By: Pascaline Rasoarilanto, social worker, vocational training project
The Madagascar YMCA’s ‘Supporting youth in crisis’ project improves youth’s employability and also develops their creativity and skills for self-employment and maintaining their own businesses.
The project, which began in November 2008, supports youth in the slum of Ankazomanga and the remote village of Carion to create these opportunities for viable and sustainable livelihoods.
Two main activities have been set up: a vocational training programme to help young people to acquire specific techniques, and an empowerment programme through which young people reflect on, and plan for, their own future.
The programme starts with the empowerment workshop, where the youth are guided to construct their personal visions, to plan their studies and to acquire the essential skills to integrate with confidence into the labour and/or business environment. Beneficiaries select from vocational training offered by the Madagascar YMCA youth centre, or external training courses. The YMCA works with a number of partner institutes and offers financial and psychological support for each beneficiary, with the support of Y Care International. The length of the technical training varies from 2-6 months and the empowerment programme is 14 weeks.
Very few young people have access to advanced education in the two districts in which this project is run. It is thus strategic to orientate and encourage them to be self-employed as they will have more chance of success.
Indeed, the national economy is essentially based on raw agricultural and mining products, small scale tourism and very little industry. The development of small business initiatives is a good model with strong impact. Areas of small-scale enterprise, small-scale farming and commerce to meet the needs of the local market are far from saturated. Further, local consumers are fed up with the bad quality Chinese products that flood the market while they cannot afford the luxury of western products and services.
There are many opportunities for young people to enter the market through entrepreneurship. These include local food processing, maintenance services, carpentry, metal work, plastics etc. The Malagasy people are talented in handicraft and traditional arts, which opens doors to the culinary arts, fashion and style, hairdressing, clothing, accessories and decoration, and cultural or business events management.
Young people in the project who choose self-employment are especially trained in business plan skills, sales and marketing techniques, financial management and small-scale investment skills.
Entrepreneur testimony: Madagascar YMCA
Pierrot Razanamasy lives with his father in a temporary shelter in Ankazomanga. This 18 year old lost his mother during his childhood and his father is unable to work due to ill health.
Since his early childhood, Pierrot has been obliged to work in the streets to earn an income, selling plastic bags, cleaning the market place or washing cars in the parking lots. Two years ago, YMCA social workers intervened and organised for him to attend school. However, he abandoned this as he was going to school every day on an empty stomach and returning at the end of the day without money to buy food. Pierrot will never have the chance to obtain a degree and be employed by any firm in Madagascar.
Then in February this year, Pierrot came back to the YMCA and decided to start a six-month vocational training in carpentry at one of the YMCA partner institutions. He obtained a scholarship, and all the materials he needs are provided by the project. He studies in the morning, and works in the afternoon except Thursday and Saturday, when he attends the empowerment workshops at the YMCA Youth Centre.
His goal is to set up his own furniture shop. To this end, Pierrot's plans to acquire experience while working for someone. During this time, he will save for carpentry machines. When the time comes to establish his business, he will apply to CEFOR, a micro-credit agency, working closely with YMCA, to borrow funds to buy raw materials for his shop.
Currently, he is finishing his studies. Last week, Pierrot sold the first chair he made in the practical training for 12.000 Ariary (6 USD). He is happy, full of enthusiasm and hope. Pierrot spends his free time working with, and taking part in, recreational activities with the peer educators of Madagascar YMCA.
Update on peace talks in Madagascar
The Madagascar YMCA and its vocational training project was severely affected by the political violence in the capital city, Antananarivo, at the beginning of this year. At the height of the violence the YMCA office was closed. The Madagascar YMCA continues to provide programmes, projects and relief to the most disadvantaged youth citizens in the country. According to Jean-Jacques Cornish of Eye Witness News, current Madagascar peace talks are under threat. Writing about the breakdown of peace talks in Mozambique two weeks ago, he said, “Madagascar’s ousted president Marc Ravalomanana has rejected coup leader Andry Rajoelina as the transitional head of his country. He says the agreement to have elections on the island at the end of next year will not work if this happens.”
He reported that it was clear Rajoelina’s insistence that he fill the position is the stumbling block, while Ravalomanana says the compromise that restored hope in Madagascar after a year of political crisis is threatened by this.
The political parties had set a deadline on agreeing on a transitional leader.
Source: http://www.ewn.co.za/articleprog.aspx?id=20877
