Securing Livelihood of Migrant Youth through Training and Capacity Building - fundsforNGOs

Skill development can play an important role in reducing the impacts of COVID-19 and help in building the resilience of youth migrants and workers. To enhance resilience and the responsiveness of the migrant population, we will need to reskill and upskill their existing skill set to help them better adapt to changing industry requirements. The proposed project aims to provide long term livelihood options to the migrant populations through reskilling and upskilling their current skill set. This project comes with the objectives like to conduct a rapid assessment to find out the status of migration, establish migrant information and resource centers and provide improved livelihood options to the youth migrants. The proposed project is an attempt to rebuild the lives of over 25000 youth migrants.

Project Summary:

Once the economies reopen there will be an increased requirement of skilled workforce in various sectors and an effective skill development program would ensure that the industries have well equipped and trained people to support them. The proposed project is an attempt by XYZ foundation to rebuild the lives of over 25000 youth migrants across 5 districts in Uttar Pradesh, India.

Background (Give details of project background elaborating on the need of proposed project.)

Reverse migration in the wake Covid-19 has brought back a renewed focus on the social and economical integration of the returnees. Migration has always been associated with better opportunities, be it related to food, education, healthcare earning and livelihoods. However, reverse migrating to the very place that one had left due to lack of opportunity is a difficult thing to get used to. Within India, an estimated 40 million internal migrant workers , largely in the informal economy, were severely impacted by the Covid-19 lockdown. With transportation systems initially shut down, many had no recourse to travel options back to homes and villages, resulting in harrowing journeys home.

Almost all of the recent migration resulting from Covid-19 has left these migrants financially poorer with little scope of re-employment. Scarce job opportunity in villages combined with Government support currently being focused only on sustenance does not leave much to look forward to in the villages. Once lockdown reopens these people will move back to cities in search of work. However there are ample reports that suggest COVID-19 shall remain cyclic with opening and closing defining its cycles. Thus these migrants will have to return home again once the markets close in urban centres in response to Cyclic Covid waves. This will not only put increased stress on the migrants but will also expose their villages and communities to Covid infections.

The proposed project is an attempt by XYZ foundation to rebuild the lives of over 25000 youth migrants across 5 districts in Uttar Pradesh, India.

Thematic Area (Mention the thrust areas under which the proposed project would be categorised):

The project focuses on the following sectors:

- Skill Development
- Community Development
- COVID Relief and Recovery

Proposal (Mention the proposal objectives. Explain the activities planned in order to achieve the specific objective/s along with the time frame)

The proposed project aims to provide long term livelihood options to the migrant populations through reskilling and upskilling their current skill set. The above mentioned goals shall be achieved through the following objectives.

- Objective 1. To conduct a rapid assessment to find out the status of migration in 5 districts of Uttarpradesh and compile a report on migration, skill set of migrant youth and status of unemployment.
- Objective 2. To establish 50 migrant information and resource centers in Uttarpradesh, to build the capacities of the migrant youth in different skills to help them adapt to changing livelihood opportunities.
- Objective 3. To provide improved livelihood options to the 25,000 youth migrants through placement in nearby industries and/or supporting them in establishing their enterprise.

Implementation schedule

The project will be implemented over a period of 12 months. The first quarter of the project will be dedicated to undertaking a detailed research on migration in the five districts of Uttarpradesh. The second and third quarter will be dedicated to conducting the training and skill development activities for the identified youth. The last quarter will be utilised in getting the trained youth placed in different industries and helping the youth in establishing their enterprises in their respective villages.

Target Group

The project will be directly benefiting over 25,000 youth migrants in 5 districts (50 blocks) of Uttar Pradesh. We will be working with both men and women migrants who are in the age group of 18 to 35 years of age.

