The "One Million by 2021 Initiative" was launched in April 2019 to catalyze action for youth development in Africa. The African Union Commission does this by facilitating connections between AU Member States, corporate sponsors and development partners to inspire investment in African youth. It aims to create 1 million new opportunities for Young Africans in education, employment, entrepreneurship, and engagement across the continent and in the diaspora.
The Skills Initiative for Africa (SIFA) is an initiative of the African Union Commission (AUC) and the African Union Development Agency (AUDANEPAD) supported by the German Government and the European Union. SIFA promotes the occupational prospects of young Africans through the support of innovative skills development programmes and close cooperation with the private sector as an integral key stakeholder in the creation of jobs. The initiative consists of two components, a Finance Facility and a Technical Component.
The project works with private-sector partners in the garment industry, logistics, ICT, optometry tourism and construction to make training better oriented to employment, to align on-the-job training experience with industry demands and to further increase private sector participation in technical and vocational education and training (TVET).
Swedish Association on Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR) - Launched in February 2015, this fasttrack initiative by the Swedish government is targeted at the quick labour market inclusion of newly arrived immigrants with residency permits and a prior work experience or education connected to a sector in the country facing a labour shortage. The targeted immigrants are offered an initial Swedish language training followed by a profession specific-Swedish language training and eventually an internship in the particular professions or as guidance counsellors and language tutors.
Since 2010, the municipality of Milan has run an innovative employment service, the Centre for Job Orientation and Placement (CELAV), which focuses on empowering residents, including migrants and asylum seekers, to be autonomous and overcome obstacles to labour market participation. Services include increasing beneficiaries’ employability through workshops, CV writing, job placement, facilitation, traineeships for skills development with supporting municipal grants to beneficiaries.
Overseas Assessment Program, or the TESDA Onsite Assessment Program: The Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA) brings its services to the country where the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) are located. Competency assessment and certification services are provided for the confirmation of possession of competencies required in the preferred workplace. Skills trainings are also provided to meet the standards of industries and companies where OFWs can find better opportunities.
This joint project seeks to improve migrant workers and refugees’ access to decent work and sustainable livelihoods by ensuring their employability, and access to employment opportunities and social protection programs implemented in Mexico City and Santiago. To that end, the project will design and support interventions that strengthen and articulate city services in both cities to provide an adequate response to populations on the move who are facing increased vulnerability. It will seek to create public-private synergies by engaging social actors and strengthening social dialogue.
The Joint Programme on Labour Migration Governance for Development and Integration (better known as the Joint Labour Migration Programme or JLMP) in Africa is a long-term joint undertaking between the four organizations, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to implement the 5th Key Priority Area of the Declaration and Plan of Action on Employment, Poverty Eradication and Inclusive Development adopted by the Assembly of Heads of States and Governments (AU/Assembly/AU/20(XXIV)/Annex 3, January 2015) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in January 2015.
IFAD launched the ‘Remittance Community Task Force’ with public and private stakeholders to come up with immediate measures to address the impact of COVID on remittances and in response to the call by the UN Secretary-General for global solidarity within the COVID-19 pandemic. This task force contributed to the discussion within the Financing for Development Process recently launched by the Prime Ministers of Canada and of Jamaica.
MeNTOR (Mediterranean Network for Training Orientation to Regular Migration) is a project that promotes legal migration paths through co-development cooperation projects. In its first phase (2017-2018), MenTOR aimed to improve temporary and circular migration schemes for young people between Italy, Morocco and Tunisia.