A $300 million funding agreement was struck today by the Bangladeshi government and the World Bank to provide 900,000 economically disenfranchised rural adolescents with the skills and alternative education they need for employment and entrepreneurship. Approximately 60% of the total would be female.
In this regard, a loan agreement was signed today on behalf of the government and the World Bank by Economic Relations Division (ERD) Secretary Sharifa Khan and Abdoulaye Seck, Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan.
The 30-year term of the concessional loan, which includes a five-year grace period, comes from the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank.
The Economic Acceleration and Resilience for NEET (EARN) Project would assist vulnerable and underprivileged youngsters in overcoming obstacles to education and employment.
According to a press release, it would offer rural youngsters who are not in education, employment, or training (NEET) skills training, alternative education, employment, and entrepreneurial help.
In order to provide a variety of options for skill development as well as online and offline training courses in market-driven and futuristic trades, the project will create vocational training centers. They will be in places that rural adolescents, particularly women, will find comfortable.
It will also offer competitive financing and mentorship support for entrepreneurial activities. It will help secondary school dropouts, particularly female students to complete vocational secondary education.
“The government placed high priority on economically engaging the youth, particularly female and disadvantaged ones, who are not in education or employment through skill development,” said ERD Secretary Sharifa Khan.
“This project is aligned with the Eighth Five-Year Plan 2021-2025 and thus will support the country’s graduation from LDC status in 2026 and the vision 2041. It will support the government plans and policies by establishing a comprehensive support mechanism for economic engagement of the rural NEET youth, including the persons with disabilities, and segment of the population with special needs, which is essential.” she added.
“The youth are the future of any country. Creating a well-equipped competitive workforce, where no young person is excluded, is a critical development priority for Bangladesh,” said World Bank Country Director Abdoulaye Seck.
“The project will help develop a competitive workforce through skill development, continuity of education, and employment opportunities while addressing underlying cultural and social norms that drive exclusion, particularly for women, people with disabilities, and ethnic minorities,” he added.
In Bangladesh, 12.6 million young people, or around 27 percent of the population, are considered NEETs. Most of them live in rural areas and are female in proportion to their population.
The project will provide skills development training for a variety of market-relevant occupations with a focus on modern and non-traditional trades, especially for women, to improve their employability.
The project would offer access to Bangladesh Open University education programs through an accelerated curriculum for secondary school dropout kids and adolescents.
They will be able to access diploma-level technical education in fields such as nursing, medical technology, agricultural food processing and other courses. To support entrepreneurship, the project will provide seed financing, mentorship, and other relevant supports to the new entrepreneurs.
To create a supportive environment for youth to participate in skill development activities, the project will launch communications and awareness-raising campaigns and involve the communities in planning and monitoring the project activities.
It will also provide incentives in terms of stipend, examination fees, and textbooks to motivate the youth, especially women. It will also promote sports and cultural activities and provide psychosocial support to youth.
Bangladesh currently has the largest ongoing IDA program totaling $15.86 billion. The World Bank was among the first development partners to support Bangladesh and has committed about $40 billion in grants, interest-free and concessional credits to the country since its independence.
