Innovative Finance
August 1, 2024
Context and Issue
Iraq has faced decades of conflict, which resulted in frequent changes in government and political unrest as well. Because of these risks and challenges, governance aspects are difficult, especially when providing basic facilities such as education. As a consequence of decades of conflict, there has been a severe impact concerning the reduction in opportunities available for Iraqi youth and increased social and economic vulnerabilities.
Solution
The development objective of Promoting the Inclusion of Conflict-Affected Iraqi Youth Project for Iraq is to promote the social and economic inclusion of at least 3,000 conflict-affected Iraqi youth (ages 15-29) through engagement in entrepreneurship and youth-led community development activities. To achieve its objective, this project will pilot locally based approaches that address youth’s social and economic vulnerabilities through the provision of (i) soft skills training and psychosocial support, (ii) training and grants for youth-led community development activities, and (iii) business development training, grants for youth business start-up/expansion, and post-grant mentorship.
Potential Impact
Young people participating in youth-led community development activities will likely develop networks that allow them to have a greater role in social and economic life. Although the exact impact of these activities on youth employment cannot be directly attributed, a preliminary analysis carried out for the project tells us that most youth believe that engagement in these activities leads to better chances of employment.