#ms07: Skills - Trainees working in relevant occupations

Effective skills development interventions and technical and vocational education and training (TVET; in the following referred to as ‘training’) play a fundamental role in preparing young people for employment or self-employment. A lack of qualification and job-readiness, provided by TVET, leads to un- or underemployment and reinforces poverty and inequality. Thus, skills development/TVET are integral to WHH’s strategy. By promoting skills that enhance employability and entrepreneurial competencies, WHH creates opportunities for increased income and a pathway to a self-determined life, thereby strengthening the livelihoods of young people. The Skills indicator is useful to assess WHH trainings’ relevance and effectiveness and the extent to which they have facilitated (self-)employment for the participants.

The #ms Skills indicator measures the number of training participants who have completed training provided by WHH and/or its partners and who have subsequently secured or improved (self-) employment where they can apply the skills they have acquired.

The target group (i.e., population size in ProMIS) is composed of participants in a training, or another skills development support measure provided by WHH and/or its partners, through either a project or funding. This indicator requires a baseline and comparison value(s) to yield interesting information on project outcomes. At minimum, it should therefore be collected as part of both a baseline and an endline survey. A mid-term survey is optional.

To calculate the indicator:

1. For baseline: Count the number of participants already in a ‘relevant occupation’ at the time of enrollment in a WHH training. Update this value with each new cohort within the intervention.
2. For mid-term/endline: 6-9 months (maximum 12 months) after training completion, survey a sample of the training participants and count those employed or self-employed in 'relevant occupations’. If multiple cohorts are trained within a single intervention, the endline value represents the total number of participants across all cohorts who have secured relevant employment following training completion.
3. Extrapolate the number of training participants working in relevant occupations (employed or self-employed) to the total number of WHH training participants. Extrapolation is usually only needed for mid-term and endline data collection, as for baseline all participants should ideally be surveyed during their initial enrollment.

More information: #ms07 Skills Handbook (EN)

Disaggregate the data by gender, age, location, and specific vulnerable groups.

This is a 'Measuring Success' (#ms) indicator. It is obligatory for all WHH projects to integrate all #ms indicators that align with the project context, with a minimum requirement of utilizing at least one indicator (and implementing one #ms qualitative tool).

1. The baseline value for this indicator is determined by the number of individuals who already hold relevant employment at the time of enrollment in a WHH training program. Whenever multiple cohorts participate in a single intervention, the baseline population size for the #ms Skills indicator must be updated with each new cohort's enrollment in the WHH training. For instance, if 300 individuals enroll in 2023, this figure should be reported as the baseline population size for that year. If an additional 200 individuals enroll in 2024, the baseline population size should be updated to 500 for 2024. Therefore, the baseline population size should always reflect the cumulative total of all individuals who have enrolled in the WHH training to date.
2. To facilitate mid-term or endline data collection, it is essential to obtain the contact details of training participants (or their legal representatives/household heads) and secure their consent to be contacted 6-9 months (maximum 12 months) after completing the training. This process should be carried out during enrollment or, at the latest, at graduation.
3. Enumerators should have basic data collection skills and be trained to survey graduated trainees about their employment activities. They should understand the concept of skills development and be familiar with the broader context of the intervention. In this context, they should also have a clear understanding of what a ‘relevant’ occupation (defined as an occupation that is directly related to the specific training or education received) means in the project/program context.