LABOUR MARKET ASSESSMENT IN SINJAR · This publication is produced with the financial support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) The content and opinions

LABOUR MARKET ASSESSMENT IN SINJAR,

MOSUL AND TEL KAIF DISTRICTS,

NINEWA GOVERNORATE, IRAQ

Labour Market Assessment in Sinjar, Mosul and Tel Kaif Districts, Ninewa Governorate, Iraq

Frontpage photo: Market stall in Sinjar. Photo Credit: Optimum Analysis OPTIMUM ANALYSIS Established in 2019, Optimum Analysis is a locally registered research company that operates throughout Iraq. Its mission is to make a contribution to improving humanitarian and development programming, positively impact economic development, and build the capacity of national researchers in Iraq. By combining the technical skills of international staff with the contextual knowledge of national researchers, and adhering to international standards for social science, Optimum Analysis is able to ensure that the highest quality data and analysis is being delivered. Core services include research design, data collection, and analysis and report writing. MERCY CORPS Mercy Corps is an international humanitarian aid and development organisation with a mission to alleviate suffering, poverty, and oppression by helping people build secure, productive, and just communities. With a team of over 5500 members, Mercy Corps works in over 40 countries to transform the lives of the local population. In Iraq, Mercy Corps has been working to build resilience within communities since 2003. Its services focus on the delivery of emergency, life-saving assistance to conflict-affected populations while also addressing longer-term needs and underlying causes. This publication is produced with the financial support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) The content and opinions expressed within do not necessarily reflect the views of the SIDA or the Swedish Government. Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged. © Mercy Corps January 2020


i Optimum Analysis

Research Design, Data Collection, and Analysis

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The support and assistance of Mercy Corps staff in Erbil and Ninewa governorates were crucial for the successful completion of this research project. Mercy Corps staff provided Optimum Analysis with documents for the desk review, feedback on the data collection tools, assistance and support during fieldwork, and feedback on the final report. In specific, Optimum Analysis would like to express its gratitude to the following Mercy Corps staff for their help and support throughout all phases of the project: ▪ Susan Mae Detera

Head of Livelihoods Program ▪ Muna Omar

Social Cohesion Program Manager ▪ Ali Younis Ali

Social Cohesion Program Officer Optimum Analysis would like to extend its gratitude to community members and stakeholders in Sinjar and Tel Kaif districts, for their participation in the project as respondents and data collectors.

TEAM STRUCTURE This project was executed by Optimum Analysis. The following individuals made a significant contribution to the research design, data collection, analysis, and report writing for this project: ▪ Sarah Nijholt

Lead Evaluator ▪ CS Brown

Livelihoods Specialist ▪ Mahran Alhayek

Fieldwork Manager ▪ Falah Mirza Hassan

Team Supervisor ▪ Paybar Idrees Ali

Team Supervisor


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Map of Ninewa Governorate, Iraq Studied locations highlighted in red


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TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgment ...................................................................................................................................................................... i List of Figures .......................................................................................................................................................................... iv Abbreviations .......................................................................................................................................................................... iv Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................................................ v 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................................... 1 2. Methodology ........................................................................................................................................................................ 3

2.1 Desk Review .............................................................................................................................................................................. 4 2.2 Qualitative Interviews .......................................................................................................................................................... 4 2.3 Quantitative Household Survey........................................................................................................................................ 4 2.4 Data Analysis and Reporting ............................................................................................................................................ 5 2.5 Limitations ................................................................................................................................................................................ 5

3. Context .................................................................................................................................................................................... 6 3.1 Market Environment ............................................................................................................................................................. 6 3.2 Purchasing Power .................................................................................................................................................................. 6

4. Labour Supply ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 4.1 Demographics .......................................................................................................................................................................... 7 4.2 Employment.............................................................................................................................................................................. 7

4.2.1 Men’s Employment ....................................................................................................................................................... 8 4.2.2 Women’s Employment ............................................................................................................................................. 10 4.2.3 People With Disabilities .......................................................................................................................................... 12

4.3 Skills Training ....................................................................................................................................................................... 12 4.3.1 Past Training Courses ............................................................................................................................................... 13 4.3.2 Future Training ........................................................................................................................................................... 14

4.4 In Focus: Digital and Online Work ............................................................................................................................... 15 4.5 In Focus: Agricultural Enterprises ............................................................................................................................... 16

5. Market Opportunities .................................................................................................................................................... 17 5.1 Demographics ....................................................................................................................................................................... 17 5.2 Existing Businesses ............................................................................................................................................................. 17

5.2.1 Business Challenges .................................................................................................................................................. 19 5.2.2 Procurement ................................................................................................................................................................. 19

5.3 New Business Opportunities .......................................................................................................................................... 21 5.4 In Focus: Micro and Small Agriculture Entrepreneurship ................................................................................. 22 5.5 Finance Practices ................................................................................................................................................................. 23

6. Social Cohesion ................................................................................................................................................................. 25 7. Recommendations .......................................................................................................................................................... 27 Annex 1: Qualitative Interview Guides ....................................................................................................................... 32 Annex 2: Youth Skills Survey ........................................................................................................................................... 42 Annex 3: Market Opportunity Survey ......................................................................................................................... 46


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LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Outcomes of promoting resilience for returnees and host communities in Ninewa project .......... 1 Figure 2. Market environment in Tel Kaif, Sinjar, and Mosul districts ......................................................................... 6 Figure 3. Market environment in Tel Kaif, Sinjar, and Mosul districts ......................................................................... 8 Figure 4. Employment status among male YSS respondents ............................................................................................ 9 Figure 5. Is it acceptable for women to be employed outside of their homes? ...................................................... 10 Figure 6. Would you be willing to hire female staff? ......................................................................................................... 10 Figure 7. Are you willing to accept work not considered suitable for women? .................................................... 11 Figure 8. Would you be willing to hire a staff with a disability? .................................................................................. 12 Figure 9. Skills training data ........................................................................................................................................................ 13 Figure 10. MOS respondents who received vocational training................................................................................... 14 Figure 11. Are you interested in receiving vocational training? .................................................................................. 14 Figure 12. Are you willing to work in a digital type of employment in Sinjar (left) and Tel Kaif (right)? . 15 Figure 13. Agricultural employment data .............................................................................................................................. 16 Figure 14. Are you interested in working in agriculture? ............................................................................................... 16 Figure 15. Existing businesses data .......................................................................................................................................... 18 Figure 16. How would you describe your business? ......................................................................................................... 18 Figure 17. Who are most of your customers? ....................................................................................................................... 18 Figure 18. Do you ever feel unable to satisfy your potential customers? ................................................................ 19 Figure 19. Do youth prefer to restart their business or find a job? ............................................................................ 20 Figure 20. What is the ideal size of people to start new businesses? ......................................................................... 21 Figure 21. Acceptability women owning business not attached (left) or attached (right) to her house? .. 22 Figure 22. Agriculture-related entrepreneurship data .................................................................................................... 23 Figure 23. Entities lending money to start or maintain small businesses ............................................................... 24 Figure 24. Would you be willing to hire staff from another ethnic group? ............................................................. 25 Figure 25. Would you be willing to hire staff from another ethnic (left) or religious (right) group? .......... 26

ABBREVIATIONS FGD Focus Group Discussion IDP Internally Displaced Person KII Key Informant Interview MFI Micro-Finance Institution MOS Market Opportunity Survey NGO Non-Government Organisations SIDA Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency YSS Youth Skills Survey


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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Introduction Mercy Corps is currently implementing the “Promoting Resilience for Returnees and Host Communities in Ninewa” project in Sinjar, Mosul, and Tel Kaif districts, Ninewa governorate. The project, which is funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), aims to improve conditions for sustainable peacebuilding and reconciliation in Ninewa’s post-conflict areas through a holistic approach that includes psychosocial (pillar 1), social cohesion (pillar 2) and livelihood (pillar 3) activities. This holistic approach will help strengthen Iraq’s capacity to manage returnees’ reintegration in Ninewa, restoring their psychological, social and economic coping mechanisms. In order to identify and detail key economic opportunities, Mercy Corps commissioned Optimum Analysis to conduct a labour market assessment in Sinjar, Mosul and Tel Kaif districts, Ninewa governorate. In December 2019 and January 2020, data collection for the labour market assessment occurred in Sinjar and Tel Kaif districts, Ninewa governorate. To utilise existing information as much as possible, Mercy Corps provided Optimum Analysis with data from a labour market assessment conducted in Mosul.

The Market Environment Unmet demand for electronic devices, electronic appliance maintenance, construction materials and healthy food provided opportunities for new micro and small enterprises. In Tel Kaif, KII and FGD respondents expressed negative attitudes about the quality and availability of government utilities. In the private sector, respondents reported a lack of servicing shops for electronic devices, as well as internet-related services, with residents having to travel to Mosul to buy these items. Furthermore, electrical items, medical supplies and construction materials are often not available. In Sinjar, healthcare and water were reported to be among the most pressing issues. Electrical/technological items and construction materials, furthermore, are hard to find in Sinjar. Most other items are available, but the prices are high and the quality is often poor with some respondents reporting that goods were sometimes broken or counterfeit. People often go to Duhok, Zakho or Mosul to find the goods they need. In Mosul, KII and FGD respondents said they had access to all essential items although core services like social services, primary healthcare, or electricity were reported to be inconsistently available. Moreover, a strong reliance on food and other products produced outside of Mosul district was reported to impact the quality of especially food products. The Labour Force In total, 313 YSSs were conducted with individuals selected semi-randomly at local markets in Tel Kaif, Sinjar and Mosul. A fairly even number of females and males were interviewed across districts, with a

Gender : 52% men, 48% women

Average age: 26 years old

Ability to write/read: 72% ‘very well’,23% ‘a bit’,5% ‘no’

Education: 25% university graduate,21% some secondary school,14% completed

primary school

Average years of formal education: 11 years

Youth Skill Survey

Gender: 86% men, 13% women



Education: 26% some secondary school,21% some primary school,17% completed

secondary school

Average years of education: 9 years

Market Opportunity Survey Demographics

https://www.iraq-businessnews.com/tag/swedish-international-development-cooperation-agency-sida/


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slightly lower percentage of female respondents in Sinjar and Mosul (44% and 46% respectively) compared to Tel Kaif (53%). Lack of job opportunities was a major issue across the three districts. A third of male survey respondents and two-thirds of females were unemployed, the large majority not by choice. Women faced social constraints and discrimination, and were restricted to domains considered socially appropriate for women - predominantly those with a female customer base, like hair and makeup salons, underwear shops and tailors. The ‘female’ domain, moreover, was less restricted in Sinjar and Mosul, however, with teaching, farming, restaurants and general stores also being socially-accepted forms of employment for women. People with disabilities also faced considerable discrimination with the vast majority of business owners being unwilling to hire them. Marketing, administrative work and hairdressing were considered desirable jobs among male respondents. Lack of employment opportunities and low pay were the biggest factors preventing those male respondents from working in their preferred trades (selected by 52% and 25% of respondents respectively). For females, however, tailoring, administrative work and hairdressing were considered some of the most preferable trades. Lack of jobs and low pay, along with lack of available childcare were the biggest factors preventing females from working in their preferred trades (selected by 56%, 20% and 15% of respondents respectively). Tel Kaif and Sinjar lack permanent training centres and only a minority of people have received vocational training (16%). Men and women had received training to a roughly equal degree in Tel Kaif and Mosul, but in Sinjar, many more women had received training than men (24% versus 11%). Young people, moreover, are enthusiastic about developing business, marketing, and management skills. Moreover, these skills overlap with the main skills sought by business owners. Computer and English language skills were also seen to significantly boost employability. Interest in technical/digital types of training and employment was reasonably strong, particularly among women in Sinjar. Interest in agricultural employment was also strong among both men and women in Sinjar, particularly vegetables, fruits, seeds and honey production/shops. Recommendations: Create an inclusive Business Skills Training Programme linked with start-up financing: Within

Mercy Corps’ planned adolescent and youth friendly spaces, create a Business Skills Training Programme with courses on marketing, finance and management, and the opportunity to develop a business plan and apply for start-up finance upon successful completion. Include technical tracks in the programme that respond to identified business opportunities per community. Include women and disabled people to reduce these groups’ dependence on business owners to gain employment. Make courses interactive, project-based and fun to support the learning of youth.

Establish links with available training centres in Tel Kaif, Sinjar and Mosul. Provide staff at these training centres with training on the inclusive Business Skills Training Programme as well as the different side tracks of this programme. Support the training centres to deliver the training to vulnerable populations.

Link Business Skills Training Programme trainees with employment opportunities within other grant recipient businesses: For trainees not suited to or not interested in entrepreneurship, create links with recipients of scale-up grants that are looking to hire trained employees.

Provide training courses for digital online work and train staff at training centres with a training of trainers of this module: This programme could be targeted in particular at interested women in Tel Kaif, for whom this could be a unique opportunity enabling them to circumvent cultural restrictions around working outside of the home. Technical skills could include online marketing and selling, as well as training on acquiring work online, virtual communication, self-marketing and being safe online. Childcare provision during the training course would better enable women’s participation.

Provide computer skills training courses and train staff at training centres with a training of trainers of this module: Accompany business training with computer skills courses as standard. Training in computer skills will allow trainees to develop higher-level marketing and administration skills, access customers online and improve the efficiency of start-ups.


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Provide English language skills training courses: Accompany business training courses with English language training where relevant. Technical/digital courses in particular require English language proficiency, since internet resources for continued self-teaching are predominantly in English and accessing an online job market often requires written/spoken English proficiency.

Provide awareness sessions on female employment: Especially in Tel Kaif, run awareness sessions with the community to challenge cultural expectations and encourage women to work in a broader range of sectors. Highlight instances of successful female employees to encourage business owners to employ women. Engage female business owners as mentors for female entrepreneurs.

