In collaboration with Lebanon’s Ministry of Labour, the International Labour Organization (ILO) launched the Mapping of Training and Post-training Service Providers in Lebanon. With dramatic rises in unemployment and heightened job insecurity, it is more critical than ever to link the supply to the demand effectively through interventions that ensure necessary skilling support for jobseekers seeking to enter, or re-enter the labor market, and those in employment looking to upgrade their skills and secure their livelihoods. It is equally important to strengthen the capacity of government and non-government service providers in the provision of training and post-training support services with the aim to increase options and pathways towards employment and improve employment policies.

The mapping provides a roadmap of current employment and skills provision services in the country to help local organizations navigate and maximise support offered to vulnerable groups. In the longer term, it aims to develop a comprehensive, cross-sector referral services network to further facilitate partnership and collaboration among training and post-training service providers.

The mapping covered a wide range of support activities that include career guidance, employment and job placement services, mentoring, support in job search tools and techniques, coaching for job interviews, but also non-employment-related support such as psychological support, childcare services etc. It targeted all types of skills development and employment-related services providers, in-person and online, including private agencies, local and international NGOs, governmental institutions, social enterprises, universities, regional online platforms, and international online job-bank.

To support employment needs, the Ministry of Labour with the National Employment Office established a job portal to link job seekers and employers with job opportunities. The Ministry of Labour is also responsible of developing employment policies based on labour market information collected and analyzed. In Lebanon, a number of NGOs offer vocational training programmes as part of the Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP) to the Syrian refugee crisis. Despite this continuous increase in the provision of non-formal skills training, only a few livelihoods sector partners are providing post-training support services. In addition, most NGOs operating under the umbrella of LCRP may not know where to locate relevant service providers. Better collaboration and cooperation among the livelihoods sector partners, local organizations and with the government would expand opportunities for information exchange to further shape relevant employment policies and provision of services to vulnerable groups.

“The multifaceted crisis Lebanon is facing has only heightened the importance of coordinated referral system to expand access of vulnerable groups to suitable employment opportunities and improve their livelihoods,” said Peter Rademaker, ILO Deputy Regional Director for Arab States. “This mapping conducted with the Ministry of Labour is the first step towards development of a national referral services network for employment and other post-training support services which will serve as a complementary platform to humanitarian assistance referral system that exists in the country. This will ultimately improve accountability and effectiveness of the Ministry’s services while also avoiding duplication of efforts,” he added.

The Mapping of Training and Post-training Service Providers was developed with support from the Italian Agency for Cooperation Development under the project Improved access to employment opportunities for Lebanese and refugee graduates from skills training which aims to enhance provision of post-training services and market-based skills training for vulnerable Lebanese and refugees in order to improve employability and access to decent jobs.