Following detailed in-country consultations with key Yemeni stakeholders, Silatech is shortly set to launch a series of innovative pilot initiatives in Yemen.
The projects covering the broad mandate of Silatech will focus on Policy and Access, Training and Skills, youth friendly Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise support services and youth access to finance.
Yemen, one of the initial six pilot countries of SIlatech, has a young and rapidly growing population and consequently faces a significant youth employment challenges.
Responding to a pro-active and solutions oriented response to these challenges by the Yemeni government, private sector and civil society, Silatech selected Yemeni as one its first countries to implement pilot projects.
Developed in line with Silatech’s guiding principles of schemes that offer the potential for scale and sustainability these pilots will create over 6000 job opportunities and provide support to close to 1000 youth-run micro and small businesses over a 24 month period.
Policy and Mindset
Silatech will partner with the ILO and UNDP to provide strategic support to the Yemeni Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs to improve the overall labor market functioning in Yemen, particularly benefiting youth, through the strengthening of Government labour information and analysis capacity.
Central to this project will be the integration of a Silatech / EMSI co-developed economic modeling tool which will provide the Government and other key Yemeni stakeholders with economic development, investment and labour force planning capacity which will enable them to maximize the impact of national and foreign investments on youth.
Skills and Employability
Addressing one of Silatech’s key objectives of increasing young people’s access to skills training linked to the requirements of the labor market, Silatech, Qatari Diar, a real estate investment arm of the State of Qatar and SHIBAM Holding, a leading Yemeni Government investment facilitation company, have announced a strategic alliance to train 4,500 youth for identified jobs in the Yemeni construction sector.
Initially linked to major Qatari real estate investment in Sana’a, the capital of Yemen, this project will invest in a package of support services including the training of local Yemeni trainers, the provision of human resource services to select and place trainees in jobs, the delivery of quick-to-market internationally recognised construction skills training, and the provision of skills certification system which will offer trainees a “passport” to employment through the MENA region.
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises support
Targeting the cultural and gender-based barriers which many young women face toward their full and active participation in the Yemeni labour market, Silatech has joined forces with a leading Yemeni non-governmental organisation, YDLF, to support the delivery of a competitive enterprise training, incubation and mentoring scheme. This Young Woman’s Entrepreneurship Project will target 200 youth over a 16 month period, during which 30 women led businesses will be formed, supported and linked to the financial products which Silatech is bringing to the market. These young entrepreneurs will also be provided with ongoing Business Development and Market Access services.
Improve Youth Access to Finance
Silatech has agreed with two leading financial institutions to introduce new youth-focused financial products, addressing a critical barrier to business start up and growth currently faced by young Yemenis.
Firstly, Silatech will co-invest with Al-Amal microfinance bank, the youngest and fastest growing microfinance institution in Yemen, and the only dedicated microfinance bank in the region, to launch an innovative youth microfinance fund. This fund will be available only to youth aged 18-30 and will provide micro loans to more than 800 micro-entrepreneurs during an initial 24 month pilot period. It is estimated that these loans will provide close to 1000 employment opportunities for Yemeni youth.
Secondly, Silatech will co-invest with the Small Enterprise Development Fund that has been delivering successful SME financing for the past seven years, in launching the first Yemeni MSME youth enterprise fund. This fund will be available only to youth aged 18-30, and will prioritise young women. It will provide enterprise loans to more than 150 youth enterprises during an initial 24 month pilot period. 50% of loans will go to newly established businesses. It is estimated that these loans will provide close to 1000 employment opportunities for Yemeni youth.
Reacting to the announcement of these pilots Dr. Amat Hummed Al-Hawri, Minister of Labour and Social Affairs said, “We have a lot of expectations from the Silatech initiative and we consider it a pioneering programme for Arab countries that will make a significant difference in Yemen. The pilot projects demonstrate the breadth and depth that Silatech has to offer.”
Rick Little, Chief Executive Officer of Silatech, “We are delighted to announce the launch of this comprehensive set of pilot interventions in Yemen. As one of the first countries where Silatech will launch its activities we see Yemen as offering exciting opportunities to test our models for youth employment and enterprise development which can then be taken to scale across the region.
About Silatech
Silatech is an innovative initiative engaging the private, public and civil society sectors to promote large-scale job creation, entrepreneurship, and access to capital for young people. It was intended to help address the critical issue of youth unemployment, a serious and growing challenge impacting countries throughout the world. With the support of His Highness the Emir of Qatar and Her Highness Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned, Silatech was first announced in 2008 at the UN Alliance of Civilizations Forum in Madrid and launched in June 2008 at the Doha Summit. Silatech means “your connection” in Arabic, and its strength is in partnering with leaders, corporations and organizations around the globe to promote opportunity and innovation.