Market Opportunities A total of 212 MOSs were conducted with vendors, business owners and service providers in Tel Kaif, Sinjar and Mosul. There were some interesting gender differences in the sample. Female business owners were a minority, but the percentage interviewed in Mosul was considerably higher than the other areas: 21% of respondents were female, compared to 11% in Sinjar and 2% in Tel Kaif, indicating a larger proportion of female-run businesses in Mosul and Sinjar. The majority of interviewed business owners sold goods and a smaller percentage provided one or more services. Business mainly sold directly to customers (92%) and the large majority of business owners said most of their customers were male. Female-run business tend to have mainly female customers (89%). Out of 28 female-run businesses, just three had mainly male customers. Female-run businesses, moreover, faced much less competition than male-run ones, indicating an opportunity to establish businesses selling products and services for women. The vast majority of YSS respondents believed it was acceptable for women to start at least some types of businesses, though the type of business and whether it was attached to their house increased the level of social acceptance. In Tel Kaif, opportunities for women to start a business lay mainly in the traditionally female domain of salons and women’s underwear shops. In Sinjar, there were more socially acceptable options for women entrepreneurs, including running restaurants, food stores, and agricultural businesses. A lack of capital prevented business owners from meeting demand and expanding. This, and lack of supply, meant some business owners in Mosul and, to a lesser degree, Sinjar, faced difficulty in satisfying their customers’ demands. Imported clothes & footwear and consumer goods store owners in Mosul were particularly unable to satisfy customers. According to the business owners, customers in Mosul were mainly dissatisfied by insufficient stock, whereas in Tel Kaif and Sinjar, price was the biggest issue. Closely aligned with this, access to capital was considered key to the success of a business in the assessed communities. When asked what they thought made a business successful in their community, 94% of business owners in Mosul, 88% in Tel Kaif and 84% in Sinjar said, ‘access to capital’. Despite the need for loans and credit, most business owners do not have access to formal loan providers. However, religious practices also prevent business owners from taking loans with interest. Nevertheless, respondents understood the importance of access to finance for business development: the majority of YSS respondents considered providing start-up grants to start new businesses as one of the most important livelihood interventions, particularly in Tel Kaif (76%). Recommendations: Facilitate growth of current businesses by providing scale-up grants and supporting supply: Provide

scale-up grants to consumer goods/general stores and imported clothing and footwear stores, particularly in Mosul, to expand their businesses. Invest in stock sellers in Mosul and Sinjar to help businesses meet demand.

Provide grants for existing agricultural enterprises: Support the agricultural sector in Sinjar, Tel Kaif and Mosul by providing farmers with grants for agricultural products like seeds and rehabilitating crop production infrastructure, as well as land preparation / farm rehabilitation in Tel Kaif and Sinjar, and tool provision in Sinjar and Mosul.

Support the establishment of electronics stores or electronic appliance maintenance shops (Tel Kaif): Include an electronics and home/electrical appliance maintenance track within the Business


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Skills Training Programme and provide start-up finance for following the course. Include women who could access a niche of female customers and conduct home visits.

Support the establishment of construction materials businesses (Tel Kaif & Mosul): In Tel Kaif and Sinjar, include a construction materials track within the Business Skills Training Programme and provide start-up finance following the course.

Provide start-up grants for healthy food production/stores or seed production: Provide start-up finance for small and micro agriculture-related enterprises focussing on seed production businesses or vegetable shops for men, and fruit, vegetable and honey shops for women. In Tel Kaif in particular, these businesses would respond to the need for more healthy food stores.

Identify specific market opportunities for other female-run businesses and include as a technical track within Business Skills Training Programme: Provide start-up finance to women to establish businesses in low-competition sectors aimed at female customers following business training courses. Include computer skills and online marketing to help female entrepreneurs access customers online. Conduct research to identify potential businesses (data in this assessment was inconclusive).1

Increase access to culturally appropriate financing options: Support Micro-Finance institutions to provide Islamic finance compliant loans to business owners to help them expand their businesses. Investigate whether a mudarabah loan structure, a type of shariah-compliant joint venture structure with profit/loss sharing, would be accepted in the communities. Develop microfinance sector as a source of funding.

Social Cohesion Trust between religious groups in Sinjar is still low since the conflict and Yazidi genocide. A third of Sinjar survey respondents believed that different religious or ethnic groups working together would create some tension, and business owners were reluctant to hire employees from other religious groups. Discrimination also exists in Tel Kaif: one in five business owners said they would not hire employees from other religious or ethnic groups. Social cohesion was strongest in Mosul. Some FGD participants reported that peaceful coexistence workshops would be very helpful in order to ensure people would be more acceptive of the opinions of others. Recommendations: Focus on peacebuilding in Sinjar: Programming in Sinjar should take carefully into consideration the

Do No Harm principles and programming that has the potential of exacerbating existing tensions should be avoided. For example, Including different sectarian and ethnic groups together in courses could risk creating tensions and so a highly sensitive approach should be taken. To ensure the conflict sensitivity of the program, conduct a conflict analysis in Sinjar, Tel Kaif and Mosul in order to determine the root causes of conflict as well as the main groups involved in conflict. Hold a workshop to discuss the results of the conflict analysis with staff in the field and discuss each of the program activities separately to determine the main risks and establish action points to manage and mitigate those risks.

1 When business owners were asked about the micro and small enterprises with the most and the least competition in their area, there was significant duplication of answers in both questions, making drawing conclusions difficult.

Conflict Analysis in Sinjar, Mosul and Tel Kaif Districts, Ninewa Governorate, Iraq - 2019

1 Optimum Analysis Research Design, Data Collection, and Analysis

1. INTRODUCTION Ninewa Governorate2 covers an area of approximately 37,323 km2 (14,410 square miles) and, due to its high production of wheat and barley, has been acknowledged as the breadbasket of Iraq.3 Because of favourable weather conditions and reliable levels of precipitation, agricultural outputs are almost exclusively (99%) produced ‘organically’ on rain-fed lands. As a result, the majority of residents in Ninewa are farmers. In addition to wheat and barley, fruit and vegetable production during the summer months, as well as animal husbandry are important parts of the total agricultural production in Ninewa Governorate.4 However, agricultural production was severely disrupted during the invasion of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). For example, almost no grains or other foods were produced in Ninewa during the four-year period of ISIS control.5 Mercy Corps is currently implementing the “Promoting Resilience for Returnees and Host Communities in Ninewa” project in Sinjar, Mosul, and Tel Kaif districts, Ninewa governorate. The project, which is funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), aims to improve conditions for sustainable peacebuilding and reconciliation in Ninewa’s post-conflict areas through a holistic approach that includes psychosocial (pillar 1), social cohesion (pillar 2) and livelihood (pillar 3) activities. The outcomes of the project can be found in the figure below. Figure 1. Outcomes of promoting resilience for returnees and host communities in Ninewa project

In order to identify and detail key economic opportunities, Mercy Corps commissioned Optimum Analysis to conduct a labour market assessment in Sinjar, Mosul and Tel Kaif districts, Ninewa governorate. Data collection for this project took place in Tel Kaif and Sinjar districts. Mercy Corps provided Optimum Analysis with datasets from a labour market assessment conducted in Mosul in early 2019.6 The datasets provided by Mercy Corps were merged with the data collected during this project in order to allow for a comparison between the three districts.

2 Map from: Google Maps 3 UNDP, FAO (2015). Recovery and Stabilization Needs Assessment for Newly Liberated Areas in Nineveh Governorate – Zummar, Wana, Rabiya, Sinuni. https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/FAO_Assessment1.pdf 4 Ibid. 5 FAO (2018) Iraq: Restoration of agriculture and water systems sub-programme (2018-2020) http://www.fao.org/3/ca1511en/CA1511EN.pdf 6 Mercy Corps (June 2019) Market Analysis Linked to Job Creation in Mosul, Iraq.

Outcome 1: Improved psychosocial wellbeing for vulnerable adolescents and youth aged 10-24

Outcome 2: Increased social cohesion between communities including greater inclusion of women and youth in Ninewa

Outcome 3: Increased economic resilience of youth through enhanced livelihood opportunities in three districts of Ninewa

https://www.iraq-businessnews.com/tag/swedish-international-development-cooperation-agency-sida/

https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/FAO_Assessment1.pdf

http://www.fao.org/3/ca1511en/CA1511EN.pdf



Aside from detailing key economic opportunities, the aim of the labour market assessment is to provide an in-depth analysis of the labour force and market opportunities in Sinjar, Tel Kaif, and Mosul districts, Ninewa Governorate. More specifically, the objectives of the labour market assessment are to: Identify available industries, and potential micro-businesses or sectors to establish and/or re-

activate, especially for groups of internal and external returnees disaggregated per gender, religion and ethnicities;

Identify the potential traits that affect the choices of youths and parents with regards to their ways of improving their livelihoods;

Identify major market constraints and practical solutions with regard to youth’s access to services (location specific);

Identify forces adversely or positively affecting the economic environment which may impact livelihood activities, and suggest remedies;

Identify potential specific threats or shocks to livelihoods and or the effects of the current post-conflict situation in Mosul, Tel Kaif and Sinjar;

Identify and understand: a) the potential agriculture micro-businesses to start or restore; and b) the underlying factors that enable smallholder farmer groups to be able to restore and/or start their agriculture micro-businesses (example: how group assets and characteristics, as well as the larger infrastructural conditions, affect start-up of new agriculture micro-businesses);

Identify key actors working in the private sector; Identify the barriers to youth employment and entrepreneurship; Identify the main Micro-Finance Institutions (MFIs) and financial service providers in Tel Kaif and

Sinjar and their capacity to provide loans to start-ups; and Identify the cultural barriers that limit the access to start micro-businesses for females. Between December 2019 and January 2020, data collection for the conflict analysis occurred in Sinjar and Tel Kaif districts, Ninewa governate. In total, 213 Youth Skills Surveys (YSSs), 114 Market Opportunity Surveys (MOSs), 7 Key Informant Interviews (KIIs), and 6 Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) were collected (See: Methodology). To utilize existing information as much as possible, Mercy Corps provided Optimum Analysis with data from a labour market assessment conducted in Mosul. This data was collected in April and May 2019 and included 100 YSSs, 98 MOSs, 16 KIIs, and 4 FGDs. This report provides an overview of the main findings.



2. METHODOLOGY In order to best address the objectives of the labour market assessment, Optimum Analysis used a mixed methodology approach, including a thorough desk review, qualitative interviews (KIIs and FGDs) and two quantitative surveys (YSS and MOS). The methodology for the assessment is summarized in the table below. Table 1. Methodology

Method Source/Respondents

Quantity

Preliminary Research

Desk Review

Relevant project documents, including the project proposal and log-frame, and secondary literature about the labour market in Ninewa governorate.

N/A

Research Methods

Youth Skills Survey (YSS)

Youth of working age at local markets in Sinjar, Tel Kaif, and Mosul ● 102 in Tel Kaif ● 111 in Sinjar ● 100 in Mosul

313 Total

Market Opportunity Survey (MOS)

Business owners in Sinjar, Tel Kaif, and Mosul ● 58 in Tel Kaif ● 56 in Sinjar ● 98 in Mosul

212 Total

Key informant Interviews

Sinjar and Tel Kaif ● Micro, Small and Medium Business Owners (3 per

location) ● Vocational Training Centre (1 in Tel Kaif)

Mosul ● Business development programme staff (3) ● Male and female business owners in key sectors (8) ● Micro Financial Institutions (3) ● Ministry of Labour official (1) ● Chamber of Commerce official (1)

23 Total

Focus Group Discussions

Sinjar and Tel Kaif ● Male Youth (1 per location) ● Female Youth (1 per location) ● Parents (1 per location)

Mosul ● Returnees (2) ● Host community members (2)

10 Total

Data collection took place in Tel Kaif and Sinjar districts in December 2019 and January 2020. To utilize existing information as much as possible and to prevent duplication of efforts, Mercy Corps provided Optimum Analysis with data from a labour market assessment conducted in Mosul.7 Altogether, the data allowed for a comparison of the labour force and market opportunities in Sinjar, Tel Kaif, and Mosul districts in Ninewa Governorate.

7 Data collection in Mosul took place in April and May 2019



2.1 DESK REVIEW Optimum Analysis’ Lead Evaluator started the labour market assessment with a comprehensive review of project documents to enhance her understanding of the project design and objectives. The results of this review were used to design the qualitative and quantitative research tools and were incorporated into this report. The following project documents were utilized for the desk review:

▪ Proposal: Promoting Resilience for Returnees and Host Communities in Ninewa ▪ Log-frame: Promoting Resilience for Returnees and Host Communities in Ninewa ▪ Previous Labour Market Assessments

Moreover, a desk review of literature on livelihoods programming in Ninewa governorate was conducted in order to gain insights on the context and the current situation with regards to employment and business development in Ninewa governorate in general and in Mosul, Tal Kaif, and Sinjar in particular. After completion of the data analysis, the findings from the labour market assessment were linked with findings from the literature about livelihoods programming. This information was used to further strengthen the recommendations for future programming. More specifically, this ensured that recommendations aligned with best practices for livelihoods programming in similar settings.

2.2 QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWS Qualitative interviews were deemed highly appropriate for the purpose of this study as they are expected to provide rich and in-depth information considering the context and objectives of this study. Qualitative interviews are especially useful to gain an understanding of underlying reasons, opinions, and motivations among a group of people with regards to the topic under research. KIIs and FGDs were conducted by the Team Supervisors in Sinjar and Tel Kaif. Before the start of data collection, a two-day training (one day for qualitative and one day for quantitative data collection techniques) was held in order to train the Team Supervisors on informed consent, qualitative research methods, qualitative interviewing techniques, and the interview guides. To ensure the quality of the data, Team Supervisors were required to submit notes from interviews on a daily basis. The Lead Evaluator reviewed the notes and provided the Team Supervisors with feedback. The Lead Evaluator would ask for additional information related to the research questions and, where needed, additional questions were added to the interview guides for future interviews.

2.3 QUANTITATIVE HOUSEHOLD SURVEY Optimum Analysis conducted two quantitative surveys utilizing computer-assisted personal interviewing (CAPI) methodology. The CAPI methodology is an interviewing technique in which the respondent or interviewer uses an electronic device (mobile phone) to answer the survey questions. This methodology allows for logic checks, skip patterns, and validations during the interview, thus increasing the efficiency of the interview as well as the quality of data. Because data collected through

KEY INFORMANT INTERVIEWS KIIs are an effective method to access a population of stakeholders who have first-hand knowledge about the researched topics. For this study, selected KII respondents were assumed to have in-depth knowledge about employment and business development in the targeted locations. Through the use of open-ended questions, the Team Supervisors were able to document detailed descriptions, opinions, and sentiments with regards to the above mentioned topics.

FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS FGDs are especially useful to learn the social norms of a community or subgroup. FGDs were conducted as open discussions between the Team Supervisor and the participants. This allowed for the gathering of more in-depth opinions about the research topics from a small, purposefully selected group of people. Each group consisted of six to eight participants and FGDs with youth were separated based on gender in order to ensure honest and full participation of respondents.



the CAPI methodology can be uploaded daily, the Lead Evaluator was able to conduct quality control almost in real-time. The survey tools were taken from the labour market assessment conducted in Mosul in order to ensure comparability of the data. Nevertheless, certain questions were added based on the request of Mercy Corps. As such, the dataset contained some questions which were only answered by respondents in Sinjar and Tel Kaif. Following the completion of the survey tool, Optimum Analysis’ Fieldwork Manager translated, scripted and programmed the survey, uploading it to smartphones using Ona mobile data collection software. Ona provides a web and mobile app that allows the monitoring of real-time field data. Optimum Analysis deployed two Team Supervisors to supervise quantitative data collection. The first Team Supervisor was in charge of data collection in Sinjar and the second Team Supervisor was in charge of data collection in Tel Kaif. The Team Supervisors each worked with a team of six enumerators who were recruited by Mercy Corps. A two-day training (one day for qualitative and one day for quantitative data collection techniques) was held in order to train the Team Supervisors on survey questions, sampling methodology, respondent selection, smartphone data collection techniques, and research ethics. After the training, the Team Supervisors led a one-day enumerator training in Mosul. During the training, the Team Supervisors and enumerators reviewed the survey content and agreed on standard translations into local languages based on input from the enumerators, who all were from the targeted districts. Following the training, the enumerator teams piloted the survey on a purposively selected sample (other enumerators) to rectify any complications such as the wording or translation of a question. The following surveys were conducted:

Youth Skills Survey The YSS determines the current level of skills among the targeted population, including formal education and vocational skills gained through training. In addition, the survey measures access to finance and interest in business start-up and other types of training. YSSs were collected semi-randomly with individuals at local markets. Market Opportunity Survey The MOS provides insight into business opportunities and challenges, according to business owners. The MOS also determines whether and what kind of training would increase the employment opportunities of the targeted population. Enumerators used systematic random sampling, with sampling intervals determined in each market by the number of market stalls.

2.4 DATA ANALYSIS AND REPORTING After all qualitative data was collected, the Lead Evaluator first read through each interview in order to gain a holistic overview of the attitudes of the respondents on the labour market and employment opportunities. Then, the data was organised into themes and sub-themes, allowing the Lead Evaluator to structure the data in line with the research objectives. After the data was organized and coded, the Lead Evaluator was able to systematically draw out key findings and quotes. Quantitative data was analysed using STATA statistical software. The analysis focused on identifying the most significant findings. For this, the Lead Evaluator made use of descriptive statistics, t-tests, chi-square tests and other inferential statistical tests appropriate to the variables under review.

2.5 LIMITATIONS There are two potential limitations to this study. First, data collection in Mosul took place in April and May 2019. While this does not disqualify the data collected in Mosul, it should be taken into account that changes in the labour market may have taken place. The desk review, however, indicates that no important changes in the labour market have taken place in the last 10 months. As such, it can be assumed that the data from the labour market assessment in Mosul is still relevant. Secondly, not all questions that were included in the MOS and YSS in Sinjar and Tel Kaif were also used in the YSS and MOS tools for Mosul as that data was collected earlier. In particular, questions related to



agriculture and women’s employment were included in the YSS and MOS for Sinjar and Tel Kaif and the analysis related to these topics is thus less in-depth in Mosul.

3. CONTEXT

3.1 MARKET ENVIRONMENT Instability, depleted populations, and consumer caution continue to weaken local economies in Sinjar, Tel Kaif, and Mosul as these areas are still recovering from years of conflict and destruction. Tel Kaif and Mosul were occupied by ISIS for nearly three years, and Sinjar for one year starting mid-2014. As a result, many people left these areas and many have still not returned. The Iraqi economy was showing signs of recovery in early 2019, only to suffer from renewed instability since the anti-government protests that began last October. Tel Kaif, Sinjar and Mosul districts, lastly, also host large numbers of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), although many of these IDPs have now left, further weakening consumer demand. Figure 2 below provides an overview of the marker environment in Tel Kaif, Sinjar, and Mosul. Figure 2. Market environment in Tel Kaif, Sinjar, and Mosul districts

3.2 PURCHASING POWER In part, the market environment may be weak since the data shows that purchasing power across the communities is weak. IDP and returnee populations, and female-headed households struggle to afford basic necessities. Most people spend their money on basics: food, clothes, medicine and household items. Split by location, YSS respondents from Sinjar said they spend most their money on clothes and footwear, food, health care/medicine while respondents from Tel Kaif said food, health care/medicine, books and stationery. Respondents from Mosul, moreover, reported that most of their money was spend on food, clothes and footwear, accommodation. Interestingly, respondents in Mosul and Sinjar were on average financially better-off than those in Tel Kaif. A greater proportion of YSS respondents from these

In Tel Kaif, KII and FGD respondents expressed negative attitudes about the quality and availability of government utilities like electricity, water, cleaning and garbage collection. Healthcare and education services were also considered poor. In the private sector, respondents reported a lack of servicing shops for electronic devices, as well as internet-related services. Private healthcare is also lacking. Furthermore, electrical items, medical supplies and construction materials are often not available. Five FGD participants mentioned that it was impossible to find construction materials and that these materials were much needed. Respondents also reported that the quantity, quality and price of goods in general were unsatisfactory and that people went to buy these items in Mosul, two hours away. Lastly, several FGD participants mentioned a lack of healthy food.

In Sinjar, healthcare and water were reported to be among the most pressing issues, with KII and FGD respondents noting the lack of medicines and doctors. A number respondents also highlighted the lack of clean drinking water. Electrical/technological items and construction materials, furthermore, are hard to find in Sinjar. One FGD participant noted that agricultural products such as fertilizers were not available, which is problematic since agriculture is such a key part of the local economy. Most other items are available, but the prices are high and the quality is often poor. Men in the FGD said goods were sometimes broken or counterfeit. People often go to Duhok, Zakho or Mosul to find the goods they need. Lastly, respondents said food items were often only available in small quantities.

In Mosul, most KII and FGD respondents said they had access to all essential items. However, a strong reliance on food and other products produced outside of Mosul district was reported to

impact the quality of especially food products. This is primarily due to the fact that those food products need to be transported and this can take a long time. Moreover, respondents also said that the reliance on not locally produced food and other products made Mosul dependent on other areas

and countries. Core services like social services, primary healthcare, or electricity were reported to be inconsistently available.



districts were able to save money each month (54% in Mosul and 43% in Sinjar) compared to those in Tel Kaif (17%). Business owners were no better off: only 44% of business owners in Mosul, 43% in Sinjar and 17% in Tel Kaif said they were able to save some of their income every month.

4. LABOUR FORCE This chapter provides an analysis of the labour force in Sinjar, Tel Kaif and Mosul districts. The chapter is divided in five different parts: demographics, employment, skills training, digital and online work, and agricultural enterprises. The data analysed for this chapter mainly comes from the YSS as well as KIIs and FGDs. Data from the MOS is used only when this was warranted for the completeness of the analysis.

4.1 DEMOGRAPHICS A total of 313 YSSs were conducted with individuals selected semi-randomly at local markets in Tel Kaif, Sinjar and Mosul. Box 1 provides an overview of the key demographics of the respondents. The gender split was fairly even across districts, with a slightly lower percentage of female respondents in Sinjar and Mosul (44% and 46% respectively) compared to Tel Kaif (53%). To examine financial resilience, YSS respondents were asked whether, in the case of an emergency, they would be able to gather 50,000 Iraqi Dinar (around 42 US Dollars) in two weeks. Only 26% said they would ‘very likely’ be able to do so. 56% said they were ‘somewhat likely’ and 17% said ‘not likely at all’. Mosul respondents, moreover, appeared to be less financially resilient than those in other areas.8 When asked where respondents would find these funds, respondents said income from work (71%) or household savings (18%). Tel Kaif respondents were more likely to say it would come from support from family members or the community (8%) compared to those in Mosul (0%).

4.2 EMPLOYMENT

8 24% responded ‘not likely at all’, compared to 13% and 14% in Tel Kaif and Sinjar.

A third of male YSS respondents reported having no work at all, with lack of

available jobs or capital to start their own business as the main reasons. Two-thirds of female YSS respondents did not work, but mostly not by choice.

71% of women were seeking employment, with higher figures in Sinjar (95%) and Mosul (86%) than Tel Kaif (47%).

Women faced considerable restrictions to employment. Domains considered socially

appropriate for women were largely those with a female customer base (e.g. tailoring, hairdressing, women clothes store, beauty salon, etc.). Over half of business owners interviewed said they would not hire female staff.

Administrative/office work and barber/hairdresser repeatedly came up as desirable trades or good employment opportunities both for men and women.

Business owners were largely unwilling to hire people with disabilities The majority of YSS respondents and FGD participants were interested in technical/digital

types of employment, particularly women in Sinjar. Some perceived it as risky and many said they lacked the skills.

Interest in working agriculture was strong among both men and women. Working in vegetable, fruit, seeds and honey production/shops were the most desirable jobs.

Box 2: Key Findings Employment

Gender : 52% men, 48% women



Education: 25% university graduate,21% some secondary school,14% completed primary

school

Average years of formal education: 11 years

Box 1: Youth Skill Survey



Sustainable employment opportunities were reportedly scarce across districts. According the KII and FGD respondents, many factories and businesses were destroyed during the conflict, damaging local economies and resulting in large job losses. For example, a now destroyed fizzy drink factory in Tel Kaif area used to employ around 600 people and a nearby medicine factory employed another 600. Currently, a large part of the population relies on day labour (e.g. farming, construction, etc.), not providing them with a year-round stable income. Figure 3 below provides an overview of the biggest employers, best employment opportunities and preferred trades. Figure 3. Market environment in Tel Kaif, Sinjar, and Mosul districts

Location Biggest employers (according to all respondents)

Best opportunities (according to all respondents)

Men: Employment sought (for males seeking employment)

Tel Kaif 1. Day labour 2. Construction work 3. Hairdressing

1. Agriculture (mechanized) 2. Hairdressing 3. Tailoring

1. Agriculture (mechanized) 2. Electronic device maintenance 3. Administrative work

Sinjar 1. Day labour 2. Marketing 3. Agriculture (manual)

1. Administrative work 2. Marketing 3. Computers/ITC

1. Marketing 2. Hairdressing 3. Administrative work

Mosul Data not collected.9 1. Hairdressing 2. Administrative work 3. Business management

1. Administrative work 2. Marketing 3. Business management

Location Men: Preferred trades (for all male respondents)

Women: Preferred trades (for all female respondents)

Youth: Preferred trades (for all respondents under 30 years of age)

Tel Kaif 1. Tailoring 2. Hairdressing 3. Agriculture (mechanized)

1. Tailoring 2. Administrative work 3. Hairdressing

1. Tailoring 2. Hairdressing 3. Administrative work

Sinjar 1. Administrative work 2. Marketing 3. Computers/ITC

1. Administrative work 2. Marketing 3. Finance

1. Administrative work 2. Marketing 3. Computers/ITC

Mosul Data not collected. Data not collected. Data not collected.

4.2.1 MEN’S EMPLOYMENT Overall, 68% of male respondents were employed, with the lowest employment figure in Tel Kaif (58%). While casual labour was the most common form of employment across the three districts, in Sinjar, the percentage of informal casual labour was notably high at 31%, compared to 13% in Tel Kaif and 11% in Mosul (See: Figure 4).

9 Data in Mosul was collected earlier in 2019. These questions were not included in the tools that were developed for this earlier market assessment.

Men were mainly employed in administrative roles, marketing

roles or did day labour.



When it comes to the sectors, jobs of male YSS respondents varied by location with administrative work, business marketing and day labour (e.g. farming, construction, etc.) being the most common. The method of data collection, however, will have had an impact on the types of jobs captured; respondents were chosen semi-randomly at local markets. This data should therefore not be extrapolated to the general population. Working men tended to work 5.1 days per week and 7.6 hours per day. Working days per week were slightly higher on average in Tel Kaif (5.3) than Sinjar (5.0) and Mosul (5.1). The average number of hours per day was again higher in Tel Kaif (8.8) than other areas. Respondents in Tel Kaif, moreover, earned less per day than in Mosul and Sinjar. In Tel Kaif, 46% of respondents earned less than 10,000 Iraqi Dinar per day, compared to 24% in Mosul and 2% in Sinjar. This suggests that respondents in Tel Kaif face the most challenging work environment with more working days, longer working hours, and lower salaries. Figure 4. Employment status among male YSS respondents

A third of male YSS respondents reported having no work at all (32%). Among those, two-thirds (63%) said they were currently seeking new employment. Lack of available jobs or lack of capital to start their own business were the main reasons for being unemployed.10

10 Sample sizes were too small to meaningfully disaggregate this by area.

28%

20%

0%

2%

11%

17%

20%

27%

5%

6%

13%

31%

5%

13%

42%

13%

6%

13%

13%

10%

4%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%

No

Yes, casual labour (formal)

Yes, part-time permanent employment (formal)

Yes, full-time permanent labour (formal)

Yes, casual labour (informal)

Yes, part-time permanent employment (informal)

Yes, full-time permanent labour (informal)

Tel Kaif Sinjar Mosul



All male respondents, whether employed or unemployed, were asked what kind of trades they would most like to work in. Marketing, administrative work and hairdressing were considered desirable jobs and these were also reported to be sectors that employed most people in the community. Men tended to want to work in those trades because they would enjoy the work or because it pays well. Important to mention, 19% of men already worked in their preferred trade. Day labour (e.g. farming, construction, etc.), construction site work and manual agriculture, lastly, were also reported to be large employers, but these were generally not considered good opportunities. Lack of employment opportunities and low pay were the biggest factors preventing respondents from working in their preferred trades (selected by 52% and 25% of respondents respectively). Just 9% mentioned that the work was too hard. Other factors like lack of transportation or childcare were not widely selected by men. 4.2.2 WOMEN’S EMPLOYMENT Overall, 34% of female respondents were employed, with the lowest employment figure in Tel Kaif (11%). Women’s employment was generally restricted to areas considered appropriate for women. ‘Appropriate’ domains were largely those with a female customer base, like hair and makeup salons, underwear shops and tailors. The ‘female’ domain was less restricted in Sinjar and Mosul, however, with teaching, farming, restaurants and general stores also being socially-accepted forms of employment for women. Figure 5. Is it acceptable for women to be employed outside of their homes?

