Consultancy on Developing a Strategy for Effective Support of Unemployed Youth for Transition into Decent Work & Sustainable at Aga Khan Foundation

 Objective of the consultancy

The overall objective of this consultancy is to develop a practical and contextualized strategy that will inform practical actions and interventions to be adopted by AKF in effectively supporting youth in the Coastal region of Kenya to advance their employability and entrepreneurship potential in their pathway toward decent work and sustainable jobs. The specific objectives of this assignment include:

• Conduct a review of relevant documents including project reports and existing studies on the status of youth employment in the coastal region of Kenya.
• Based on the review, develop the predominant persona profile (s) that characterize unemployed youth in the Coastal region of Kenya based on the existing population and demographic information in the region and from reviews of reports and studies.
• Develop a set of concise and practical strategies that in combination could be the most effective in engaging unemployed youth in the coastal region of Kenya on the pathway to decent work and sustainable jobs.

Scope of the assignment

• Hold an inception meeting with the Aga Khan Foundation Kenya program team to get a clear understanding of the assignment, approaches, and expected deliverables.
• Review existing literature including internal project reports and studies, and other external documents including policies and reports with implications on youth employment in the Coastal Region of Kenya.
• Hold weekly progress review meetings with the program lead and program team for this assignment as may be necessary.
• Share a draft report for review by the Aga Khan Foundation Program Kenya team and incorporate any inputs from this review.
• A final report of not more than 30 pages (minus annexes) with a summary of the predominant persona profile (s) of unemployed youth in the Coastal region of Kenya and a proposed package of coherent and integrated strategies to support their transition from unemployment into decent work and sustainable jobs. The report should include a comprehensive reference list of the documents that were reviewed in this process.
• Make a physical presentation of the report to key stakeholders in the Coastal Region of Kenya and incorporate any inputs emanating from this forum.

Key Deliverables

A maximum of a 5-page inception report detailing how the consultant intends to deliver the assignment and timelines.

Draft and final report

• Present the report to key stakeholders and incorporate inputs into the final report.
• Pre-dominant persona profile (s) of unemployed youth in the Coastal Region of Kenya
• A package of evidence-based strategies for effective youth support in the transition from unemployment to decent work and sustainable jobs.

Required Skills and Competencies

The lead consultant will be required to have the following qualifications and experiences:

• Postgraduate qualifications in any of the following areas: Labour Economics, Entrepreneurship Development, Development Studies, Rural Development, or any other related field.
• Demonstrated experience in conducting labour-related research and evaluation studies in Kenya.
• Knowledge and working experience in developing youth employment programs, policies, and frameworks in Kenya.
• Strong understanding of gender issues in Kenya especially in the context of youth programming.
• Understanding of youth employment in Kenya and experience working with youth programs.
• Extensive knowledge of and working experience of more than five years in leading (designing and undertaking) qualitative and quantitative research and analytical work.
• Ability to work under a tight schedule and deliver good quality research work.