Few areas are more innovative than technology, and this project connected youth with technology to empower young people to be change-makers in their communities. In Myanmar, Tag ran a series of initiatives aimed at introducing youth in rural areas to entrepreneurship knowledge, resources and opportunities, and thus increasing employability in a modernizing economy.
With the support of IDRC, an agency of the Government of Canada, we launched a project in Shan State to enhance employability skills for youth aged 18-25 studying at higher education institutions in Southern Shan State of Myanmar. We provided training and mentoring and facilitated direct linkages with employers to unlock the potential employment opportunities for these disadvantaged young people in rural areas.
The project also has a research and knowledge-creation element. To capture knowledge and lessons, a symposium was held focused on understanding the nature and scale of the skills-education gap in rural areas, the stakeholders and actors who can address this gap and what should be done to impact a change on the employment opportunities for rural young people, with a particular focus on gender and ethnicity. A substantial report was produced and shared with a range of government and private sector actors.
Following this effort, Tag ran a project called E3: EDUCATION, EMPLOYABILITY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP, the project worked to increase access to job skills training among Myanmar’s rural youth, with a focus on IT literacy, technology and entrepreneurship. The project was funded under the Microsoft Youth Sparks program.
Throughout Myanmar, rural youth lack basic computer skills, which limits opportunities to establish new businesses or find employment outside of agriculture. E3 helped inspire youth from rural areas and University Students through exposure to computer science, technology skills, and basic coding, to generate solutions for local social and economic challenges.
Together with Microsoft, E3 developed an online mentoring platform for skills training and an exciting hackathon involving over 30 local partners to enable young people to fulfill their potential.
