Skills and vocational training

This section looks at skills and vocational training for orphans and other vulnerable children. Another section looks in general at ways of responding to the economic problems faced by orphans and other vulnerable children. Other sections look in more detail at other ways of responding, including financial services for the very poor and agriculture. Another section gives examples of various projects.

The key points about skills and vocational training are:

1. There are many examples of projects in which NGOs are seeking to provide skills and vocational training for orphans and other vulnerable children.

2. The purpose of such training should be very clear. If the intention is to prepare children and young people for work, the training must be appropriate for the market needs in the local area.

3. Training should be practical in nature and should ensure that people who complete the course are able to produce quality products.

4. NGOs need to assess carefully whether providing such training is a priority for them and if they have the skills to do this well. In some cases, it may be better for NGOs working on HIV/AIDS to partner other organizations with more expertise in this area.

Project Examples

There are many examples of projects in which NGOs are seeking to provide skills and vocational training for orphans and other vulnerable children. In many cases, these are a small part of overall activities which are often strongly focused on HIV/AIDS. Examples of areas where skills training might be provided include tailoring, brick laying, cobbling, carpentry, catering, art and design, adult literacy and computer skills.

Purpose of Training

Skills training many be offered for different reasons. For example, life skills training is often strongly focused on HIV prevention. In general, vocational training aims to enable young people to find jobs or to gain income by running a small business. Often, these small businesses operate in the informal sector. However, these aims are often not clearly stated in the project documents. There may be a mixture of social and financial targets which makes it difficult to assess the success of the project.

Can NGOs Working on HIV/AIDS Provide this Training?

NGOs working on HIV/AIDS are often very skilled at providing practical, participatory training which is very appropriate in this setting. However, they may lack the technical skills needed. This may result in people completing training without being able to produce quality products in the chosen field. In addition, such NGOs often offer vocational training without assessing local markets. If such training is aimed at providing livelihoods for orphans and other vulnerable children, it is essential that they either gain employment or can operate a small business on completing the course. This will only be possible if there is a gap in the market for the skills they have. In addition, to operate a small business they will need essential business skills. Vocational courses offered by AIDS NGOs may be lacking in this area. In addition, vocational training courses may be offered by AIDS NGOs but may not be their highest priority. This may mean they do not always get the attention they require.

Before starting courses of this nature, it may be worth asking the following questions:

  • Are the skills being developed in this course needed? Are there other skills that are needed more?
  • Will the training be of a high technical standard?
  • Will people who complete the course be able to get jobs or run their own businesses?
  • Will the course give them all the skills they need? (This may include 'how to apply for a job' or 'how to run a small business'.)
  • Does the NGO have the skills to run this kind of training well?
  • Is this training a priority to the NGO? Is it part of their mission?
  • Are there other organizations who have more skills in this area who the NGO could work with?

Resources

Integrated Care for Orphans & Other Vulnerable Children (Eng)

This toolkit, compiled by local organisation in Ugnada shares practical ways to support orphans and other vulnerable children. It includes step by step guides, needs assessment checklists and progrmam models for community service providers.
Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, 2006, PDF, 145 pages, 2355 kb.

Economic Strengthening at the Household and Community Levels to Benefit Vulnerable Children: Proposed Guidelines for Planning and Implementation (Eng)

This guide concerns the critically important role that economic circumstances play in children’s well being and, in each situation, how best to use the most appropriate approaches to improve their situation.
Dempsey, J., Displaced Children and Orphan's Fund USAID, 2003, PDF, 66 pages, 529 kb.