Women often face difficulties in accessing the labour market due a variety of reasons such as lack of education, poor economic condition, family and household responsibilities, limited technical skills and social reasons. To promote the employment of women and girls, the Employment Fund (EF) in Nepal aims to include women and girls as 50% of its overall clientele each year.

Under a contract with the World Bank, EF implemented the Adolescent Girls Employment Initiative (AGEI) from 2010 to 2013, connecting 4,410 young women aged 16 to 24 to skills training. 65% of the graduates were gainfully employed after the training. To attract women, additional components were introduced, including a life skills training module.

A study on “Access of Women to Skills Training” was commissioned in 2014 to document the process and strategies applied by EF to enable women between the age of 16-40 to acquire skills training for employment, as well as to gauge the contribution and impact of EF skills training in the lives of these women gradu- ates. This learning series is based on the study which reached 423 EF graduates, age between 16-40, who received training between 2010 and 2013.

This summary note focuses on the implementation aspects, and relevance of the business skills training provided under the EF.

Overview of business skills training – objectives, content, scope, and coverage

The major reason for the introduction of business skills training was that most graduates of occupational skills training programs opted for wage employment. It was envisaged that business skills training would motivate some of the trainees towards self-employment and starting their own enterprises.

Business skills training was offered to trainees who are interested in entering self-employment after the completion of occupational and life skills training. The training was 5 days long, and the content was a blend of IEDI model of micro-enterprise creation and International Labour Organization’s (ILO) version of Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB). The content focused on entrepreneurial traits, identifying and selecting business ideas, and business planning.

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When asked about their impressions of the training, almost 100% of the women respondents said that they were satisfied with the train- ing and that it was a very good experience in their lives, even if they had attended only due to peer pressure. Only three women responded that it had not been a positive experience. Similarly, women said that the biggest benefit from the training was gaining knowledge, perhaps because many of these women had never been to school. It was clear in the discussions that their main motivation for the training was gaining knowledge and the intellectual stimulation rather than the ensuing opportunity for employment.

To promote the employment of women and girls, EF encourages women to participate in non-traditional trades where fewer than 50% of the workers are women, in order for women to have an opportunity to earn the higher levels of income and to demonstrate the capabilities of women in society. A study on women in non-tra- ditional trades in 2014 examined the perceptions of women on these trades and the factors that caused them to change trades or stop working (or not) in a trade usually done by men.

Women often face difficulties in accessing the labour market due a variety of reasons such as lack of education, poor economic condition, family and household responsibilities, limited technical skills and social reasons. To promote the employment of women and girls, the Employment Fund (EF) in Nepal aims to include women and girls as 50% of its overall clientele each year. A study on “Access of Women to Skills Training” was commissioned in 2014 to document the pro- cess and strategies applied by EF to enable women between the age of 16-40 to acquire skills training for employment, as well as to gauge the contribution and impact of EF skills training in the lives of these women graduates. This learning series is based on the study which reached 423 graduates, age between 16-40, who received training in occupational skills, life skills and business skills between 2010 and 2013.

During focus group discussions (FGDs) and key informant interviews, the T&Es offered several observations and suggestions of their strategies regarding the training and the employment of women especially at younger ages in non-traditional trades. The T&Es also said that ten years ago, it was impossible to interest women in learning non-tra- ditional trades, but now that has changed and some non-traditional trades are perceived as being more acceptable for women.

T&Es said perceptions of trades are changing as the numbers of wom- en working in them increase so those trades are becoming more so- cially acceptable for women to work in them. Two such trades are mobile phone repair and bamboo crafts making. One T&E referred to these trades as transitional trades. It is likely that with growing numbers of women working in these trades, there will soon be a tipping point where these trades are perceived as “traditional” trades, which are acceptable for women.

The employment fund applies innovative approaches to ensure the sustainable and gainful employment of its primary stakeholders. The present guide aims at illustrating the interplay and modalities of these working approaches and provides guidelines on how to apply the working modalities in a few simple steps. It further highlights the major lessons learned from six years’ experience of working with these approaches.

Jobs are important for women and girls because the income they earn garners them respect and the power to make decisions in their families and communities. The income is important for helping families out of poverty. Yet women often face difficulties in accessing the labour market due to a variety of reasons such as lack of education, poor economic condition, family and household responsibilities, and limited technical skills. Challenges also remain for women and girls to overcome the perceptions in many communities about women’s roles and the kinds of work that are socially acceptable for women and girls.

The Employment Fund (EF), established under a bilateral agreement signed between the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and Government of Nepal (GoN), is imple- mented by HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation Nepal. It provides vocational skills training to out- of-school youth, who are poor and socially discriminated. EF has been working in Nepal since 2008, through selected training providers, with an outcome-based financing approach. It has trained close to 100,000 youth, with an average annual coverage rate of 15,000. Out of these trainees, around 50% are women.

Under a contract with the World Bank, EF implemented the Adolescent Girls Employment Ini- tiative (AGEI) from 2010 to 2013, connecting 4,410 young women aged 16 to 24 to skills train- ing. 65% of the graduates were gainfully employed after the training.

EF’s experience reveals that women often face difficulties in accessing opportunities in the labour market. They are affected by their lack of education, lack of marketable skills, poor eco- nomic condition, household responsibilities, and social restrictions.

Increasing access of women to employment opportunities requires a focus on trades that cre- ate opportunities in the market. It also requires tackling their social situations; especially gar- nering family and community support for their training and eventual employment. Women also have particular requirements that can make it easier for them to access training and em- ployment services such as training organized close to their community, mentorship, childcare facilities, and toilet facilities.

To attract women to EF programs, additional components were introduced. These included a comprehensive communication and outreach strategy, life skills and business skills training, encouraging the training providers to include women in training for non-traditional trades and enhancing qualifications of trainers – specifically women trainers.

Lessons learned during this process inform this “how-to” guide, which serves as a manual on overcoming the barriers women face in accessing the labour market, and ensuring the train- ing they receive results in productive employment opportunities. This manual focuses on the things to keep in mind for programs that aim to achieve employment of women and girls. It is divided into three phases: the pre-training phase, training phase, and the post-training phase.

Gita Kandel was 23 when she took reception and cashier training in the year 2012. There were 22 women in
the training. She is working as a cashier in the finance company where she completed her on-the-job training. She earns Rs. 12,000 a month and most of the money she gives to her parents who are farmers. She says that it is very important for her to work in a safe working environment. In the future she will only work if the working place is safe. “My parents are very satisfied because my office is 15 minutes from home and it is easy and inside work,” says Gita. After she marries though, she knows she will have to convince her husband to let her continue.