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Empowering women into work in Jordan

Meet Sadah - she's ambitious! ‘In 10 years’ time, I will have my own supermarket,’ the Vocational Training Centre graduate, and trainee shop assistant in Jordan says.

To help mark International Day of the Girl, we'd like to introduce you to Sadah - she’s ambitious! ‘In 10 years’ time, I will have my own supermarket,’ the Vocational Training Centre graduate, and trainee shop assistant in Jordan says. Sadah is combining her studies on-the-job training at the Az Zarqa Dukaneh supermarket. Store manager Rasheed says he is so impressed with her skills that he will likely employ Sadah once she receives her qualification in retail business.

Sadah’s employability prospects are not unique. Analysis show that 50 % of the retail sector course graduates in 2015 who sought work and found it.The course was established through the European Union-funded GEMM project, featured in the new #EU4Youth social campaign, which aims to reach more than a million young people in ETF partner countries Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine* and Tunisia.

Implemented by @etfeuropa, the Governance for Employability in the Mediterranean programme is helping improve youth employability across the region, with a particular focus on youth and women.

Nine local, innovative and action-oriented pilots were set up through GEMM, and as Sadah’s story show, the achievements of the three-year project continue. Improved employability, increased female participation, and stronger multi-level partnerships were among the outcomes.

More than 30 % of participants were women, more than 100 local enterprises were involved, and hundreds of vocational graduates have since found work, or work placements, ETF analysis shows.

GEMM is just one example of how the ETF is working to help empower youth and women through skills, work and society.

Watch the #EU4Youth film on the @etfeuropa YouTube Channel here French version available here.

International Day of the Girl is a United Nations initiative that focuses on the girl as a child with potential to do anything she strives to achieve in life.

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