Background:
Sustainable Reintegration and Livelihood Support for Returnees and IDPs (SRLS) is a project funded by the STFA and implemented by 6 UN Agencies from the ER-Durable Solutions Working Group and other 3 UN-Agencies providing complementary actions in the project implementation. The project was developed in response to the influx of Afghan returnees from Pakistan and other protracted IDPs from other regions to the Eastern Region of Afghanistan.
The forced repatriation of Afghans from Pakistan has caused significant socio-economic implication for the returnees and host communities including resource and services strain and infrastructural pressures that bears a potential risk of conflict arising between the returnees, IDPs and members of the host communities. Access to basic needs and services, sustainable livelihoods and decent employment opportunities for both returnees and host community members is paramount to ensure a seamless reintegration of returnees to their host communities. Some returnees bring with them skills and expertise from abroad that can contribute positively to enhance economic activities in the reintegration areas. However, they face difficulties in securing employment opportunities in the already strained economy. The situation is complicated by the local economy’s limited capacity to create or absorb the new labour force, thus exacerbating unemployment situation.
The ILO through the Durable Solutions Working Group project designed interventions that address the limited decent employment opportunities for the returnees, IDPs and vulnerable host community members through enterprise development initiatives mainly targeting women-owned enterprises. Working with Women MSEs in priority sectors, the project supports interventions that create and sustain more decent employment opportunities and enhance the participation of returnees and vulnerable members of host communities in the labour market.
The project will focus mainly on enterprise development facilitating entrepreneurship and business management trainings using the ILO standardized modules of SIYB, GET Ahead, business coaching / mentorship, career counselling and Financial Education at ToT levels. The project will also provide post-training support to trainees who successfully participated which will include improving access to finance and financial products for MSEs, access to markets and market information for locally produced products, access to mentoring and coaching services for MSEs and promoting the fundamental principles and rights at work.
As part of a broader objective, the ILO seeks to build the capacity of local trainers to deliver the business coaching training programme effectively, ensuring long-term access to high-quality entrepreneurship and business management trainings
Target:
The project targets mainly women from the targeted areas (Surkhroad district of Nangarhar province and Mahtarlam City of Laghman city with a special focus on women. 12 female and 8 male participants will be drawn from both target areas.
Development of Financial Education Training of Trainers:
The International Labour Office (ILO) has designed and tested responses to these challenges. Programmes like the ILO’s Business Coaching/Mentoring have demonstrated promising results in addressing solution to business problems for MSMEs for their sustainability in the market.
Business Coaching/Mentoring is one the raising business management training programmes. It helps small scale entrepreneurs to not give up and find solution for challenges and problems they face for sustainability in the market. Qualifying candidates will be selected to join the two-week course “Business Coaching/Mentoring Workshop” and expected to become a successful business coach for MSMEs and conduct field coaching after the Workshop.
This Workshop is the first step in obtaining the certification as Business Coach/Mentor. It will be facilitated by ILO certified Master Trainer and will introduce participants to both the technical content of the relevant Business Coaching and to methodologies.
The objective of this workshop is to enable Business Coach/ Mentor service providers to achieve organizational goals as well MSMEs goals for the businesses. The course will enable the participants to:
- Get a detailed understanding of the steps in introducing Business Coaching/Mentoring.
- Understand the key differences in target groups and learning objectives of Business Coaching/Mentoring.
- Identify different strategies for marketing the services for specific target groups.
- Be aware of the best practices in managing a Business Coaching/Mentoring Services.
This is an entrepreneurship training programme for women who are already engaged in or want to start a small-scale business. It differs from conventional business training methodology as it highlights entrepreneurial skills from a gender perspective. It is tailored for women and other vulnerable groups who have limited literacy and numeracy levels.
This initiative will equip 12 selected female and 8 selected male trainers with the skills needed to deliver Financial Education ToT training to aspiring women entrepreneurs.