150 youth entrepreneurs received grants to start their own businesses in Kismayo, Somalia. This is the first phase of a program funded by Silatech in cooperation with American refugee committee to create 3000 jobs for youth in Kismayo over the course of 2019.
The ultimate goal of the project is to have the youth become self-reliant and contribute to the growth of the local economy.
The financial support in the form of small grants will enable the youth that are returnees or IDPs to fully integrate with the host population, fostering cohesion and reducing any tension that may exist with the local communities.
Targeted youth will receive tailored trainings on business development, financial literacy and management to maximize their ability to start up and grow viable income generating businesses.

Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Naseer, Chairperson of Silatech’s Board of Trustees, and His Excellency Mr. Ahmed Isse Awad The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of The Federal Republic of Somalia, attended today in New York City today the signing of three agreements to economically empower Somali youth by securing more than 75,000 jobs in Somalia.

A collaboration between Silatech, American Refugee Committee (ARC) and the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the first agreement aims to provide housing and energy solutions for 1,000 families and develop local youth owned enterprises; creating around 3,000 jobs for returning refugees and IDPs in the Kismayo district. The second agreement is to support Al Amal bank in financing youth enterprises to create 63,414 jobs around Somalia. In partnership with the Somali Institute for Development and Research Analysis (SIDRA), the purpose of the third agreement is to build the skills of 9,000 graduates and place them into jobs in the labor market.

As part of its continuous efforts to empower youth in Somalia and activate their role in developing their communities, Silatech signed the three agreements to provide solutions to combat unemployment, poverty, marginalization and extremism. Silatech also focuses on economically empowering women in Somalia and engaging them in promoting peace and security in their societies.

Furthermore, Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Naseer, Chairperson of Silatech’s Board of Trustees, has attended the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Silatech, the United Nations Democracy Fund, and Tamkeen for Development to collaborate within their respective mandates and their common goals in the area of improving youth empowerment and participation and skills developments based on the World Programme of Action for Youth. The MoU aims at engendering, promoting and strengthening youth engagement, skills development, entrepreneurship and improving employability in countries or regions of mutual interest.

Since its inception in 2008, Silatech has secured one million jobs for youth through working in coordination with governments and international organizations and in cooperation with its partners to design and implement programs that uproot youth out of poverty and chronic unemployment, thus empowering them to contribute to the socioeconomic development of their countries.