Project Objective:
Young women and men have increased access to training and employability through a more market-oriented non-formal training system
Donor: Sida
Partner: Helvetas (lead partner)
Project Implementation:
June 2021 – March 2023 (inception phase)
Activities:
The pilot project Vibrant service sector for better economic opportunities is designed to test the support of self-employment through freelancing. Impact Foundation implemented this pilot to create a new and qualified workforce among youth and disadvantaged groups in order to access the international demand via Digital Labour Platforms (DLPs). During seven months, we partnered with five market actors for training development. We supported 3 supporting organisations to promote freelancing among youth and the IT sector in North Macedonia. Additionally, the awareness-raising campaign created massive information outreach about freelancing, among a total audience of 857.875 spectators, both in Macedonian and English languages.
Training centres developed eight different digital skills and freelancing courses and enrolled 154 participants, out of which eight managed to start the first remote projects on DLPs. Twenty of these participants are people without economic opportunity to access these courses, and they were selected via a selection process according to the project’s priority groups of vulnerability.
For now, three market actors tested three different business models, out of which two have been proven to be successful. The other two market actors will start testing in 2022, and the first results will be visible in April 2022. We supported a mentorship programme with ten mentors that mentored at most minuscule 100 mentees to access the DLPs. After the finalisation of the pilot phase, we expect to create a successful business model where mentors will earn income from participants.
In 2021, 24 relevant people representing 14 public institutions and five civil organisations discussed priority areas for delivering change in policy and regulation of self-employment in North Macedonia at the round table event we organised. This created a sequential wave of raising awareness not just among them and existing freelancers themselves. Direct indications for future development came from research and the creation of an environment-specific road map of the freelancing sector in North Macedonia. In May 2022, we organized the first freelance conference in N. Macedonia which was attended by 200 freelancers. Panelists addressed the needs of freelancers on 5 panels: public institutions, pension funds, training centers, organizations, and mentorship programs. We had more than 23 speakers on stage and more than 30 questions from Q&A sessions.
Through collaboration with public institutions, non-governmental organizations, training centers, successful freelancers, and various campaigns, we reached 547,657 potential students, of which 1119 individuals (60% women) enrolled in the 11 supported courses for different digital skills. Among those 1119, 444 individuals started careers as freelancers (53% women) as a result of completing the courses. As a result of all the activities, we successfully raised awareness about freelancing as a viable career option where one can earn well, breaking the misconception that freelancing is an insecure and poorly paid career choice.
