Dar es Salaam (ILO News) The ILO in collaboration with the Prime Minister’s Office – Labour, Youth Employment and people with Disability organized a two weeks training of trainers (ToT) workshop for project partners from 27 August in Dodoma, Tanzania.

As part of the training, the 35 representatives from four districts in Dodoma region (Mpwapwa, Kongwa, Chamwino and Kondoa), partner organizations, were introduced to entrepreneurship and enterprises development using the ILO’s entrepreneurship tools namely: Generate Your Business Idea (GYBI), Start Your Business (SYB) and Improve your Business (IYB). They were taken through various business concepts using a business game methodology which brought into light many faults especially in the areas of quality control, technical skills and business relationships.

Commenting on the training, Eng. Boniface Nandi from Kongwa district said “…The knowledge gained will be very appropriate and useful for the registered community groups as they will use it during undertaking their day-to-day roads rehabilitation and maintenance works…”.

Participants were also highlighted on the EIIP project activities in Tanzania which is targeted at ensuring that pro-poor investment policy, strategy and programmes address rampant unemployment and social protection deficits in target areas and contribute towards poverty reduction, social welfare and wealth creation. The programme is also aimed at ensuring that inclusive and transparent pro-employment investment strategies are mainstreamed in national employment policies and procurement systems, at national and local levels, are reformed and adopted to increase the participation of small scale enterprises and local communities.

 The main expected outcomes for the programme include:

·         Mainstreaming pro-employment Investment strategies in the national Productive Social Safety Net Programme

·         Sustainable public procurement policies and legal frameworks reformed and adopted that increase participation of small scale enterprises and communities in the infrastructure delivery.

·         Capacity for an effective coordination and implementation of public works and beneficiary targeting system developed for the TASAF Productive Social Safety Nets (PSSN) and

·         Employment-intensive investment programme operations are efficient, productive and provide quality infrastructure works and documented through impact evaluations.

According to Mr. Dampu Ndenzako, National Project Coordinator, “…This project is key towards creating and promoting employment among the youth, women and vulnerable groups through enhancing employment and procurement policy frameworks while promoting participation of local communities in economic engagements through enterprises development and institutionalizing the project interventions into technical and vocational training (TVET) systems for sustainability…”.

The EIIP project is part of a 5 years (2017-2021) programme, Inclusive Growth, Social Protection and Jobs Programme (IGSPJ, funded by the Irish Government, with an overall goal of ensuring that governments use well designed and managed social protection measures and employment promoting approaches to the delivery of public investments.

Other countries participating in the IGSP programme include: Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and Vietnam.