Partnership for Prospects in the Middle East

Contact details

Submitted by: Dr. Silvia Morgenroth, Head of Division 221, Tackling the root causes of displacement, Partnership for Prospects

Email: [email protected]    

Website: www.bmz.de/en

Social: @BMZ_Bund

Introduction to the project

Country

Middle East and Turkey

Duration

2016 - Ongoing

Description

The Partnership for Prospects (P4P) is an initiative implemented in countries affected by the Syrian crisis (Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Syria). It aims to provide economic prospects through financing short-term employment opportunities for refugees and host communities. The programme links these employment opportunities with investment in public infrastructure improvement (water and waste management, environmental initiatives, and public transportation), in order to provide long-term assets for the development of host regions. Through financing teachers’ salaries, the partnership further enables children and young people affected by the crisis to access education.

The Partnership also aims to create longer-term employment perspectives for refugees and vulnerable members of host communities through vocational education and training programmes. In March 2019, BMZ entered into a formal cooperation (MoU) with ILO to further strengthen the resilience of countries affected by the crisis, reduce violent conflict and promote sustainable development. Together with ILO, BMZ promotes access to local labour markets for refugees and advocates for decent work for all.

The programme thus contributes to goals 1 and 2 of the GCR, namely to ease pressures on host communities and enhance refugee self-reliance

Main activities of the Good Practice

The programme provides perspectives for refugees and host communities through:

1. Creating employment opportunities for displaced persons and host communities, mainly in the fields of public works and infrastructure.
2. Financing teacher salaries to enable children and youth affected by crises to continue their education.
3. Providing vocational education and training and integrating short-term qualifications into cash-for-work activities, to ensure that the job opportunities are combined with skill development.
4. Investing in public health and education infrastructure.
5. Providing mental health and psychosocial support to adults, children and young people.

It further invests in improving the living standards in environmentally sustainable ways through:

1. Investing in the rehabilitation and maintenance of public infrastructure (housing, transport, schools and hospitals).
2. Protecting the environment and promoting sustainable resource management (e.g. water management, waste management and reforestation).
3. Support to micro, small, and medium enterprises and start-ups.

Partners

• Sector Ministries in partner governments (Labour, Education, Public Works)
• International Labour Organisation (ILO) 

Challenges and how they were overcome

Sustainable medium- to long-term economic development:

• Many of the economies in host countries have high unemployment rates, and in some countries, only specific sectors are open to the displaced population. The newly formed partnership with ILO aims to facilitate the adaptation of policies and regulatory frameworks that benefit the local economy in the long term, for example through enabling and encouraging Syrians to formally register their businesses.

 Medium-term employability and income security:

• Short-term employment in the secondary labour market provides only limited income security and few opportunities for workers to enhance their employability in the medium term. The Partnership for Prospects initiative therefore increasingly integrates vocational training in its public works programmes to build the skills of the workers participating in the scheme.

Sustainability of the investments in public infrastructure and cash workers:

• Where feasible, programmes are integrated into local economic development strategies. For example, in Madaba, Jordan, the initiative provides financing for a waste sorting facility, building permanent infrastructure that is staffed by cash workers and managed by the municipality. The latter aims to turn it into a sustainable public facility in the long run.

Results of the Good Practice 

• Employment opportunities - Since 2016, the programme has provided an average of 75,000 short-term employment opportunities each year to refugees and host communities. In 2018 alone, the initiative funded around 90,000 short-term employment contracts.
• Education - Financing of teacher salaries has enabled over 365,000 children to continue their education.
• Skills development - More than 30,000 young people have enrolled in short-term vocational training programmes.
• Investments in public health infrastructure – Over 700 Syrian health professionals received training to join the Turkish health services, enabling them to offer around 720,000 consultations.
• Public infrastructure – Among other results, 500km of roads, 900 schools and 100 public buildings were rehabilitated.
• Environmental protection and sustainable resource management – Eight waste sorting stations and irrigation systems for agricultural lands created and operating, over 500,000 trees planted.
• Support to Ministries of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and start-ups - 336 Syrian businesses registered as part of an initiative implemented in Turkey.

In cooperation with the ILO, the programme further works to improve the regulatory environment and strengthen partner governments. For example, in Lebanon, BMZ and ILO supported the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of Social Affairs to implement labour-intensive infrastructure programmes according to decent work standards.  In Turkey, ILO and GIZ supported on behalf of BMZ the national employment agency IŞKUR to offer on-the-job-trainings and create incentives for employers to hire refugees and marginalized Turkish citizens (e.g. through covering costs such as fees for work permits).