Proposed Activities

- Rapid Assessment of the impact of Covid-19 on migration and joblessness: Our research team shall conduct a rapid assessment of the impact of Covid-19 on the migration and status of unemployment in Uttarpradesh. We will be conducting a combination of both primary and secondary research to get details of the impact of Covid-19.
  - Secondary Review: Many research organizations and government organizations are closely monitoring the migration that has occurred owing to the imposition of lockdowns. We shall be going through various reports and studies that have been conducted over the last one year on issues related to migration and unemployment in the project sites.
  - Primary review: We will be undertaking a primary survey, with minimal exposure to people and also by following all covid-19 protocols. We will be designing questionnaire surveys that will be shared with the various stakeholders and will be completed online. The various respondents will include
    - Government Authorities
    - Local Administration
    - NGOs working with migrant population
    - Migrants: For migrants, our research teams will conduct telephonic interviews to understand their view on migration and also assess their existing skillset. We shall also do follow up calls for any clarification or supplementary questions.
- Skill Mapping of migrant youth: We will be mapping the skills of the youth migrants (18- 35 years) to understand their competence and the abilities. This will help in designing the reskilling and upskilling programs for the identified youth.
- Stakeholder consultations: We shall also conduct stakeholder consultations electronically. The primary purpose of these consultations will be to develop a suitable strategy for responding to the situation of unemployment that has been a result of COVID-19. The consultations will be attended by government authorities, private companies and institutions. The purpose of these consultations will be to provide us an idea of the skills that are required in the different industries and then accordingly develop an effective training program to train the youth migrants.
- Establishment of migrant information and resource centers: We will be establishing 50 migrant information and resource centers in over 50 blocks in Uttarpradesh. These information and resource centers will be established at block level to disseminate important information related to COVID Awareness, literacy, government projects/schemes and current programs. The information centers will be equipped with computers and consistent internet connectivity and will serve as a dissemination unit and also as a training center to train individuals on various skill development programs. These centers will also serve as a placement cell and will help the youth to get into a job in the various industries in their respective region.
- Capacity building and skill development: Based on the existing skills of the migrant youth, we shall initiate our skill development program. We will initiate the following skill development programs for the migrant youth:
  - Completing Education: For youth 18-28 years of youth migrants, who have not completed their schooling and are interested to complete their intermediate, we will get them registered to complete their education up to class 12. All the candidates that will be registered in the schools will receive tutoring and necessary help in the resource centers.
  - Life Skill and Soft Skills: Practicing life skills help in living a quality life as it improves self-awareness, self-esteem and social skills. Life skills are important as they determine valued behavior and include reflective skills such as problem-solving and critical thinking. Our experts will provide sessions on improving life skills, which will help them not only in dealing with the public, but will also ensure long term success. Considering most of the migrant youth work in the informal sector and lack basic soft skills, we will be conducting soft skills training for all the identified youth. The primary purpose of these training will be to help the youth to be more equipped to enter or re-enter the job market. For the youth to get back into the industry it is important to learn basic soft skills, our trainers will provide training to impart the following skills:
    - Building integrity/honesty,
    - Teamwork
    - Critical and analytical thinking,
    - Communication
    - Preparing for a job interview and CV.
  - Technical Skill Training: On the basis of the skill mapping exercise and the requirement of the job market, we shall provide the following skill developing training to the youth on the following skills:
    - Digital Literacy: This training will be specifically designed for youth who would like to go back into a professional job and have completed their graduation degree. This will be a basic digital literacy training course and the trainees will learn the following aspects:
      - Understand basic computer terminology
      - Perform the basic functions of using a desktop computer, laptop
      - Conduct basic internet search
      - Use their learned skills to seek employment opportunities
      - Improve their computer literacy in their current jobs
    - Women Oriented Skills: There are certain industries like (Beauty/Hospitality/ Apparel and healthcare) which prefer women candidates. To make the migrant women skillful and available for placements we shall impart specialised training in the following sectors:
      - Textile and Apparel
      - Beauty and cosmetics
      - Handicraft
      - Healthcare
      - Depending on prior skills and the inclination of women migrants we shall train them on their preferred sector.
    - Agri-based training: Considering many youth migrants do not understand the basics of agriculture and allied sectors, we shall also impart training on agri based skills. These skills are imparted to the youth who do not intend to migrate to urban areas and are willing to stay back in the villages. Se shall impart training on the following agri-based sectors:
      - Mushroom Cultivation
      - Apiculture
      - Food Processing
      - Organic farming
      - Vegetable Cultivation
      - Floriculture
    - Entrepreneurial Skills: Youth who are enterprising and show willingness to start their own enterprise, we shall conduct an enterprise development training for them. During this training they will be given training on all aspects of starting their enterprise.

