Silatech, EFE and Al Amal MFI promote youth economic empowerment in Yemen

The 'Mustaqbalak' project will aid more than 41,000 youth

 

 

Silatech, an international socio-economic development non-profit organisation that connects youth to jobs and economic opportunities, has launched a new project, ‘Mustaqbalak’, in Yemen to economically support more than 41,000 youth through financing to create sustainable income-generating businesses.

'Mustaqbalak' or ‘Your Future’ is a three-year project that is being implemented in partnership with Education for Employment (EFE) and Al Amal Microfinance Bank. The project utilises digital solutions to provide financial inclusion for youth-led startups and struggling micro-enterprises in the commercial and service sectors. The UN has described Yemen as the “world’s worst humanitarian and development crisis”. Millions of Yemenis continue to suffer from the conflict, trapped in poverty with limited possibilities for employment and livelihoods. Yemen continues to be plagued by the conflict since 2015, which, in addition to the loss of lives, is tearing apart livelihoods and disintegrating the socio-economic fabric, causing Yemen to teeter on the brink of famine. According to the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the number of people living in extreme poverty in Yemen will surge to 22mn by 2030, approximately 65% of the population.“We have witnessed before the huge impact of the MSME sector in creating economic opportunities for youth and contributing towards economic stability. This gives us confidence that 'Mustaqbalak' will reduce the vulnerability of the youth to the conflict and enhance their resilience in the face of adversity.”

The project will see more than 25,200 young Yemenis from the country’s nine governorates (Sana’a, Dhamar, Ibb, Taiz, Aden, Hadramaut, Al Hudaydah, Hajjah and Amran) start or expand their income-generating businesses before it is rolled over to the rest of the country, further placing 16,400 youth into employment within those businesses. The project is a step forward towards Silatech’s continued endeavours to empower young men and women and its strategic goal to empower more than 5mn youth globally.