International Youth Foundation

A GLOBAL NGO PREPARING YOUNG PEOPLE TO BE HEALTHY, PRODUCTIVE AND ENGAGED CITIZENS

INITIATIVES IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA: IYF CONTINUES TO MOBILIZE BUSINESS, GOVERNMENT, AND CIVIC LEADERS TO SUPPORT SOLUTIONS THAT WORK, IMPACTING YOUNG AFRICANS IN SUB SAHARAN AFRICA THROUGH PROVISION OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUTH TO GAIN THE SKILLS EMPLOYERS SEEK, AS WELL AS DEVELOPING YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS THROUGH HANDS-ON SUPPORT TO HELP GOOD BUSINESS IDEAS COME TO LIFE. IN 2021 IYF OPERATED 13 PROGRAMS IN 5 COUNTRIES IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA (ETHIOPIA, SOUTH AFRICA, ZIMBABWE, KENYA, NIGERIA) REACHING OVER 32,000 YOUNG PEOPLE. IYF'S BENEFICIARIES INCLUDED ORPHANS AND VULNERABLE CHILDREN, OPPORTUNITY YOUTH, STUDENTS FROM LOW-INCOME FAMILIES, AND YOUTH WITH DISABILITY. THESE PROGRAMS IMPROVED ALIGNMENT BETWEEN TECHNICAL VOCATIONAL TRAINING SKILLS COURSES AND INDUSTRY NEEDS, IMPROVED BENEFICIARIES' PATHWAYS TO MEANINGFUL LIVELIHOODS, INCLUDING PROVIDING HIGH QUALITY DIGITAL TRAINING TO SECURE JOBS AND LEARNERSHIPS, CREATED MORE YOUTH-INCLUSIVE AND YOUTH-RESPONSIVE ORGANIZATIONS AND IMPROVED PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES IN TRAINING CENTRES. IN SOUTH AFRICA, IYF MANAGES HIGH GEAR, AN EXCITING INITIATIVE THAT IS ADVANCING SOUTH AFRICA'S PUBLIC TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING (TVET) COLLEGE SYSTEM. HIGH GEAR DRAWS ON INDUSTRY KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS IMPERATIVES - ALONG WITH IYF CURRICULA ENHANCEMENT TOOLS - TO STRENGTHEN THE MARKET RELEVANCE OF SELECT PUBLIC TVET COLLEGE COURSES.

INITIATIVES IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN: IN 2021, IYF OPERATED 20 PROGRAMS IN SIX COUNTRIES IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN (BRAZIL, COLOMBIA, HAITI, MEXICO, PANAMA, PERU) REACHING OVER 86,000 YOUNG PEOPLE. IYF'S BENEFICIARIES INCLUDED YOUTH LEADERS, STUDENTS FROM LOW-INCOME FAMILIES, OPPORTUNITY YOUTH, YOUTH WITH DISABILITIES, AND INCARCERATED YOUTH. IYF'S PROGRAMMING INCREASED THEIR INCOMES AND EMPLOYMENT LEVELS, DECREASED DROP-OUT RATES, DEVELOPED CRITICAL SKILLS FOR WORK AND LIFE AND INCREASED THEIR INFLUENCE OVER KEY DECISIONS THAT IMPACT THEIR LIVES AND FUTURE. FOR EXAMPLE IN PERU, IYF PARTNERED WITH CENTRO DE SERVICIOS PARA LA CAPACITACIN LABORAL Y EL DESARROLLO (CAPLAB) AND THE DIRECCIN DE EDUCACIN REGIONAL DE MOQUEGUA (DREMO) TO DEVELOP ADELANTE: JVENES CON OPORTUNIDADES. THE GOAL OF THIS PROGRAM IS TO TRAIN YOUNG PEOPLE USING PROVEN METHODOLOGIES TO IMPROVE THEIR PROFESSIONAL AND SOFT SKILLS. IYF WORKED WITH THE LOCAL SECONDARY PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM TO TRAIN 190 TEACHERS AND 5,500 YOUNG PEOPLE AT 23 PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS IN LIFE SKILLS AND CAREER GUIDANCE METHODOLOGIES. ADDITIONALLY, IYF WORKED WITH 152 TEACHERS AND 1,781 STUDENTS AT FOUR TECHNICAL INSTITUTES.