- Placement of trained youth: Our team will help in placement of the youth in different industries in the respective region. For youth who are willing to return to urban areas, we shall link them with partner organizations and help them in getting suitable jobs. All the information related to job openings and requirements in different companies will be available in the resource centers and candidates who are interested in applying can apply for the required vacancy through the resource center.
- Establishing Enterprise: We will adopt a group approach to enhance efficiency of service delivery and achieve results at the community level. Trained youth will form strong and sustainable community based organisations to interact with their environment and seize income potential of existing livelihood opportunities.
  - Marketing through Cooperatives: All products both the farm produce and the value added products will be marketed by the Cooperatives. The produce sold by these participants through their cooperatives/enterprise generates a good income for them and Cooperatives also render better services for the members.
  - Improved business and business planning: Youth will be trained on the different aspects of business planning. With this planning process, they will be able to give the right direction to their business plan, ensure good savings in the Cooperative and arrange for better marketing arrangement for their members.
  - Linkages to financial institutions: We shall support the entrepreneurs to get required funding for their ventures. There are several government schemes that can be availed by the trained youth in setting up their enterprise. We will help them to apply to different schemes and will also link them to various government financial schemes that support new enterprises in rural India.

Team for the project (Mention job profile & eligibility criteria for selection of staff/team members for the project)

- Project Director- The project director will be responsible for providing overall guidance and supervision to the project. S/he shall be the head of the project and responsible for overall management and monitoring of the project. S/he shall assign tasks to other staff of the project. It shall be his/her duty to monitor the course of the project activities. The Project Director shall prepare the work plans to deliver the project objectives and shall ensure that the project achieves the desired result. (15 + years of experience)
- Project Manager– S/he shall be responsible for the implementation of the project in the field, including achievement of specific project results, and for the use of funds through effective process management and well established internal project review and oversight mechanisms S/he shall be responsible training & strengthening the staff on Community Management and updating them on the subject matter. The project manager will be responsible for ensuring the timely delivery and execution of the project as per the agreement. (8 + years of experience)
- Research Officers- The research officer will be responsible for conducting the initial research on all aspects of migration and joblessness in the state. The research officer will conduct both the primary and secondary literature review to develop a detailed report on migration patterns and the status of unemployment in the identified districts. ( 5 years of experience in social research)
- Skill Development Training Specialist– We will be hiring trainers (short term) for conducting training on different skills for the identified migrants.
- Placement Officer– The placement officer will be responsible for getting the trained youth placed in different industries as per their skill set. S/he will be responsible for developing linkages with the HR department of various industries. The placement officer will also be responsible for helping the trainees apply to different vacancies, preparing the candidate for job interviews and sharing relevant job opportunities among the trainees. (5 years experience).

Monitoring Mechanism

The project director will conduct a monthly assessment of the project against the agreed deliverables and will suggest suitable measures for course correction.

Monthly reports will be submitted. The reports will have details related to the number of trainings held in a particular month, along with the placement and establishment of enterprises by the trained youth. We will be preparing an assessment sheet for all the training programs and will conduct a pre- training and post training questionnaire to see the effectiveness of the training session.

Outcomes/Result expected – (Mention the Quantitative & Qualitative outcomes)

Performance Indicators:

- No of online consultations held
- No of youth migrants trained
- Percentage increase in the family income
- No of trainings conducted
- of women trained
- of enterprises established
- of trainees placed in different industries
- of products standardized

Project Outcomes

- 25 migrant information and resource centers were successfully established.
- 25000 youth migrants trained on different skills.
- 30% of the trained youth establish their own enterprises in their villages.
- Awareness of 25000 women on government schemes and various programs enhanced.
- 25000 youth imparted life skill training for their overall development.
- Increased income and confidence will have a multi-generational impact as it will help in securing a better future for the entire family of 25000 youth.
- 50% of the trained youth are placed in nearby industries and are able to secure better livelihood.
- 20 % trained youth are able to get promoted in previous jobs as a result of training and skill development.
- Reduced incidents of out migration.