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USAID Métiers Inclusifs

Improving the social mobility and economic livelihoods of 28,000 marginalised young people in urban areas of Kinshasa, Kalemie, and Matadi by enhancing their knowledge, skills, and access to resources and information.
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Kinshasa
-4.3032527
15.310528
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Matadi
-5.8508719
13.4627375
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Kalemie
-5.9127393
29.1913918
DR Kongo
Projektdauer
2024 - 2028
Finanziert durch
  • USAID

Context 

Marginalised and underrepresented youth in Kinshasa, Matadi, and Kalemie face serious challenges in securing stable livelihoods as the result of limited education, poorly adapted workforce readiness training, and lack of access to youth-friendly health services and information. To address this problem, the project adopts locally driven approaches of experienced youth-led, youth-serving actors to improve the social mobility and economic livelihoods of young people in urban areas of Kinshasa, Kalemie, and Matadi. Designed with local youth representatives, activities are tailored to meet young people’s various gender, ages, and disability-related needs, using an innovative, individualised approach. Youth will be accompanied through a holistic process to build relevant workforce-related and soft skills, establish healthy relationships, and access youth-friendly information and services, to more effectively participate in the dynamic workforce of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Challenges

Although young people aged 15 to 35 make up 39% of the population in the DRC, they face significant challenges in securing stable livelihoods. While the national unemployment rate is 11%, 76% of the unemployed are youth aged 15 to 34. Underemployment is even higher at 50% for adults, leading to frustration, especially among women, who are at higher risk of insecure employment. The economy is largely informal, with youth relying on multiple income streams. Urbanisation, driven by young people leaving agriculture, adds pressure on cities struggling to absorb labour. Harmful social norms and structural discrimination further marginalise groups like youth with disabilities, adolescent girls, and single mothers. For example, 51% of women have experienced intimate partner violence, and early marriage and childbirth affect many young women. These dynamics create challenges for the DRC’s development, which will require investing in human capital, especially marginalised youth. To secure employment, young people need skills such as literacy, soft skills, digital literacy, and vocational training.

Main challenges:

  • The DRC's education system, including primary schooling and technical/vocational training (TVET), is under-resourced and inaccessible, especially for marginalised groups like girls and youth with disabilities, leading to low literacy rates and limited skills development.
  • Gender disparities and poor infrastructure, such as lack of menstrual hygiene management, further exclude girls from education, while youth with disabilities face significant barriers, including inaccessible schools and mismatch of qualifications with employer needs.

The project

The programme aims to accompany young people through a holistic process, helping them build relevant workforce related and soft skills. Il also focuses on establishing healthy professional and personal relationship and providing access to youth-friendly information and services. By doing so, the consortium aims to prepare these young individuals to participate in the dynamic workforce of the DRC More effectively. The interventions of the consortium are tailored to address the diverse needs of young people, taking into consideration factors such as gender, age, and disability. The programme addresses the following objectives:

Project objectives

1. Skills development

The programme focuses on providing marginalised youth with literacy, numeracy, and soft skills training, addressing barriers for groups like youth with disabilities, girls, and survivors of violence. A gender-transformative approach will challenge harmful norms, while families and communities will be engaged for support.

2. Income Expanded  

Vocational trainings, apprenticeships, and career counselling will be offered with Swisscontact to 14,000 youth to improve employment. To ensure that training courses meet market needs, Swisscontact will carry out rapid market studies (RMA) and social network analyses (SNA) in the project areas beforehand. Special attention will be given to women’s childcare needs and youth with disabilities through tailored support and disability awareness training. Financial education and entrepreneurship training will be offered by CRS and will enhance access to financial resources for young people.

3. Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Status Improved

This objective seeks to improve adolescent sexual and reproductive health through increased access to information and health services. It includes training staff and peer educators on sexual health topics and engaging parents in positive parenting. The programme also aims to reduce stigma in health facilities, focusing on inclusivity for vulnerable youth groups.

Project partners

  • Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and its partners Bureau Diocésain Des Œuvres Médicales de Kinshasa (BDOM-Kinshasa), Collectif Alpha Ujuvi (CAU), Corus International, Congo Handicap, Caritas Kalemie and Caritas Matadi

Expected results

Inclusive Skills Development 

  • Marginalised young people develop their basic literacy, numeracy, soft skills and socioemotional competencies.
  • Skills training becomes more gender and disability inclusive.
  • The learning environment around marginalised young people becomes more supportive.

Income Expanded

  • Increased access to employment information and training for young people
  • Youth workforce development programmes become more gender and disability inclusive.
  • Marginalised young people gain better access to financial information and resources.

Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Status Improved

  • Access to appropriate information and health services for adolescent girls is increased.
  • Local health systems are strengthened to respond to the needs of survivors of sexual and gender-based violence.
  • Available information and health services become more inclusive.