Though most business owners thought it was acceptable for women to be employed outside of the home at least in some businesses (hair and makeup salons, underwear shops and tailors, etc.) (82%), over half said they would not hire female staff (56%), with a significantly higher figure in Tel Kaif (p<0.05) (See: Figure 6). This may in part be due to the more conservative

culture within Tel Kaif district. Figure 6. Would you be willing to hire female staff?

A business being run by a woman, moreover, was not a guarantee that the business owner would hire women: five out of 28 female business owners said they would not hire female staff. Physical weakness and lack of skills were reasons mentioned by KII and FGD participants to exclude women from many professions. When asked whether they would employ female staff, male business owners interviewed

tended to respond that they would, in theory, hire women, but their work was not suitable for women

Men would prefer to work in administrative work,

marketing, or hairdressing

3% 7%

90%

61%

16% 23%

28%

13%

54%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Yes Maybe No


33%

57%

9%

68%

30%

3%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

Yes, always Yes, but only sometypes of employment

No

Tel Kaif Sinjar



because it involved heavy lifting. Distance from the house was also an important factor limiting women’s job options. Both male and female FGD participants said women traveling far away for work could be dangerous. Only one male shop owner from Sinjar employed women further evidencing the additional barriers that women face when seeking for employment opportunities. Across communities, women were largely unwilling to transgress cultural norms by working in areas considered unsuitable for women, particularly in Tel Kaif (See: Figure 7). The difference between Tel Kaif and the other districts was also significant (p<0.05). This again confirms the conservative culture in Tel Kaif district. Only a minority of women were interested in types of employment that would not be accepted by society. According to FGDs, those not suitable for women types of employment include blacksmith, shop owner, home items seller, barber, construction worker, taxi driver, security guard, and government official. However, most female respondents did expect support from their families with regards to their employment preferences: four out of five women in Tel Kaif said their family and community would allow them to work in sectors they were interested in, compared to 98% in Sinjar.11 This difference was also found to be significant (p<0.05) Figure 7. Are you willing to accept work not considered suitable for women?

In Tel Kaif, where cultural norms preventing women from working were particularly strong, FGD participants noted the need for change. Both women and men mentioned the need for awareness sessions to change these cultural expectations. Participants in the male youth FGD, for example, all agreed that awareness raising session

could improve the role of women in their society. “We need awareness sessions and workshops for the community to encourage respect for women working outside the home so they can help their families.”12 Women working was not unheard of, however, with several participants mentioning local women working in clothing or makeup shops in the market.

Only 50 working women were included in the survey. Jobs of female YSS respondents varied by location with day labour (e.g. farming, construction, etc.), hairdressing, and marketing being the most common jobs. Employed women on average worked 4.8 days per week and 6.9 hours per day, slightly less than men. Two thirds of female YSS respondents did not work (66%). Of those who were not employed, 71% were currently seeking employment opportunities, with higher figures in Sinjar (95%) and Mosul (86%) than Tel Kaif (47%). Lack of available jobs or lack of capital to start their own business were the main reasons for women being unemployed.13 Lack of experience in how to start a business (18%), poor working conditions (15%) and lack of suitable skills (13%) were also notable factors.

11 This data was not collected in Mosul. 12 Tel Kaif FGD with Male Youth. 13 Sample sizes were too small to meaningfully disaggregate this by area.

Women tended to work in day labour, hairdressing or marketing.

7%

81%

11% 20%

73%

6% 17%

72%

2% 0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Yes No Refused to answer




All female respondents, whether employed or unemployed, were asked what kind of trades they would most like to work in. Overall, tailoring, administrative work and hairdressing were the most common choices, but responses differed by area (See: Figure 3). Women tended to want to work in those trades because they would enjoy the work, because it pays well or because it was easy to do. When asked about types of employment not considered suitable for women in which they preferred to work, the 14 women who reported a willingness to work in trades not considered suitable for women answered things like carpentry, taxi services, consumer goods, hairdressing, military services, police, mechanics, and blacksmith. Lack of jobs and low pay, along with lack of available childcare were the biggest factors preventing women from working in their preferred trades (selected by 56%, 20% and 15% of respondents respectively). Another 9% said they did not have the needed transportation. Just 1% mentioned ‘gender issues.’ However, in the follow-up ‘open response’ question, women explained that social norms and their husbands would prevent them from ensuring employment. 4.2.3 PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES In the last years, Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) have worked to ensure the integration of persons with impairments into Iraq, including into the workforce. However, the Commission on Persons with Disabilities noted that there is a lack of statistics on access by persons with impairments to employment opportunities.14 From the qualitative data from business owners, however, it is clear that persons with disabilities face significant additional barriers when seeking for employment opportunities. with women, business owners interviewed in KIIs tended to respond that they would, in theory, hire people with disabilities, but their work was not suitable for them because it involved heavy lifting or mobility. This response is relatively similar to the reason given for not hiring females. The MOS survey data also shows a very low acceptance for hiring people with disabilities (see Figure 8). Moreover, business owners from Tel Kaif were significantly less likely to show willingness to hire a staff with a disability (p<0.05) Figure 8. Would you be willing to hire a staff with a disability?

4.3 SKILLS TRAINING

14 OHCHR (2016) Report on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Iraq“ file:///C:/Users/Sarah/Downloads/UNAMI_OHCHR__Report_on_the_Rights_of_PWD_FINAL_2Jan2017%20(1).pdf

Women would prefer to work in tailoring, administrative

work and hairdressing.

The majority of the surveyed population (YSS and MOS respondents) had not received vocational training. Half of this majority reported a lack of available courses.

NGOs were the main providers of vocational training. Tel Kaif and Sinjar lack permanent training centres.

Lack of available jobs was the main reason that half of trained YSS respondents were not employed three months after the training.

Three-quarters of YSS respondents and 63% of business owners were interested in receiving (more) vocational or skills training.

Computer skills, English language, business skills, literacy and finance were the main

suggested courses for future trainings. Business, administration, finance and entrepreneurship/management were the main skills

business owners looked for when hiring.

Box 3: Key Findings Skills Training

5%

28%

66%

11%

34%

55%

10%

34%

52%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

Yes Maybe No




Figure 9. Skills training data

Location Men: Main trainings received to date (according to male YSS respondents)

Women: Main trainings received to date (according to female YSS respondents)

Key skills needed in market

Most sought-after skills (according to business owners)

Tel Kaif 1. Administrative work 2. Agriculture (mechanized) 3. Blacksmith

1. Computers/ITC 2. Home economics 3. Tailoring

1. Business skills 2. Literacy 3. Finance

1. Business skills 2. Administrative skills 3. Management

Sinjar 1. Animal healthcare 2. Healthcare 3. Teaching

1. Administrative work 2. Computer/ITC 3. Business finance

1. Business skills 2. Literacy 3. Finance

1. Business skills 2. Finance 3. Administrative skills

Mosul 1. Administrative work 2. Business management 3. Computer/ITC

1. Hairdressing 2. Tailoring 3. Arts and crafts

1. Business skills 2. Language skills 3. Literacy

1. Management 2. Business skills 3. Administrative skills

4.3.1 PAST VOCATIONAL TRAINING A minority of YSS respondents had received vocational training (16%). Men and women had received training to a roughly equal degree in Tel Kaif and Mosul, but in Sinjar, many more women had received training than men (24% versus 11%). The majority of these trainings (67%) had been within the last year and just 24% had been more than two years ago. Those who had not received training said the reason was a lack of available courses (52%). Others were simply not interested (18%). The distance or transportation costs prevented 36 YSS respondents (14%) from participating. Differences between genders to this question were not noteworthy. Friends, relatives, business cooperatives and local professionals provided alternative training avenues in the community, according to YSS respondents. While there were no actual training centres in Tel Kaif or Sinjar, NGOs had offered vocational training courses in the past. YSS respondents mostly noted NGOs as the main providers training courses (41%); 20% of respondents mentioned the government and 18% said local community organisations.

In Tel Kaif, FGD and KII participants mentioned blacksmith, mobile phone maintenance and barber trainings for men and makeup, languages, sewing, confectionary, computer skills, and cooking trainings for women. In Sinjar, KII and FGD respondents knew people that had participated in trainings in Zakho

Administrative work, computers/ICT and business management were the main types of training received by YSS respondents.



and Duhok. A shop owner mentioned a number of trainings that had taken place in the past, including beekeeping, sheep rearing, sewing and confectionary trainings. Respondents also mentioned that government departments provided some training in agriculture and primary healthcare. Few business owners (MOS) had received vocational or skills training, though it was much more common in Mosul than Sinjar or Tel Kaif (see Figure 10). Career counselling was also more common: 31% in Mosul and Sinjar had received career counselling, and 19% in Tel Kaif. In the KIIs, only one of the six business owners interviewed had attended training, with most learning on the job or from relatives. Only one business owner interviewed said their employees had received external training. While most business owners trained their employees on the job, they were enthusiastic about hiring trained staff. Figure 10. MOS respondents who received vocational training

Most YSS respondents that had attended training completed their course. Only 16% did not complete the full length of the training programme, with no significant findings in terms of the type or provider of these uncompleted trainings. However, half of respondents had not found a job within three months of finishing the

training, with the lack of available jobs as the main reported reason (75%). Another 25% also mentioned lack of capital to start a business as the main reason. Moreover, psychological issues - a lack of motivation, self-confidence and hope - also held trainees back from finding work following training courses, according to the Director of the Women’s Support and Development Organisation. In Tel Kaif, seven out of ten former trainees had not found a job (noting the very small sample size at this level). Training in Mosul was more effective, with only one third of the 15 former trainees remaining jobless. The main reason for this appears to be that there are no available jobs they can obtain after completing the training program. From qualitative data, however, it was ascertained that males and females do regard vocational training as effective in order to increase employment opportunities despite the lack of available job opportunities. Multiple female and male FGD respondents highlight instances in which people after completing a vocational training programme saw their employment opportunities increase. Despite the low post-course employment rates indicated by the quantitative data, KII and FGD participants considered training courses delivered to date to have been effective. In addition, they said more such opportunities were needed. Some, however, pointed out that although the trainings were good, there were no job opportunities to apply for afterwards. Some parents in the Sinjar FGD, moreover, said the trainings were only basic and they needed higher level training. Business owners surveyed also confirmed the utility of training: 95% of MOS respondents said their training had been ‘useful’ or ‘very useful’ for their current business. Training mentees was fairly uncommon: 21% of business owners in Mosul had done so; 13% in Sinjar and 2% in Tel Kaif. These differences were also found to be significant (p<0.05). Of those that had, around half had trained between one and three mentees. When asked if they would be willing to take on mentees, 63% said ‘yes’. Sinjar business owners were the most enthusiastic, with 77% saying they would take mentees. 4.3.2 FUTURE VOCATIONAL TRAINING Figure 11. Are you interested in receiving vocational training?

Most YSS respondents (73%) and business owners (63%) were interested in receiving (more) vocational or skills training, with roughly similar results across districts. In FGDs, virtually all interviewees, both male and female,

7% 13%

28%

0%

20%

40%


75%

24%

1%

71%

26%

3%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

Yes No Don't know

Male Female



were enthusiastic about participating in trainings. For YSS respondents, getting a job (37%) or improving their existing skills (40%) were the main reasons for wanting to receive training, rather than learning a new trade (7%). Business skills, literacy and finance were the key skills needed in the labour market, according to YSS respondents. It is worth noting that the relationship between literacy and employability was reflected in other parts of the data; illiterate respondents were much more likely to be unemployed (75%) compared to those who could read/write well (42%).

Computer skills and English language were the main courses recommended by KII and FGD participants in Tel Kaif and Sinjar, with several saying that people with these skills tended to get jobs. The female youth FGD in Tel Kaif said, “They should open trainings in English and computer skills because a high percentage of the available job opportunities request these skills.”15 The female youth FGD in Sinjar also said, “People who are proficient in language and computer skills always get jobs.”16 The female FGD in Sinjar also recommended sewing, hairdresser and barber courses. Other suggestions included blacksmith, carpenter and agriculture skills. In Mosul, respondents were more negative about the effectiveness of vocational training courses and all vocational training staff interviewed in Mosul reported that if youth are to find employment after completing their training, they need to have good connections.

When hiring, surveyed business owners said they looked for marketing, administrative skills and business management skills. The overlap between these sought-after skills and the training courses received by YSS respondents to date indicates that organisations delivering trainings in the past have responded to needs, even if these trainings have been limited in reach. Most business owners wanted to receive training in business skills (71%), as well as trade skills in their profession (47%) and language skills (30%). Interest in training was common to both those business owners who had received training (among whom 68% were interested in more) and those who had not (62%). These skills were the same as those that business owners considered key to the success of their business, as well as ‘connections’ (mentioned by 36% of respondents).

4.4 IN FOCUS: DIGITAL AND ONLINE WORK Figure 12. Are you willing to work in a digital type of employment in Sinjar (left) and Tel Kaif (right)?

15 Tel Kaif FGD with Female Youth. 16 Sinjar FGD with Female Youth.

Business, literacy and finance skills were most needed in the

labour market, according to YSS respondents.

Marketing, administrative office, and business management

skills were the main skills sought-after by MOS respondents.

48%

67%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

Yes

Male Female

50%

26%

0%

20%

40%

60%

Yes

Male Female



Around half of the YSS respondents were interested in a technical/digital type of employment. In Tel Kaif, it was the men that were most enthusiastic, while in Sinjar the women were more keen (See: Figure 12). This data was not available for Mosul. When those who were not interested were asked ‘why not?’, they almost all stated a lack of basic skills and knowledge about the field. Some others mentioned they could not read or write or had no desire to work in this field. Interestingly, women in Tel Kaif tended to be significantly more optimistic than men about the social acceptability of women working in this field. When asked whether women would be allowed to work in technical/digital types of employment, 78% of women said ‘yes’ versus just 48% of men (p<0.05). In Sinjar, both genders mostly agreed that women would be allowed to work in such trades (88% of women and 85% of men). When asked what type of technology/digital employment they would most like to work in, the majority of (open response) answers mentioned online marketing and selling. The rest mentioned translation and one female mentioned data and information management.

4.5 IN FOCUS: AGRICULTURAL ENTERPRISES Figure 13. Agricultural employment data

Location Available small/micro agricultural enterprises

Preferred small/micro agricultural enterprises (according to male YSS respondents)17

Preferred small/micro agricultural enterprises (according to female YSS respondents)18

Tel Kaif 1. Vegetable 2. Fruit 3. Livestock

1. Vegetables 2. Seeds 3. Fertilizers

1. Vegetables 2. Honey 3. Fruit

Sinjar 1. Vegetables 2. Fruit 3. Seeds

1. Fruit 2. Vegetables 3. Seeds

1. Fruit 2. Vegetable 3. Honey

Mosul 1. Vegetable 2. Seeds 3. Livestock

Data not collected.19 Data not collected.20

Figure 14. Are you interested in working in agriculture?

Vegetable and fruit shops, seed shops and livestock production were the main existing small and micro enterprises mentioned across the communities. (See: Figure 13). Interest in working in agriculture was strong among both men and women; 61% of Tel Kaif women and 54% of Tel Kaif men,

and 65% of Sinjar women and 66% of Sinjar men said they were ‘somewhat’ or ‘very much’ interested (See: Figure 14). Vegetables, fruits, seeds and honey production or shops were the most desirable small and micro agriculture enterprises in which to work, with women slightly more interested in fruits, vegetables and honey, and men more interested in seeds. Men in Tel Kaif had the strongest self-reported

17 Answers selected by 15% or more of YSS respondents. 18 Ibid. 19 Data in Mosul was collected earlier in 2019. These questions were not included in the tools that were developed for this earlier market assessment. Agricultural questions that were asked in Mosul, moreover, were only asked to respondents from areas that have access to agricultural land. 20 Ibid.

17%

41% 42%

21%

45% 34%

0%

20%

40%

60%

Very much interested Somewhat interested Not at all interested

Tel Kaif Sinjar



agriculture skills, while women were the most reticent about whether they had the required skills. 92% of male respondents in Tel Kaif said they had the skills and knowledge, or most of them, to work in agriculture, compared to 73% of Sinjar males and 63% of women (similar across both communities). This data was again not available for Mosul.

5. MARKET OPPORTUNITIES This chapter provides an analysis of market opportunities in Sinjar, Tel Kaif and Mosul districts. The chapter is divided in five different parts: demographics, existing businesses, future business opportunities, agriculture, and access to finance. The data analysed for this chapter mainly comes from the MOS as well as KIIs and FGDs. Data from the YYS is used only when this was warranted for the completeness of the analysis.

5.1 DEMOGRAPHICS A total of 212 MOSs were conducted with vendors, business owners and service providers in Tel Kaif, Sinjar and Mosul. Box 4 displays the key demographics of the respondents. Female business owners were a minority, but the percentage interviewed in Mosul was considerably higher than the other areas: 21% of respondents were female, compared to 11% in Sinjar and 2% in Tel Kaif. MOS survey respondents are not statistically representative of all business owners in these areas, however, combined with other data, this indicates a larger proportion of female-run businesses in Mosul and Sinjar. Business owners appeared to be slightly more financially resilient than YSS respondents, particularly in Sinjar. When asked about their ability to gather 50,000 Iraqi Dinars in two weeks in the event of an emergency, 34% said they would ‘very likely’ be able to do so.21 56% said they were ‘somewhat likely’ (in line with YSS respondents) and just 9% said ‘not likely at all’. Business owners were more likely than YSS respondents to say these funds would come from income from work (85%), while household savings only made up 8% of responses.

5.2 EXISTING BUSINESSES

21 In Sinjar, 39% of YSS respondents and 59% of MOS respondents said they were ‘very likely’ to be able to find the money.

Access to capital was considered key to the success of a business. Lack of

capital prevented business owners from meeting demand and expanding. Insufficient traders and lack of supply were challenges faced by business

owners in Mosul and Sinjar. Business owners in Mosul and, to a lesser degree, Sinjar faced frequent difficulty

in satisfying their customers’ demands largely because of lack of capital or lack of supply. Imported clothes & footwear and consumer goods/general store owners in Mosul were

particularly unable to satisfy customers. Female-run businesses faced much less competition than male-run ones, indicating an

opportunity to establish new female-run businesses selling products and services for women.

Many businesses and factories were destroyed during the conflict. Only some have been restored.

Box 5: Key Findings Existing Businesses

Gender: 86% men, 13% women



Education: 26% some secondary school,21% some primary

school,17% completed secondary school

Average years of education: 9 years

Box 4: Market Opportunity Survey Demographics



Most of the business owners surveyed in each of the three communities sold goods. Service-based businesses were much more common in Mosul than the other communities (See: Figure 16). For those business owners that sold goods, their main products were imported clothes & footwear (29% of respondents), consumer goods (29%) and fruits/vegetables/nuts (7%). For business owners that provided a service, the main services were barber/hair stylist (18%), tailor (7%) and appliance repair (6%). Female-run businesses in Sinjar and Mosul sold clothes and footwear, consumer goods, groceries and furniture, or provided services like beauty salons, hospitality and tailoring. Figure 15. Existing businesses data

Location Main goods sold by surveyed business owners

Main services sold by surveyed business owners

Most profitable business types

Tel Kaif 1. Consumer goods 2. Clothes (imported) 3. Prepared food

1. Hairdressing 2. Tailoring 3. Mechanics

1. Consumer goods 2. Prepared food 3. Hairdressing

Sinjar 1. Clothes (imported) 2. Consumer goods 3. Clothes (locally made)

1. Hairdressing 2. Restaurant 3. Tailoring

1. Consumer goods 2. Clothes (imported) 3. Household appliances

Mosul 1. Consumer goods 2. Clothes (imported) 3. Fruits/vegetables/nuts

1. Hairdressing 2. Appliance repair 3. Catering

1. Consumer goods 2. Clothes (imported)

Figure 16. How would you describe your business?

In Tel Kaif, only one female-run business was surveyed - a tailor. Two-thirds of business owners surveyed (66%) reported that they did not have any employees as part of their business. Among the businesses that did employ staff, an average of 2.2 employees were employed (44% had one employee and 27% had two employees). Business mainly sold directly to customers (92%), though 9% (19 businesses) sold to other retailers and a further 6% sold to traders or brokers. The large majority of business

owners said most of their customers were male (See: Figure 17). Female-run business tend to have mainly female customers (89%). This confirmed feedback from KII and FGD respondents that women tended to run businesses aimed at other women, such as make-up and underwear shops. Out of 28 female-run businesses, just three had mainly male customers. Figure 17. Who are most of your customers?

72%

28%

82%

18%

53% 43%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

I sell items or goods I provide a service


69%

16% 16%

0%

57%

16% 13% 11%

46% 37%

10%

0% 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Men Women Boys Girls




5.2.1 BUSINESS CHALLENGES Some Mosul and Sinjar business owners felt they were unable to satisfy their customers’ needs (See: Figure 18) According to the business owners, customers in Mosul were mainly dissatisfied by insufficient stock, whereas in Tel Kaif and Sinjar, price was the biggest issue. Lack of capital was the main reason those business owners could not satisfy their customers (72%), while 35% noted a lack of sources from which to buy stock. Businesses that particularly struggled to satisfy demand were those selling imported clothes & footwear (17 out of 37 business owners, 13 of which were in Mosul), consumer goods / general store owners (11 out of 37 business owners, 9 of which were in Mosul) and fruits / vegetables / nuts shops (4 out of 9 business owners). Figure 18. Do you ever feel unable to satisfy your potential customers?

Competition was harder in Mosul than in other communities. 24% of respondents said they did not feel able to compete with other businesses selling similar goods or services. This compared to just 14% in Sinjar and 12% in Tel Kaif. However, somewhat conversely, when asked about the number of competitor businesses in the area, Tel Kaif and Sinjar businesses owners noted 11 competitors on average, while in Mosul the

average was just five competitors. The business type with the most competitors was barbers/hairdressers (average of 19 competitors), unsurprising considering that 18% of the respondents owned this type of business, indicating the proliferation of these businesses in all three communities. Interestingly, female business owners were less concerned about competition, with just 4% saying they felt unable to compete (compared to 20% of male business owners). Female-run businesses also had just six competitor businesses on average, compared to 11 for male-run businesses. This suggests an opportunity to start new businesses for women’s goods and services (since female business owners mainly ran businesses aimed at women). Business owners felt that having more access to capital would make them more competitive; 87% of the 38 business owners who reported feeling unable to compete mentioned this factor. Access to training was only selected by 11% of these respondents and access to more skilled workers by 13%. When business owners were asked whether it would be possible for them to ask for higher prices, they all said it would not be possible since people do not have money to pay more and it would damage their reputation. 5.2.2 PROCUREMENT Survey responses reveal that business owners secure their inputs from a wide variety of sources and locations. 21% procured them from producers in Baghdad; 21% from retailers/wholesalers in Baghdad; 18% from traders in Baghdad; 14% from retailers/wholesalers in other areas of Iraq; 13% from traders in other areas of Iraq; 9% from producers in other areas of Iraq; 5% came from outside Iraq. In KIIs, business owners said they were able to find the inputs they needed, but many went to buy them from Duhok, Mosul, Zakho or Erbil. Some said it would be better if wholesalers were available locally to cut costs. Checkpoints between Sinjar and major cities like Zakho made bringing goods from there difficult. Satisfaction with traders was relatively high in Tel Kaif compared to Mosul and Sinjar: 73% of business owners that used traders in Tel Kaif were satisfied with their traders’ work. However, in Mosul that figure was only 46% and in Sinjar just 37%. The problems in Mosul and Sinjar were generally around insufficient numbers of traders and lack of sufficient supply. Being unprofessional, having poor hygiene or lacking language skills were not considered to be noteworthy issues, with only seven business

12%

21%

42%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Yes




owners mentioning any one of those items. This dissatisfaction with traders is echoed in the reduced ability of business owners in Mosul and, to a lesser degree, Sinjar to satisfy their customers. Working with brokers was only common in Sinjar. A quarter of Sinjar business owners worked with brokers (23%) for, on average, seven days in a month. In Tel Kaif only 5% worked with brokers and in Mosul none did. Some business owners were satisfied with their work (47%), though other mentioned issues like there being too few (27%) or too many (20%), that they were not punctual (20%) or too expensive (27%). 5.2.3 SUCCESS FACTORS Access to capital was considered key to the success of a business in the assessed communities. When asked what they thought made a business successful in their community, 94% of business owners in Mosul, 88% in Tel Kaif and 84% in Sinjar said ‘access to capital’. This is further confirmed in qualitative interviews during which business owners report that loans and credit helps them to buy new supplies for their businesses. Having in-demand products and services was considered more important in Sinjar (39%) than in Tel Kaif (17%) and Mosul (25%). Good transport networks were more important in Sinjar, with 23% of respondents noting this factor, compared to 5% in Tel Kaif and 8% in Mosul. In terms of skills, business skills, connections and trade skills were considered key to the success of a business. ‘Connections’ were considered to play a bigger role in Sinjar, with 54% of respondents mentioning these, compared to around 29% in Tel Kaif and Mosul. Most business owners (84%) said they were planning to expand their business in the next few years, with similar figures across communities, service/goods providers and genders. This appears optimistic in light of other data indicating that only 44% of business owners in Mosul, 43% in Sinjar and 17% in Tel Kaif had money left over to save at the end of the month. Most business owners (83%) also said that in order to expand, they would need to hire trained workers.

TRADE ASSOCIATIONS Only a small minority of respondents were aware of there being trade/business associations or cooperatives in the community (13%, roughly in line across the two surveys and three communities). In Tel Kaif, these mostly were understood to provide financial assistance, whereas in Sinjar respondents also mentioned technical assistance, helping businesses get licenses and farming support (seeds, fertilizers). 5.2.5 RESTARTING OR RESTORING BUSINESSES Many factories and businesses were destroyed during the conflict, damaging local economies and resulting in huge job losses. Only some of these businesses have been restored since. In qualitative interviews, respondents in Tel Kaif and Sinjar mentioned the importance of restoring factories and businesses that had been major employers, including a large construction business that employed between 200-300 workers in Sinjar, a fizzy drinks factory in Tel Kaif that employed 600 and a medicine factory in Tel Kaif that employed another 600 people. No information could be found that indicates that organisations or government entities are aiming to restore these businesses in the near future. Figure 19. Do youth prefer to restart their business or find a job?

YSS respondents also highlighted the importance of restoring businesses damaged by war, especially in Sinjar where half of respondents noted this as one of the most important livelihoods interventions. A parent in a Tel Kaif FGD said that restoring damaged businesses would encourage

14%

84%

2%

38%

54%

9%

45% 52%

3%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Prefer restartingtheir business

Prefer jobs in theprivate sector

Don't know




people to return to the area.22 As such, this has the potential to contribute to the sustainable return of those that have become displaced. Business owners were also asked whether they thought youth (aged 18-28) would be interested in restarting/restoring their businesses. The data suggests a greater interest in Mosul and Sinjar compared to Tel Kaif (See: Figure 19) and this difference was significant (p<0.05). This may partly reflect the fact that more businesses were damaged during the war in those areas than in Tel Kaif.23

5.3 FUTURE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

5.3.1 ENTREPRENEURSHIP Figure 20. What is the ideal size of people to start new businesses?

YSS respondents were asked in an ‘open response’ question about the support they would need to start a new business. Capital, business training, equipment, and qualified staff were the most often mentioned types of support. However, the lack of financial support, the security situation, and a weak economy were reported as major barriers to starting new businesses in qualitative interviews in Tel Kaif and Sinjar. Parents in the Tel Kaif FGD particularly highlighted the need for financing from NGOs for young people to set up projects. In Tel Kaif, electronics shops for home appliances, construction materials stores, food stores, restaurants, and cafes were suggested in qualitative interviews as ideas for new businesses. In Sinjar, construction materials, food and clothing stores were deemed potentially successful ventures. To determine

22 Tel Kaif FGD with Parents.

23 When asked ‘Were many businesses damaged during the war in your area?’, 100% of respondents in Mosul said ‘yes’, 83% in Sinjar and 64% in Tel Kaif.

