Youth Employment In Ports Of The Mediterranean

The YEP MED project was born out of the need to better match the labour market skills needs and dual TVET offers in the Mediterranean port communities’ sector in order to contribute to jobs creation and facilitate productive economic growth. With a particular focus on the benefits for youth, and especially NEETs and women’s opportunities, YEP MED will increase and upgrade local employment opportunities through the strengthening of the skills sought for by SMEs and start-ups.

Start date: September 2020
Duration: 30 months
Countries Represented: 7
Website: http://www.enicbcmed.eu/projects/yep-med
Budget: 2.9 M€ (90% EU Contribution)
 

CO-FINANCING

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Ports connected to international trade, environment and sustainability, digitalisation, port logistics and transport networks are currently one of the main focuses of job creation in the Blue Economy. Additionally, the ports ecosystem has a high concentration of companies that are usually bigger than in other sectors, allowing a bigger investment and jobs absorption capacity. This potential can influence dual technical and vocational education and training (TVET) with job-oriented placement schemes to increase the employability of NEET rates and the youth in Logistic Port Communities of the Mediterranean region. Facing this challenge, YEP MED proposes to impact TVET offers and occupational training by targeting three areas with skills shortages: foreign trade, environment and sustainability, digitalisation and port logistic operations. It will develop port-logistics TVET resources adapted to the sector needs, launch learning programmes with job placements and set-up partnerships between key stakeholders in the 7 countries represented in the project.

YEP MED will adapt 8 training curricula to the real needs of the productive sectors, introducing personalized monitoring to students and creating controlling systems and training courses that address environmental issues.
 
What will be improved?

YEP MED activities will allow to update dual TVET curricula oriented to port industry, increasing job placement and employment opportunities with adequate and diverse profiles for NEETs and women. As a result, it will help increase employment rates of young people and women by offering real possibilities to work through personalised mentoring programmes (training centers) and tutor programmes (SME’s staff). As a result, there will be a need for a permanent collaboration scheme between TVET providers, private sector representatives and public administrations both at local and international levels.
 
Who will benefit?

• Young people, mainly NEETs, and women
• Port Authorities and logistic centers (8, 1 per country)
• VET providers and training centers (16 in total)
• SMEs and big companies operating in ports (600 companies in total)

 
Contribution to policy-making

YEP MED will improve vocational training to provide youth with the skills required by the labour market while influencing future policy through the involvement of public authorities.
The insertion of a YEP MED pilot into national and regional framework policies will serve as a forerunner for the introduction of a dual training system. Trainees will be identified and local training centres and stakeholders will be invited to be a part of the Local Port’s Occupation and Training Working Group (PLWG) to monitor results and assess and organise tailored workshops for them. Based on participative governance structure, all of these actors will coordinate within the PLWG to reach local agreements between Port Authorities, VET and occupational training centres.
 
Expected achievements

• 420 newly contracted persons
• 9 adapted dual TVET curricula
• Training of 4.650 NEETS and women
• Collaboration with at least 600 companies in 7 countries
• 420 enterprises receiving subgrants for mentoring support