Youth in Lebanon and particularly in areas such as Akkar and North Lebanon have long been marginalized and suffer from lack of access to education and employment opportunities. The situation has recently been further exacerbated by the economic crisis.
According to a report by the World Bank, Lebanon faces high youth unemployment and inactivity with 40 percent of youth neither in employment nor in education or training, which had led to loss of human capital through migration, mostly of the educated youth[1].
Founded in 2016, EMPOWER is a Lebanese NGO whose mission is to promote social, economic and cultural development, with a focus on empowering youth and providing tools for employment through capacity building, training and mentorship.
In its belief and mission to improve the livelihood of youth, EMPOWER partnered with Mada Association[2] andUNICEF with the funding of the governments of the Netherlands, Finland and Norway to implement a project in Akkar, North Lebanon, and Beirut-Mount Lebanon for youth development and empowerment titled “Capacity Building and Mentorship for Youth”.
“Capacity Building and Mentorship for Youth in Akkar, North Lebanon, and Beirut-Mount Lebanon”
Launched in 2018, between Mada and EMPOWER and with the support of UNICEF, the project aimed to support youth in Akkar, North Lebanon, and Beirut-Mount Lebanon in:
1) Vocational training on: forest nursery, green house management, phone maintenance, accounting, photography and editing.
2) Digital skills training: social media account management to create content aimed for a specific target audience to be able to promote the participants project to gain reach and to spread awareness to their community.
From the launch of this project to date, EMPOWER has reached a total of 585 youth in vocational and digital skills training (45% are girls).
Six career days, were successfully carried out in Kobeyat, Halba, Minieh, Bebnin, Tripoli and Sin El Fil and attended by 3,500 youth that were assisted in their career orientation and linkages to the job market.
Additional vocational courses were included in 2020 to reach youth in Akkar and North Lebanon with
a) a strong emphasis on practical classes;
b) focusing on the competences required by the labor market coupled with life skills training
c) close individual follow-up and coaching.
The topics of the trainings were in the following sectors: Agriculture, Poultry raising, Cooking & Service, Makeup, Hairdressing for ladies, Manicure and Pedicure, Barber.
144 youth, of whom 54% are girls, enrolled in the above-mentioned training sessions, and 30% of the traineesgot internship opportunities following the training.
Out of the total youth reached in the project, 217 youth participated in 2020 in the digital skills and coaching training courses.
The projects they presented at the closing ceremony revolved around recycling, nature protection, awareness on health-related issues and drugs, revival of manual skills such as embroidery, and storytelling to revive heritage.
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[1] source: Lebanon Economic Monitor, The Deliberate Depression, Fall 2020, World Bank Group, Middle East and North Africa Region
[2] Lebanese NGO which aims at reinforcing the relationship between local communities and their natural environment for the satisfaction of their needs.