Capital access limitation was the main barrier to setting up new businesses.

Female entrepreneurship faces financial, social and logistical barriers. However female-run businesses do exist in all communities, showing that barriers can be

overcome. The agricultural sector in Ninewa needs investment. Land preparation, and the

provision of seeds, tools and fertilizers would encourage people to set up small and micro

agriculture-related enterprises. Tel Kaif lacks electronics shops and servicing shops for electronic devices, particularly home

appliances. Residents currently have to travel to Mosul to buy these items. There is unmet demand for construction materials stores in Tel Kaif and Sinjar.

Box 6: Key Findings New Business Opportunities

17%

55%

19%

2%

5%

20%

41%

20%

9%

5%

4%

66%

22%

5%

1%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

1

2

3

4

5

Mosul Sinjar Tel Kaif



potential new business opportunities, business owners were asked what they thought was the most profitable kind of business. Consumer goods scored much higher than any other option (38% compared to 10% for the next choice down - imported clothes and footwear), but this may be partly because ‘consumer goods’ is a fairly ‘catch-all’ term. Accessories (belts, sunglasses, jewellery, phone cases, etc.) was the third most common choice (8%) with several people in Sinjar also mentioning gold and jewellery shops in the open response follow up question. Business owners tended to think that two people was the ideal number to start a business together. Mosul business owners tended to favour slightly higher numbers of start-up partners (See: Figure 20). 5.3.2 FEMALE ENTREPRENEURSHIP In Tel Kaif, KII and FGD participants believed opportunities for women to start a business lay mainly in the traditionally female domain of salons and women’s underwear shops. In Sinjar, there appeared to be more socially acceptable options for women entrepreneurs, including running restaurants, food stores, and agricultural businesses. Financial barriers were more significant than cultural barriers to women starting their own business, YSS data suggests. The vast majority of YSS respondents believed it was acceptable for women to start at least some types of businesses, though the type of business and whether it was attached to their house increased the level of social acceptance. Businesses considered ‘appropriate’ to run included women’s products shops (accessories, clothes, cosmetics, baby clothes) and services for women (salons, sewing, tailoring, embroidery). Many also mentioned businesses in the service and tourism sector, like hotels, restaurants, bakeries. Some respondents added pharmacies, teaching, NGOs, office jobs, medical centres, and some agricultural work. Figure 21. Acceptability women owning business not attached (left) or attached (right) to her house?

However, in FGDs and KIIs, the social norms that generally seem to hinder women from opening businesses came through more starkly. In Tel Kaif, men tended to belief that women did not have the skills or physical strength to run many kinds of businesses. In ‘open response’ questions in the MOS survey, moreover, respondents mentioned that females might face harassment or abuse, and that going home late at night after closing the business would be dangerous. Sinjar KII and FGD respondents tended to be more open to the idea of women running a business, though usually in certain sectors only (beauty salons, sewing and confectionery shops). Distance from home was also a limiting factor. Travelling long distances, which running a business might require, was uniformly reported to be a problem for women as it could be dangerous, although one KII participant noted the option of hiring a driver to overcome this. Figure 21 shows how a business being attached to a woman’s home increases its social acceptability significantly (p<0.05).

5.4 IN FOCUS: SMALLHOLDER FARMS The most-needed agricultural interventions were land preparation/farm rehabilitation, seed provision, rehabilitation of crop production infrastructure and tool provision, according to respondents (See: Figure 22). Respondents in Sinjar particularly mentioned the need for water provision and Artesian wells. When asked what kind of support they would need in order to start a small and micro agriculture enterprise, seed provision, and land preparation were the most common choices of YSS respondents.

28%

58%

13%

50% 44%

5%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Yes, always Yes, but onlysome types of

businesses

No

Tel Kaif Sinjar

47% 46%

6%

79%

20%

1% 0%

10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

Yes, always Yes, but onlysome types of

businesses

No

Tel Kaif Sinjar



This was largely in line with the ‘most needed interventions’ mentioned above. Men and women provided similar answers. In the follow up ‘open response’ question, respondents in Sinjar and Tel Kaif mentioned capital, provision of water (in Sinjar) and training on modern methods. This area is really good and famous for agriculture, but it needs investment.”24 Figure 22. Agriculture-related entrepreneurship data

Key interventions needed in the community25

Support needed to start a small/micro agricultural enterprise

Tel Kaif 1. Seed provision 2. Land preparation 3. Rehabilitation of crop production

1. Seed provision 2. Land preparation 3. Distribution of fertilizer

Sinjar 1. Land preparation 2. Tool provision 3. Seed provision 4. Rehabilitation of crop production

1. Land preparation 2. Tool provision 3. Seed provision

Mosul 1. Tool provision 2. Rehabilitation of crop production 3. Seed foundation

Data not collected.

The Sinjar FGD respondents were enthusiastic about starting an agricultural business, including the female youth who said, “We would like to work in this sector because it would help us to live and get money, healthy food - better food than in the market… This work is desirable, for decades we have worked in this field.” In Tel Kaif, there was less enthusiasm around starting an agricultural business, with many KII and FGD respondents, men and women saying that they did not have experience in this field and therefore it was not relevant to them. Men in Tel Kaif also said there was not enough support from the government and that such a business would require a lot of effort and resources, without there being a strong customer base.

5.5 ACCESS TO FINANCE Lending and borrowing practices differed considerably between communities. In Tel Kaif, loans were available but at a high-interest rate and on the condition of obtaining a guarantee from a government employee. Many people asked for support from friends and family instead. One business owner said religious beliefs prevented “most of the population”26 from taking out loans due to religious beliefs. A

24 Tel Kaif FGD with Male Youth. 25 Answers selected by one third or more of YSS respondents. 26 Tel Kaif FGD with Youth Women.

Obtaining capital to start or maintain small businesses was considered hard, though comparatively easier in Sinjar and Mosul than Tel Kaif. Microfinance programmes appeared to be particularly stringent.

Religious beliefs surrounding the charging of interest prevented many

people from accepting loans. In Sinjar and Mosul, there was a greater reliance on interpersonal networks for borrowing

money. In Tel Kaif, NGOs were the main lender.

Box 7: Key Findings Finance



mobile phone shop owner mentioned that Mercy Corps, Caritas, and USAID had provided financial support to business owners in the past, but he had not known about the offer in time to apply. In Sinjar, several KII respondents (business owners) were against taking loans with interest, which is prohibited in Islam. Two business owners mentioned taking interest-free loans from a local man, Mr. Arab, who gives loans to personal contacts; a third shop-owner had also taken out a loan, though he did not mention whether it was with or without interest. Figure 23. Entities lending money to start or maintain small businesses

Entity Tel Kaif Sinjar Mosul None 36% 45% 37% Family members 29% 45% 49% Community members 2% 26% 15% NGOs 41% 11% 7% Banks 4% 2% 4% MFI programmes 4% 8% 4% The YSS and MOS data confirmed a greater reliance on interpersonal networks for borrowing money to start small businesses in Sinjar and Mosul (See: Figure 23).27 Family members and other community members were the major lenders in Sinjar. In Tel Kaif, NGOs were also important providers of finance. Still, a large proportion (36% in Tel Kaif, 45% in Sinjar and 37% in Mosul) believed no such loans available. The differences between genders, lastly, was not notable. 5.5.1 FINANCE FOR NEW BUSINESSES The majority of YSS respondents considered providing start-up grants to start new businesses as one of the most important livelihood interventions, particularly in Tel Kaif (76%), as well as Sinjar (66%) and Mosul (68%). Obtaining capital to start small businesses was considered hard, though comparatively easier in Sinjar and Mosul than Tel Kaif, perhaps because personal networks played a greater role in those communities. In Tel Kaif, 77% of respondents in the YSS and MOS surveys combined said obtaining capital was ‘not easy at all’, compared to 48% of Sinjar respondents and 68% of Mosul respondents. Differences between YSS and MOS responses regarding ease of acquiring capital was negligible. Microfinance programmes were perceived to be particularly stringent; 92% of YSS and MOS respondents in Tel Kaif deemed accessing finance through this avenue as ‘not easy at all’.28 However, in Sinjar, only 57% said it was ‘not easy at all’ and the other 43% thought it was ‘somewhat easy’. Obtaining finance through NGOs was also seen as ‘not easy at all’ by the majority of respondents29 in all communities. Business owners surveyed were more likely to say it was ‘not easy at all’ than YSS respondents (74% vs. 64%). 5.5.2 FINANCE FOR EXISTING BUSINESSES Acquiring capital to maintain existing businesses was considered equally difficult: 74% in Tel Kaif, 57% in Sinjar and 70% in Mosul said this was ‘not easy at all’. None of the Tel Kaif business owners that were interviewed had taken out a loan or credit to invest in their current or future business before, while all three in Sinjar had taken loans from a personal connection, two mentioning that these loans were interest-free. A Sinjar shopkeeper interviewed said, “I got a loan from Sinjar's office for $1,000 to invest it in this business, I used the loan to buy foodstuffs like oil, sugar and flour, and I repaid the loan after I sold the goods. This loan helped me a lot to expand the shop and buy more goods.”30

27 This chart excludes ‘Other’ and ‘I don’t know’, which were selected by less than 1% of respondents. 28 Note that only 13 respondents selected microfinance programmes as the way people most often acquire finance, and therefore only these 13 people were asked how easy it was to obtain capital this way. Of these 13 respondents, 12 selected ‘not easy at all’. 29 72% in Tel Kaif, 60% in Sinjar and 67% in Mosul. 30 Sinjar KII with Business Owner (shopkeeper).



54%

5%

8%

29%

4%

28%

12%

22%

14%

25%

78%

10%

10%

0%

0%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Create trust

Create tension

Create both trust and tension

Create neither trust nor tension

Don't know

Mosul Sinjar Tel Kaif

6. SOCIAL COHESION In Tel Kaif, FGD participants reported good social cohesion and no discrimination in their community, while reports from Sinjar were more mixed. Several participants said that since the genocide, it has been difficult to rebuild trust between the communities, though prior to 2014 they had lived in harmony. One FGD participant noted that clerics or hardliners are less willing to coexist with other groups, but young people and intellectuals are less discriminatory and are willing to trade and interact with anyone. Two women in the FGD mentioned peaceful coexistence workshops as being very important, saying, “We need programmes on how to coexist peacefully with other ethnic groups and sects, programmes that encourage people to accept the opinions of others.”31 Figure 24. Would you be willing to hire staff from another ethnic group?

Intercommunity tensions were also particularly notable in Sinjar YSS data, where only 52% percent of respondents said they were willing to work in a business with people from another religious group (another 28% said they would ‘maybe’ do so). In Tel Kaif this figure was 84%, with another 11% responding ‘maybe’. Ethnicity was less of a flashpoint: 77% of respondents in Sinjar and 84% in Tel Kaif were willing to work in a business with people from another ethnic group. When asked whether they thought people from different ethnic and religious backgrounds working together in new businesses would increase trust or create

tension, most people in Tel Kaif and Mosul felt it would create trust, but those in Sinjar, where inter-community dynamics have been fraught, were less sure, with 34% believe it would create some tension (See: Figure 24).

31 Sinjar FGD with Female Youth.

Trust between religious groups in Sinjar is still low since the conflict and Yazidi genocide. A third of Sinjar survey respondents believed that

different religious or ethnic groups working together would create some tension and business owners were reluctant to hire employees from other religious groups.

Discrimination also exists in Tel Kaif: one in five business owners said they would not hire employees from other religious or ethnic groups.

Social cohesion was strongest in Mosul.

Box 8: Key Findings Social Cohesion



In KIIs, business owners tended to respond that they would, in theory, hire people from other religions and ethnicities, but they had not done so in practice. In Sinjar, one food shop owner said he employs people from other ethnic or religious groups. In Tel Kaif, the Head of the Medical Complex said she had Christian and Kurdish employees, saying “this is acceptable for the community.” Figure 25. Would you be willing to hire staff from another ethnic (left) or religious (right) group?

However, the MOS data indicates that a proportion of business owners admitted to not being willing to hire staff from other ethnic or religious groups, with religion showing up as particularly sensitive in Sinjar (See: Figures 25).

40% 40%

19%

77%

14% 9%

61%

21% 15%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Yes Maybe No


50%

29%

19%

46%

25% 29%

62%

23%

12%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Yes Maybe No




7. RECOMMENDATIONS Finding Recommendations

MA

RK

ET

EN

VIR

ON

ME

NT

Tel Kaif lacks electronics shops and servicing shops for electronic devices, particularly home appliances. Residents have to travel to Mosul to buy these items. Capital access limitation is the main barrier to the setting up of new businesses.

Recommendation #1: Support the establishment of electronics stores or electronic appliance maintenance shops (Tel Kaif) Include an electronics and electrical appliance maintenance track within the Business Skills Training Programme (See: Recommendation 5). Include women, who could access a niche market of female customers and conduct home visits in households where men are not present. In Tel Kaif, provide start-up finance for electronics stores or electronic appliance maintenance shops, following business training courses.

There is unmet demand for construction materials stores in Tel Kaif and Sinjar.

Recommendation #2: Support the establishment of construction materials businesses (Tel Kaif & Mosul) Include a construction materials trade track within the Business Skills Training Programme (See: Recommendation 5). In Tel Kaif and Sinjar, provide start-up finance for construction materials businesses following business training courses.

EM

PL

OY

ME

NT

YSS respondents and FGD participants were interested in technical/digital types of employment, particularly women in Sinjar. Some FGD participants had concerns about the safety of online work. Distance from home was a major limiting factor to women working or setting up their own businesses. Family duties and childcare prevent some women from participating in trainings (and working in general).

