A vocational education and training fund for disadvantaged people in Nepal

Project completed
 Eine junge nepalesische Frau arbeitet an einem Sicherungskasten.
Women are the main target group for the training funded by the Nepal Employment Fund, which the SDC helped to establish. © SDC © SDC

The SDC established the Nepal Employment Fund together with the Government of Nepal and other partners to create training opportunities for young and disadvantaged people.  Training institutions fund the courses and the fund reimburses them if those receiving training find a job with a satisfactory income.  

  

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Nepal
Vocational training
Employment & economic development
Vocational training
Employment creation
SME development
01.01.2011 - 30.06.2017
CHF  5’996’665

Between 400,000 and 500,000 young people come onto the Nepalese employment market every year, of which 90% are unskilled. The SDC established the Nepal Employment Fund together with the Government of Nepal and other partners in 2007.

The Employment Fund has two components: Path to Prosperity (P2P) helps Nepalese 18 to 40 year-olds acquire specialist knowledge and technical skills in 80 occupations to improve their employability.

Micro Enterprising for Job Creation provides support for young people aspiring to start their own business and ultimately create jobs for other young people.

Picture gallery

Empowering disadvantaged people to enter the job market

P2P is primarily aimed at women, illiterate people and young people who are marginalised owing to ethnicity, family background or a disability, as well as those who left school without qualifications. The aim is get them into employment and make it possible for them to earn at least 4,600 Nepalese rupees per month (approx. USD 48 or CHF 42). In 2013, 70% of the people who received training through the project maintained an income over this amount for at least six months following the completion of their course.

P2P participants also received information on reproductive and sexual health and training in social, cognitive and emotional skills. P2P graduates choosing to work independently can take part in business management course.

Micro Enterprising for Job Creation supports young people wanting to start their own business. The project is mainly aimed at migrant workers returning to Nepal and young people who have already completed an access to employment course.

The Fund's Secretariat selects the training providers, oversees the quality of the training and the placement of participants and manages the funding. The training providers are chosen each year through a competitive selection procedure and sign a one-year contract. They identify the current demand on the employment market and pass on this information so that courses can be adapted to demand, and they fund the courses. The fund reimburses the cost of the training when the trainee finds a long-term job on a monthly income of NPR 4,600 (CHF 42) or more. Reimbursements are paid three instalments:

1. 40% of the training costs are reimbursed when the trainee has taken the National Skill Testing Board’s skill test upon completing the course.

2. A further 25% is reimbursed after the trainee has been in uninterrupted employment for three months.

3. The training provider receives the last instalment (35%) when the successful trainee has been in employment for a minimum of six months on a monthly income of at least NPR 4,600.

Bonus for helping disadvantaged people enter work

Training providers get a bonus when they help a person from one of the main target groups – women, economically disadvantaged people or people who experience social discrimination – enter work. The training provider is only reimbursed for the training when the successful trainee has been employed for six months on an income of NPR 4,600 (CHF 42) or more. This system gives provides an incentive both to train disadvantaged people and get them into employment.

So far more than 90,000 people have completed a vocational training course, of which 53% were women. Over 80% of those who completed the courses are from disadvantaged groups.

Training providers

Public and private institutions offering training have to fulfil the following requirements:

  • the means to fund the training courses in advancegood knowledge of the local job market and ties with potential employers
  • staff with the ability to pass on skills
  • the appropriate infrastructuremanagement and supervision skills and an understanding of the learners' needs
  • good contacts as informal networks are important in Nepal

The project managers work with both public and private training providers. Those interested can take part in training in remote regions as well as in the capital, Kathmandu.

Weiterführende Informationen