Eighty percent of youth in Ivory Coast are unemployed. Young people, often too old for school, have poor vocational education options. The government-run vocational education and training providers lack uniform standards for quality instruction, including minimum standards for trade competency, safety and protection of trainees or mainstreaming gender.
Through the LEGACY Initiative, which supports youth in countries currently receiving large numbers of returnees from refugee camps in Guinea, IRC is rehabilitating 12 vocational centers with new equipment and relevant learning materials. IRC is further strengthening these centers by conducting a market assessment to inform the revision and piloting of new curricula based on market demands, good pedagogy and inclusion of transferable skills such as business and life skills. IRC also supports non-formal training centers in developing quality vocational education programs suitable for formal certification, and works with local businesses to promote safe and productive working opportunities for youth.
Carrie Berg
Youth and Livelihoods Program Manager
Carrie.berg@theirc.org