Recommendation #3: Provide training courses for digital online work Provide vocational training for digital online work focused on women working from home. This could be targeted in particular at women in Tel Kaif, for whom this could be a unique opportunity that enables them to circumvent some cultural restrictions around working outside of the home. Courses could include technical skills like online marketing and selling, as well as training on how to acquire online work, virtual communication and self-marketing. Training courses should also include sessions on being safe online to address some community concerns. Provide training in English language in parallel, since accessing an international online job market will require written (and sometimes spoken) proficiency in English. For women, accompany these trainings with childcare support. Online remote work could be a viable option for mothers having to care for women; childcare provision during the training course would enable their participation.

Women faced considerable restrictions to employment. Domains considered socially appropriate for women were largely those with a female customer base. Over half of business owners interviewed said they would not hire female staff.

Recommendation #4: Provide awareness sessions on female employment

In line with recommendations from FGD and KII participants in Tel Kaif, run awareness sessions with the broader community to help change cultural expectations and allow women to work in a broader range of sectors. Highlight instances of successful female employees to encourage business owners to employ women. Also highlight the contribution that female business owners can make to the household income, which can relieve stress among the male household members. Engage successful female business owners as mentors for potential female entrepreneurs.



VO

CA

TIO

NA

L T

RA

ININ

G

Tel Kaif and Sinjar lack permanent training centres and only a minority of the population have received vocational training. Young people are enthusiastic about developing business, marketing and management skills. Lack of available job opportunities suggests that starting small businesses may be a more viable option than seeking work in the current job market. Business owners were largely unwilling to hire people with disabilities.

Recommendation #5: Create an inclusive Business Skills Training Programme linked with start-up financing Within Mercy Corps’ planned Adolescent and Youth Friendly Spaces (AYFS), create a Business Skills Training Programme with courses on business, marketing, finance and management, and the opportunity to develop a business plan and apply for start-up finance for specific sectors upon successful completion of the course. Establish links with available training centres in Tel Kaif, Sinjar and Mosul. Provide staff at these training centres with training on the inclusive Business Skills Training Programme as well as the different side tracks of this programme. Support the training centres to deliver the training to vulnerable populations. Support existing Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVETs) through organisational development, institutional capacity building, and improving business models either through scale-up grants and or provision of business development support in order to ensure vocational and business training services continues even when the program ends. Include technical tracks within the Business Skills Training Programme that respond to identified business opportunities per district. Ensure the participation of women and disabled people in the Business Skills Training Programme to support these groups to reduce their dependence on business owners to gain employment, and allow them to achieve economic independence by themselves. Make courses interactive, project-based and fun to support the learning of youth.

Business, administration, finance and entrepreneurship/management were the main skills sought by business owners.

Recommendation #6: Link Business Skills Training Programme trainees with employment opportunities within other grant recipient businesses For trainees not suited to / not interested in entrepreneurship, create links with existing business owners chosen as recipients of scale-up grants that are looking to hire trained employees.

Young people, particularly in Tel Kaif and Sinjar, lack computer skills and this topic was frequently suggested for future training courses.

Recommendation #7: Provide computer skills training courses Accompany business training courses in which these skills are relevant with a computer skills course across all three communities. Training in computer skills will allow trainees to develop higher-level marketing and administration skills, access customers online and improve the efficiency of start-ups.

English language skills boost employability and are lacking in Tel Kaif and Sinjar. This topic was frequently suggested for future training courses.

Recommendation #8: Provide English language skills training courses Accompany business training courses with English language training where relevant. Technical/digital courses in particular require English language proficiency.



BU

SIN

ES

SE

S

Female-run businesses faced much less competition than male-run ones, indicating an opportunity to support new female-run businesses selling products and services for women.

Recommendation #9: Identify specific market opportunities for female-run businesses and include as a technical track within Business Skills Training Programme Provide start-up finance to women to establish businesses in low-competition sectors aimed at female customers following business training courses. Include computer skills and online marketing to help female entrepreneurs access customers online. Conduct further research to identify potential businesses (as data in this assessment was inconclusive).32

Farming is a historically key sector for Ninewa, but it needs investment. Land preparation, and the provision of seeds, tools and fertilizers would encourage people to set up small and micro agriculture-related enterprises in Sinjar and Tel Kaif. Interest in working agriculture was strong among both men and women. Working in vegetable, fruit, seeds and honey production/shops were the most desirable jobs. Tel Kaif lacks healthy food shops.

Recommendation #10: Provide start-up grants for healthy food production/stores or seed production

Support the agricultural sector in Sinjar, Tel Kaif and Mosul by linking farmers with suppliers of inputs and supporting those suppliers to develop rural distribution models. Provide start-up finance for small and micro agriculture-related enterprises focussing on seed production businesses or vegetable shops for men and fruit, vegetable and honey shops for women. These businesses would also respond to the need for more healthy food stores.

Invest in the irrigation system in Sinjar to help facilitate agriculture.

BU

SIN

ES

SE

S

Lack of capital prevented business owners from meeting demand and expanding. Business owners in Mosul and, to a lesser degree, Sinjar faced frequent difficulty in satisfying their customers’ demands largely because of lack of capital or lack of supply. Imported clothes & footwear and consumer goods/general store owners in Mosul were particularly unable to satisfy customers.

Recommendation #11: Facilitate growth of current businesses by providing scale-up grants and supporting supply Provide scale-up grants to consumer goods/general stores and imported clothing and footwear stores, particularly in Mosul, to expand their businesses. Invest in stock sellers in Mosul and Sinjar, particularly for consumer goods/general stores and imported clothing and footwear stores, to help businesses meet demand.

32 When we asked business owners about the micro and small enterprises with the most and the least competition in their area, there was significant duplication of answers in both questions, making drawing conclusions difficult.



Farming is a historically key sector for Ninewa, but it needs investment. Land preparation, and the provision of seeds, tools and fertilizers would encourage people to set up small and micro agriculture-related enterprises in Sinjar and Tel Kaif. Interest in working agriculture was strong among both men and women. Working in vegetable, fruit, seeds and honey production/shops were the most desirable jobs. Tel Kaif lacks healthy food shops.

Recommendation #12: Provide start-up grants for healthy food production/stores or seed production Support the agricultural sector in Sinjar, Tel Kaif and Mosul by providing farmers with grants for agricultural products like seeds and rehabilitating crop production infrastructure, as well as land preparation / farm rehabilitation in Tel Kaif and Sinjar, and tool provision in Sinjar and Mosul. Provide start-up finance for small and micro agriculture-related enterprises focussing on seed production businesses or vegetable shops for men and fruit, vegetable and honey shops for women. These businesses would also respond to the need for more healthy food stores.

Invest in the irrigation system in Sinjar to help facilitate agriculture.

FIN

AN

CE

S

Obtaining capital to start or maintain small businesses was considered difficult, though comparatively easier in Sinjar and Mosul than Tel Kaif.

Microfinance programmes

appeared to be particularly rare in Tel Kaif. Religious beliefs surrounding the charging of interest prevented many people from accepting loans.

Recommendation #13: Increase access to culturally appropriate financing options Increase access to culturally appropriate financing options: Support Micro-Finance institutions to provide Islamic finance compliant loans to business owners to help them expand their businesses. Investigate whether a mudarabah loan structure, a type of shariah-compliant joint venture structure with profit/loss sharing, would be accepted in the communities. Develop microfinance sector as a source of funding.



SO

CIA

L C

OH

ES

ION

Trust between religious groups in Sinjar is still low since the conflict and Yazidi genocide. Business owners were reluctant to hire employees from other religious groups. A third of Sinjar survey respondents believed that different religious or ethnic groups working together would create some tension.

Recommendation #14: Focus on peacebuilding in Sinjar Programming in Sinjar should take carefully into consideration the Do No Harm principles and programming that has the potential exacerbating existing tensions should be avoided. For example, Including different sectarian and ethnic groups together in courses could risk creating tensions and so a highly sensitive approach should be taken. To ensure the conflict sensitivity of the program, conduct a conflict analysis in Sinjar, Tel Kaif and Mosul in order to determine the root causes of conflict as well as the main groups involved in conflict. Hold a workshop to discuss the results of the conflict analysis with staff in the field and discuss each of the program activities separately to determine the main risks and establish action points to manage and mitigate those risks. Conduct events that link host businesses with interns from different religious or ethnic groups. Conduct events that will promote social cohesion by encouraging existing businesses as part of their corporate social responsibility not to discriminate due to race and ethnicity. Focus livelihood activities on increasing contact between different ethnic and religious group. This can include training programmes with participants from different ethnic and religious groups. In addition, these training could include modules on social cohesion, peaceful coexistence and peacebuilding.



ANNEX 1: QUALITATIVE INTERVIEW GUIDES

KII WITH MINISTRY OFFICIALS (LABOUR)

SECTION 1: Introduction & Relevance

Question Please tell me a bit about yourself and your role within this ministry? [Prompt: How long have you worked for this ministry?] What do you think are the most pressing issues that host communities in this district face today with regards to employment and business development? [Prompt: Why do you think that? Has the most pressing issue for this group changed from before and after the crisis?] What do you think are the most pressing issues that returnees in this district face today with regards to employment and business development? [Prompt: Why do you think that?] What do you think are the most pressing issues that women in this district face today with regards to employment and business development? [Prompt: Why do you think that? Has the most pressing issue for this group changed from before and after the crisis?] What do you think are the most pressing issues that people with disabilities in district face today with regards to employment and business development? [Prompt: Why do you think that? Has the most pressing issue for this group changed from before and after the crisis?] What does this ministry do to encourage employment and business development in this district? [Prompt: Please describe in detail? Has anything changed with regards to the focus of the government in supporting employment and business development?] What does this ministry do to encourage employment and business development among women in this district? [Prompt: Please describe in detail? Has anything changed with regards to the focus of the government in supporting employment and business development among females?] Important: Does the government only support female employment for jobs considered suitable for women or all jobs?

SECTION 2: Micro and Small Businesses

Question What kind of micro and small businesses are there in this area? [Prompt: Please describe in detail? How many of those are owned by women?] What type of businesses are women allowed and able to own in this area? [Prompt: Do you think the community in this area are open for women to own or run businesses that are non-female stereotyped jobs? if yes, what sort of male-stereotyped jobs that women are allowed to run or operate?] What kind of micro and small businesses are needed in this area (for which businesses is there a demand)?



[Prompt: Why? Would it be possible for women to start those businesses? Why or why not?] Of what kind of micro and small businesses are there enough in this area (from which businesses are there enough? [Prompt: Why?] What can you tell about the situation with regards to the agricultural sector, especially with regards to micro and small businesses? [Prompt: Has this situation changes since before the crisis and now? How? Does this sector have a potential for growth? Why? What is needed to ensure growth in this sector?]

SECTION 3: Employment

Question What is the unemployment rate in this district? [Prompt: Has the unemployment rate changed since before the crisis till now? What change? Is the unemployment rate higher among some groups? Which groups and why?] How many of those who are employed are employed in the private sector? [Prompt: What are the challenges related to private sector employment?] How many of those who are employed are employed in the public sector? [Prompt: What are the challenges related to private sector employment?] Which sectors employ the most people in this district? [Prompt: List the sectors starting with the largest one, followed by the second largest one and then the third largest one? How is this list different from the sectors who employed most people before the crisis?] Are there any sectors that are oversaturated? Employ more people then needed? [Prompt: Why are they oversaturated?] What sectors are labour intensive and/or have significant potential for growth? [Prompt: Why do they have a potential for growth?] What sectors are looking for employees but cannot find suitable people? [Prompt: Why is this?] In your opinion, what type of livelihood interventions are needed in your community? Some examples (do not read these out loud): Here are the examples of interventions (for enumerator guide only but not to read) 1. Restoring businesses damaged by war 2. Providing start-up grants to start a new business 3. Providing Vocational Skills training 4. Life Skills Training (language, computer etc) 5. Apprenticeship 6. Building capacity of existing businesses through business skills training 7. Credit-based in intervention/Micro-lending/cooperatives/Micro-credit 8. Agricultural Livelihood Support 9. Financial Inclusion - linking with MFIs/loan application 10. Employability training - how to write CVs, interview, compete in the job market

SECTION 4: Final Remarks

Question Is there anything else that you still would like to say?



KII WITH MICRO FINANCE INSTITUTION


Question Please tell me a bit about yourself and your role within this financial institution? [Prompt: How long have you worked for this financial institution?] How available are business loans in this area? Can everyone get a business loan? [Prompt: Why do you think that?] Is access for loans different between groups? [Prompt: Which groups have less access to loans and why?]

SECTION 2: Loans and Credit

Question How can people apply for a loan here? [Prompt: Please describe in detail] What are the different requirements people need to meet? [Prompt: Is the process different at local, regional and at national level?] How long does it take to get a loan? [Prompt: Why does it take this long?] What is the minimum size of a loan or the maximum size of a loan? [Prompt: Does the minimum and maximum size of a loan differ between groups?] What are the typical repayment conditions for loans? [Prompt: Interest rates? Number of instalments?] Do you offer loans specific for women led businesses? [Prompt: How do these loans differ from other loans?] Do you offer loans specific for micro and small businesses that are not registered? [Prompt: How do these loans differ from other loans? If not, how do you support small and micro businesses?]

SECTION 3: Challenges and Opportunities

Question What are the main challenges you are dealing with as a loan provider? [Prompt: Please describe each of these challenges in detail?] Do you ever experience problems with repayment of loans? [Prompt: What kind of challenges? How do you deal with these challenges?] Would you like to provide more micro-loans to stimulate development? [Prompt: Why or why not? What would you need to enable you to provide more such loans?]





KII WITH VOCATIONAL TRAINING CENTRE


Question Please tell me a bit about yourself and your role within this vocational training centre? [Prompt: How long have you worked in this VT centre?] What kind of vocational trainings do you offer at this centre? [Prompt: How do you decide which trainings to offer?] Can you describe the type of people who usually take trainings at this centre? [Prompt: Are there groups of people who usually do not take trainings at this centre? Why do they not take trainings? What about females? What about people with disabilities?]

SECTION 2: Economic Situation

Question Can you describe the economic situation in this region? [Prompt: What about employment? Why are they unemployed? Who amongst them are most likely to be unemployed?] What kind of vocational training is best suited to ensure employment? [Prompt: Why is this training most suitable? Do you have numbers of youth who took this training and afterwards found jobs?] What kind of vocational training is best suited to ensure people can start their own business? [Prompt: Why is this training most suitable? Do you have numbers of people who took this training and afterwards started businesses?] What are the main challenges for trained people in finding a job? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] What are the main challenges for trained people in starting a business? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] Are there any specific challenges for women to attend vocational training? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] What vocational training programmes do you think are most suitable for women? [Prompt: Why?] Are there any specific challenges for women to secure employment after attending a vocational training programme? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?]

