and the MVTC with competency building for management and staff.

This project is to develop sustainable livelihoods and create productive employment opportunities through micro and small enterprise (MSE) support for young persons, including women, with the provision of vocational and technical skills training by taking a demand-oriented approach to support an industrial culture for value-addition in a post–conflict economy in Southern Sudan. A holistic approach for entrepreneurship development will be pursued by the project.

As to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) #1, #3, and #8, with a focus on target #16 (Productive Work for Youth) and target #18 (Private Sector Development), the Sudan Integrated Programme Development Strategy and its Contingency Plan, the project intends to improve the overall socio-economic standards of living of young persons, including women and those young displaced persons due to the consequences of war, through technology acquisition for small enterprise development.

Overall, the project is to contribute to sustainable development through the strengthening of existing institutional capacities and training facilities in the MVTC, in order to increase (self) employment options, entrepreneurial competence and productivity to support enterprise development and growth in local communities. It is foreseen that technical vocational training combined with entrepreneurship development/job creation will aim at least 2,000 beneficiaries, through both short-term training (ranging from two weeks to six months) and three-year programmes. Through the training programmes for the creation of MSE businesses, approximately 500 trainees will be engaged in sustainable productive (self-) employment activities by the end of December 2009, approximately 30% of these being women.