INITIATIVES IN THE US AND GLOBAL PROGRAMS: IYF INITIATIVES REACH YOUNG PEOPLE IN RURAL AND URBAN AREAS OF THE UNITED STATES. THE DO GOOD: NASHVILLE INITIATIVE IS A THREE-YEAR PROGRAM THAT EQUIPS VULNERABLE NASHVILLE YOUTH, AGES 14 TO 18, WITH THE SKILLS, SUPPORT, AND OPPORTUNITIES THEY NEED TO THRIVE IN SCHOOL, WORK, AND LIFE. DRIVEN BY THE KNOWLEDGE THAT TOO MANY YOUNG PEOPLE FACE BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT AND SUCCESS, IYF AND MCDONALD'S CORPORATION CONTINUE THE WORK UNDER THE YOUTH OPPORTUNITY INITIATIVE, WHICH BEGAN AS PART OF MCDONALD'S SCALE FOR GOOD. THIS PARTNERSHIP IS WORKING TO EQUIP YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN WITH THE SKILLS TO SECURE JOBS AND TO POSITION THEM FOR CAREER ADVANCEMENT OR FURTHER EDUCATION/TRAINING. YOUTH OPPORTUNITY UTILIZES IYF'S PASSPORT TO SUCCESS (PTS) CURRICULUM TO REACH YOUTH PARTICIPANTS WITH LIFE SKILLS SUCH AS TEAMWORK AND RESPONSIBILITY, WHICH EMPLOYERS ACROSS SECTORS REQUIRE BUT STRUGGLE TO FIND. THE PROGRAM IS STILL ACTIVE IN CHICAGO AND THE WASHINGTON, DC, METRO AREA, WHERE TRUSTED COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS PAIR RELEVANT SKILLS TRAINING PROGRAMS WITH A SPECIALIZED VERSION OF PTS. THROUGH THE YOUTH OPPORTUNITY EFFORTS, DEVELOPMENT OF DIGITIZED CURRICULA BIRTHED PTS EXPLORER, WHICH IS USED BY MANY MCDONALD'S PARTNERS, SPECIFICALLY THOSE LOCATED IN MEXICO, PANAMA, COSTA RICA, AND URUGUAY. ADDITIONALLY, OUT OF THE YO PROGRAM EVOLVED A SUBSET OF YOUTH THAT FOCUSES ON LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, NETWORKING AND COMMUNICATIONS. INCLUDED IN THE AMBASSADOR SUBSET, IYF ALSO PILOTED A YO GLOBAL YOUTH COUNCIL WHICH REACHED MCDONALD'S YOUTH EMPLOYEES IN OVER 17 COUNTRIES, INCLUDING, CHINA, SINGAPORE, POLAND, INDIA, TO NAME A FEW. IN 2021, IYF OPERATED 9 GLOBAL PROGRAMS THROUGH FUNDING FROM ESTE LAUDER, CUMMINS, HILTON EFFECT FOUNDATION, CONRAD HILTON FOUNDATION, BURBERRY AND APPLE. THESE PROGRAMS REACHED OVER 23,000 YOUNG PEOPLE IN OVER 150 COUNTRIES THROUGH DIGITAL LIFE SKILLS TRAINING THROUGH PASSPORT TO SUCCESS TRAVELER, PASSPORT TO SUCCESS EXPLORER AND PASSPORT TO SUCCESS CONCIERGE AS WELL AS THROUGH SPINOFF LIFE SKILLS VIDEO CONTENT VIA YOUTUBE. IYF PROVIDED FUNDING TO 28 YOUTH-LED SOCIAL ENTERPRISES GLOBALLY TO SUPPORT RECOVERY FROM THE PANDEMIC. WE ALSO PROVIDED TRAINING WORKSHOPS TO ADULTS TO IMPROVE LEARNING OUTCOMES AND LAUNCHED NEW CURRICULUM IN 2021 THROUGH THESE PARTNERSHIPS. IYF'S BENEFICIARIES INCLUDED ENTREPRENEURS, OPPORTUNITY YOUTH, YOUTH SEEKING JOB-READINESS TRAINING, AS WELL AS ADULTS TEACHING LIFE SKILLS TO YOUNG PEOPLE.

INITIATIVES IN THE MIDDLE EAST, NORTH AFRICA, AND ASIA: WE HAVE WORKED WITH YOUTH IN NORTH AFRICA, THE MIDDLE EAST, AND ASIA TO STRENGTHEN EMPLOYABILITY, CAREER GUIDANCE, AND SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP. IN 2021, IYF OPERATED 5 PROGRAMS IN 3 COUNTRIES IN MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA (ISRAEL, MOROCCO AND PALESTINE) REACHING OVER 1,200 YOUNG PEOPLE. IYF'S BENEFICIARIES INCLUDED OPPORTUNITY YOUTH, STUDENTS, AND YOUTH WITH DISABILITY. IYF'S PROGRAMMING EXPANDED THEIR CHOICES FOR PROFESSIONAL PATHS, DEVELOPED CRITICAL SKILLS FOR WORK AND LIFE, CHANGED EDUCATION SYSTEMS. BY EMPOWERING YOUNG PEOPLE WITH THE SKILLS TO BE PERSONALLY AND PROFESSIONAL INVOLVED IN THEIR COMMUNITIES, WE ALSO WORKED TO RESTORE IMPORTANT SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT, THE POSITIVE YOUTH ENGAGEMENT PROGRAM COMMENCED IN PALESTINE WITH THE STRATEGIC INTENTION OF PROVIDING VULNERABLE YOUTH WITH A TRANSFORMATIONAL LEARNING JOURNEY THAT INCLUDED A PACKAGE OF LIFE SKILLS TRAINING ACTIVITIES, WAYS TO DESIGN INNOVATIVE COMMUNITY-BASED INITIATIVES, AND PROJECTS THAT POSITIONED YOUNG PEOPLE POSITIVELY WITHIN THEIR COMMUNITIES, FAMILIES, AND AMONG THEIR PEERS. FURTHER, PYE SEEK TO PROVIDE YOUNG PEOPLE WITH ABILITIES AND SKILLS TO REFER THEM TO ADVANCED EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES AND/OR ACCESS TO THE LABOUR MARKET AS EMPLOYEES AND SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS.