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Key Partners
Status
Start year of the initiative:
2013 – still ongoing.
Next steps of initiative:
Global expansion: To create an enabling environment for digital jobs by coordinating government and businesses without the continued involvement of philanthropy – leading to global adoption of inclusive business practices.
Impact
Country(ies) of impact:
Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa
Number of people impacted annually:
250,000 directly placed in jobs in seven years, 1 million youth in seven years, by 2020.
Time to intended impact:
Less than 2 years
Metrics:
- Number/hours of employees trained and placed in ICT enabled job opportunities
- Social and economic well-being of their families and communities
Benefit to organization:
- Direct benefit to organization: Improving the lives of the disadvantaged youth and their communities; enhancement thought leadership and influence on the issue of youth employment.
Key Partners
Status
Start year of the initiative:
2013 – still ongoing.
Next steps of initiative:
Global expansion: To create an enabling environment for digital jobs by coordinating government and businesses without the continued involvement of philanthropy – leading to global adoption of inclusive business practices.
Impact
Country(ies) of impact:
Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa
Number of people impacted annually:
250,000 directly placed in jobs in seven years, 1 million youth in seven years, by 2020.
Time to intended impact:
Less than 2 years
Metrics:
- Number/hours of employees trained and placed in ICT enabled job opportunities
- Social and economic well-being of their families and communities
Benefit to organization:
- Direct benefit to organization: Improving the lives of the disadvantaged youth and their communities; enhancement thought leadership and influence on the issue of youth employment.
Digital Jobs Africa
Submitted by Rockefeller Foundation
Objective
To catalyse sustainable Information Communication Technology-enabled employment opportunities and skills training for high potential but disadvantaged African youth.
Overview and Main Activities
Digital Jobs Africa, an initiative by the Rockefeller Foundation, aims to take advantage of the youth bulge in Africa and the rise of the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector to bring about impact through job creation. The initiative aims to impact one million lives in six countries in Africa by catalysing sustainable Information Communication Technology-enabled (ICT) employment opportunities and skills training for high potential but disadvantaged African youth. To achieve this, the Rockefeller Foundation is investing US $97 million.
Digital Jobs Africa aims to strengthen participants’ future employment opportunities and serve as a springboard to access jobs with higher pay, new professional development opportunities and enhanced personal development. For example, gaining communication skills through an entry-level call centre role can allow a young person to progress into a mid-level customer service role.
Digital Jobs Africa relies on three interventions:
- Engaging the private sector to hire high-potential but disadvantaged youth in digital jobs for Impact Sourcing to achieve both business and social impact. The Foundation highlights five key benefits of impact sourcing: lower costs, proven and reliable service delivery, large/untapped talent pool, stable and engaged workforce and social impact. The Rockefeller Foundation promotes Impact Sourcing through awareness raising, hosting conventions and developing tools through best practice exchange.
- Training high potential but disadvantaged youth to gain the skills and experience required for digital job opportunities in diverse sectors, including business process outsourcing, online work and retail and hospitality. Training is demand-driven, with the curriculum influenced and designed to meet current needs of the labour market. This includes a focus on soft and life skills, e.g. health and financial literacy.
- Supporting an enabling environment through partnerships with governments and government ministries in ICT and Youth affairs – and supporting them to develop the necessary infrastructure and adopt policies that accelerate the growth of the Impact Sourcing sector.
Corporate partners of the initiative include other companies already involved in Impact Sourcing: Microsoft, Deloitte, Shell, Teleperformance, Accenture, MTN, Equity Bank, Old Mutual, Safaricom, EOH, Cloud Factory, Avasant, Everest Group and Aegis. NGO partners include Homeboyz Foundation, Afroes, Paradigm, Education for Employment, Digital Opportunity Trust, the MENTEC Foundation, Harambee Youth Accelerator, Digital Divide Data, Careerbox, Samasource, Business Process enabling South Africa (BPESA) and the International World Bank.
Success Factors and Challenges
Most critical success factors:
- Helping increasing numbers of high-potential but disadvantaged youth in Africa achieve and sustain significant improvements in their well-being and quality of life
- Employer champions broadly communicating the impact of the programme broadly
- Favorable business environments that lead to the growth of Impact Sourcing sector and the creation of new digital jobs
Main challenges:
- Stimulating sufficient demand to meet high unemployment needs in the six programme countries
Recommendations for Others
The initiative is in its third year and accumulating many milestones. However, the Foundation is taking note of lessons and best practices to address as we continue to implement.
Replicability and Scalability
How easily could other organizations implement this initiative?
Difficult: It is necessary to have the capital risk similar to the RF, as well as the same calibre of partners and level of influence to leverage similar thinking and investment.
How easily can this initiative be expanded to include a larger number of participants?
Very easy: Success depends on multi-stakeholder collaboration, and the Rockefeller Foundation welcomes partnerships from public and private organizations in the six programme countries.
About the Organization
Website: www.RockefellerFoundation.org
Sector: Non-Profit
Size (number of employees): Up to 1,000
Headquarters: New York, United States
For Further Engagement
Contact name: Mamadou Biteye
Contact position: Managing Director, Africa
Email: [email protected]