SECTION 3: Support and Partnerships



Question

What are the needs of training centres in this area in order to provide quality training services to youths? [Prompt: Please describe in detail?] What are the challenges that may hinder centres to fill in this gap (needs) to improve services? [Prompt: How can we overcome these challenges?] Do you work together with NGOs? [Prompt: If yes, please describe this collaboration? What goes well in this collaboration? What does not go so well in this collaboration?] Do you work together with businesses? [Prompt: If yes, please describe this collaboration? What goes well in this collaboration? What does not go so well in this collaboration?] Do you work together with government stakeholders? [Prompt: If yes, please describe this collaboration? What goes well in this collaboration? What does not go so well in this collaboration?] What kind of partnerships would you like to see being developed? [Prompt: Why do you think these partnerships would be valuable?]



KII WITH BUSINESS OWNERS


Question Please introduce yourself (gender, age and occupation) What can you tell me about the purchasing power of most households in this community? [Prompt: What do most people spend most of their money on? Are households able to save money? Are there things or services they would like to buy, but cannot afford? If so, what or which?]

SECTION 2: Business

Question Do you think a woman can run a business like this in this area and context? [Prompt: Why or why not?] What type of businesses are women allowed and able to own in this area? [Prompt: Do you think the community in this area are open for women to own or run businesses that are non-female stereotyped jobs? if yes, what sort of male-stereotyped jobs that women are allowed to run or operate?]



Can you tell me something about your business? [Prompt: What kind of business is it? How long do you have this business? Do you have staff? Who are your customers?] Do you buy inputs for your business? [Prompt: What kind of inputs? How expensive are those input? Are they easily affordable for your business? What should be done to make these inputs ore easily affordable for you?] What do you do with your inputs before you sell them? [Prompt: Please describe each step of what you do with the input. For each step, also explain how expensive this is for you and what could be done to make this step cheaper?] What do you do with your final product? [Prompt: Do you feel you receive a fair price for your product? What could be done to ensure you can ask a higher price for your final product?] Can you tell me something about the challenges you face when running this business? [Prompt: What kind of obstacles are preventing you from making a better profit?]

SECTION 3: Training

Question What possibilities are there to receive vocational training or specific business skills training in this community? [Prompt: Which schools and institutes are there for them to learn new skills? How far away are they? What kind of training do they offer? What do you think of the quality of the programmes that are offered?] Have you received any training before you started this business? [Prompt: What kind of training? How useful do you think this training was? Why? What skills did you not learn during this training that you would have liked to learn?] Have you received any training while you were running this business? [Prompt: What kind of training? How useful do you think this training was? Why? What skills did you not learn during this training that you would have liked to learn?] If you have staff, have these staff received training before they start working here? [Prompt: What kind of training? How useful is this training? Why? If staff has not received training, why not? Would you like to have staff who are trained before they start working here?] Would you hire people from other ethnic or religious groups to work in your business? [Prompt: Why or why not?]

Would you hire females to work in your business? [Prompt: Why or why not?] What non-female stereotyped jobs are accepted for women to take in this community? [Prompt: Why?] Would you hire people with disabilities to work in your business? [Prompt: Why or why not?]

SECTION 4: Loans and Credit

Question



Do you have access to loans or credit if you would need that? [Prompt: Is access equal for everyone? Which groups have less access? If there are no official structures, how do people get money when they need it?] Have you ever taken out a loan or credit for the purpose of investing it in this or another business? [Prompt: How did you get the loan? Where did you get the loan? How much did you loan? What did you use it for? Were you able to pay it back? Did it help you build the business or not? Why?]


Question In your opinion, what type of livelihood interventions are needed in your community? Some examples (do not read these out loud: Here are the examples of interventions (for enumerator guide only but not to read) 1. Restoring businesses damaged by war 2. Providing start-up grants to start a new business 3. Providing Vocational Skills training 4. Life Skills Training (language, computer etc) 5. Apprenticeship 6. Building capacity of existing businesses through business skills training 7. Credit-based in intervention/Micro-lending/cooperatives/Micro-credit 8. Agricultural Livelihood Support 9. Financial Inclusion - linking with MFIs/loan application 10. Employability training - how to write CVs, interview, compete in the job market Is there anything else that you still would like to say?

FGD WITH YOUTH


Question Please introduce yourself (gender, age and what kind of job) Can you describe the community and its most pressing needs? Who are the most vulnerable people in this communities? Those who are most in need for services? [Prompt: Why are they the most vulnerable? Has anything changed in the population of vulnerable people from before the crisis and now? What do you think should change in order for vulnerable people to have better access to services?] To what degree do people from different ethnic and religious groups in this community live in harmony together? [Prompt: How much trust is there among people from different ethnic and religious groups? Please explain in detail?] What can you tell me about the purchasing power of most households in this community? [Prompt: What do most people spend most of their money on? Are households able to save money? Are there things or services they would like to buy, but cannot afford? If so, what or which?]

SECTION 2: Market Demand



Question What kind of food types are not readily available at the market that you would like to have available? [Prompt: Where do you buy these food types now? Why are they not available here do you think?] What kind of goods are not readily available at the market that you would like to have available? [Prompt: Where do you buy these goods now? Why are they not available here do you think?] What kind of services are not readily available at the market that you would like to have available? [Prompt: Where do you buy these services now? Why are they not available here do you think?]

SECTION 3: Satisfaction

Question How satisfied are you with the foods that are available at markets in this community? [Prompt: Why are you satisfied or not satisfied?] How satisfied are you with the goods that are available at markets in this community? [Prompt: Why are you satisfied or not satisfied?] How satisfied are you with the services that are available at markets in this community? [Prompt: Why are you satisfied or not satisfied?]


Question

What can you tell me about employment opportunities in this community? [Prompt: What kind of labour is often demanded and what kind of skills are needed for this work? Do many community members have these skills? Can you tell me something about the possible differences between the skills that are asked by employers compared to the skills that the community possesses?]

What jobs are mostly taken by male youths? What about female youths? [Prompt: Do you think the community in this area will allow young women to work in a male-stereotyped jobs?] What are the main barriers to starting a business in this district? [Prompt: Are there different barriers for youth? For women? For people with disabilities?] If someone would start their own business, what do you think would be the best kind of business to start in this community? Please explain why you think that. What do you think are the obstacles to starting a business in this community? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] What are the challenges for women to start their own business? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] Would you like to start a business in the agricultural sector? [Prompt: Why or why not? What is stopping you from working in that sector?] In your opinion, what type of livelihood interventions are needed in your community? Some examples (do not read these out loud: Here are the examples of interventions (for enumerator guide only but not to read)



1. Restoring businesses damaged by war 2. Providing start-up grants to start a new business 3. Providing Vocational Skills training 4. Life Skills Training (language, computer etc) 5. Apprenticeship 6. Building capacity of existing businesses through business skills training 7. Credit-based in intervention/Micro-lending/cooperatives/Micro-credit 8. Agricultural Livelihood Support 9. Financial Inclusion - linking with MFIs/loan application 10. Employability training - how to write CVs, interview, compete in the job market

SECTION 5: Training

Question What possibilities do the members of this community have to receive vocational training or specific business skills training? [Prompt: Which schools and institutes are there for them to learn new skills? How far away are they? What kind of training do they offer? What do you think of the quality of the programmes that are offered?] How effective would you say the vocational training programmes have been for the people that you know that completed them? Can you describe how it improved their employment opportunities? What programmes are currently not being offered, but you think should be offered? [Prompt: Why should they be offered?

Are you interested to learn about and or work online? For example, translation, online marketing, and online business work. [Prompt: If yes, do you think young women can be allowed to attend these digital or tech-based employment training and become employed in these sectors? Why or why not?]


Question

Is there anything else that you still would like to say?

FGD WITH PARENTS


Question Please introduce yourself (gender, age and what kind of job) Can you describe the most pressing needs among your children? We are only speaking about the children over 18 years old.


Question

What can you tell me about employment opportunities for youth in this community? [Prompt: What kind of labour is often demanded and what kind of skills are needed for this work? Do many youths have these skills? Can you tell me something about the possible differences between the



skills that are asked by employers compared to the skills that the community possesses?]

What jobs are mostly taken by male youths? What about female youths? [Prompt: Do you think the community in this area will allow young women to work in a male-stereotyped jobs?] What are the main challenges in securing employment for male youth in this community? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] What are the main challenges in securing employment for female youth in this community? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] What are the main barriers to starting a business for male youth in this district? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] What are the main barriers to starting a business for female youth in this district? [Prompt: How can these challenges be overcome?] In your opinion, what type of livelihood interventions are needed in your community? Some examples (do not read these out loud: Here are the examples of interventions (for enumerator guide only but not to read) 1. Restoring businesses damaged by war 2. Providing start-up grants to start a new business 3. Providing Vocational Skills training 4. Life Skills Training (language, computer etc) 5. Apprenticeship 6. Building capacity of existing businesses through business skills training 7. Credit-based in intervention/Micro-lending/cooperatives/Micro-credit 8. Agricultural Livelihood Support 9. Financial Inclusion - linking with MFIs/loan application 10. Employability training - how to write CVs, interview, compete in the job market

SECTION 3: Training

Question What possibilities do the youth of this community have to receive vocational training or specific business skills training? [Prompt: Which schools and institutes are there for them to learn new skills? How far away are they? What kind of training do they offer? What do you think of the quality of the programmes that are offered?] How effective would you say the vocational training programmes have been for the youth that you know that completed them? Can you describe how it improved their employment opportunities? What programmes are currently not being offered, but you think should be offered? [Prompt: Why should they be offered?

Do you think that youth are interested to learn about and or work online? For example, translation, online marketing, and online business work. [Prompt: If yes, do you think young women can be allowed to attend these digital or tech-based employment training and become employed in these sectors? Why or why not?]





ANNEX 2: YOUTH SKILLS SURVEY Youth Skills Survey

Phone ID:

Enumerator Name:

Enumerator Code:

Tracking Sheet Number:

Location

Please enter today's DAY

Is this a TEST or LIVE case?

Good morning/afternoon Sir/Madam, my name is ______________. I work for Optimum Analysis and, on behalf of Mercy Corps, I am here to ask a few questions about the opportunities in the labour market in this community. Your participation in the survey is fully voluntary, and you can end the interview or refuse to answer any question as you choose. Your information is confidential, and it will not be possible to link your identity with the responses that you give. The interview will take approximately 30 minutes. Your responses will help in improving the services in your community and we thank you very much for your time and thoughts. Do you consent to participate in this survey?

DEMOGRAPHICS MODULE

Gender (Do not ask. Observe)

How old are you?

Enter Number

(Do not ask, observe) What is the approximate age?

Can you write and read?

What is the highest level of education you have attained?

How many years of formal education have you obtained?

Are you currently employed or running a small business?

Are you the head of your household?

If you had an emergency and needed 50.000 Iraqi Dinar in 2 weeks, how likely would you be able to gather the money?

What do you think would be the main source of the funds?

If other, please specify

What kind of livelihood interventions do you think are most needed in your area? (READ OUT LOUD)


What kind of agricultural interventions do you think are most needed in your area? (READ OUT LOUD)


What kind of small and micro agriculture enterprises are available in your community?


In what kind of small and micro agriculture enterprises would you like to work, if any?

To what degree are you interested in working in agriculture?

Do you feel that you have the skills and knowledge to work in agriculture?

What kind of support would you need to be prepared to work in agriculture?

In what kind of small and micro agriculture enterprises would you like to work, if any?


What kind of support would you need to start a small and micro agriculture enterprise?

SKILLS MODULE

What are the key skills required in the labour market? (MAX 3)




Have you ever received any vocational and/or skills training?

How long ago did you finish the training?

What type of training did you receive?


What type of organisation or institute provided this training?

What was the name of the organisation or institute that provided you this training?

Did you complete the full length of the training programme?

Three months after you finished your training, were you employed or running a small business?

Why were you not able to find a job or start your own small business three months after the training? [don’t read answers] (check all that apply)


Besides vocational training institutes or formal education, where else can one receive skills training in this area?


What has prevented you from receiving vocational and/or skills training?


Are you interested in receiving (more) vocational and/or skills training?

What is the main reason you want to receive vocational and/or skills training? [don’t read answers]


Why are you not currently employed or running a small business? [don’t read answers] (check all that apply)


What is your trade?


What type of jobs in this area are mostly taken by males?

What type of jobs in this area are mostly taken by females?

On average, how many days in a week do you work at your job or small business?

On average, how many hours a day do you work at your job or small business?

How are you paid?

How much do you earn per day on average?

If you have skills, what are the three best employment opportunities available in your community? (MAX 3 responses)


Do you think that it is acceptable for a woman to be employed outside of their house?

Do you think that it is acceptable for women to own a business attached to their house?

Do you think that it is acceptable for women to own a business that is not attached to their house?

Which types of employment would you be most interested in working in? Please list all the trades that you can think of

Do you feel that your family and community would allow you to work in those types of employment?

Why not?

Would you be willing to work in a type of employment not considered suitable for women?

Why not?

What type of employment not considered suitable for women would you most like to work in?

Would you be willing to work in a technical/digital type of employment? For example: translation, online marketing, online business, etc.

Why not?

What type of employment related to technology or digital employment would you most like to work



in?

Do you think that women would be allowed to work in those technical/digital types of employment? For example: translation, online marketing, online business, etc.

What trades would you most like to work in? (READ ALL OUT LOUD)


What is the main reason you want to work in that trade?


What is preventing you from working in that trade? [don’t read answers] (check all that apply)


What are the three items you spend the most money on? [select only 3]


Do you save some of your income every month?

Where do you keep the money you are saving?


Would you be interested in joining a savings group?

Why?

Thinking about your current income, how would you describe the income you receive?

Which sectors in your community employs the most people?


Are you currently seeking employment opportunities?

What type of employment opportunities are you currently seeking? [don’t read answers] (check all that apply)


What type of employment support do you need most in order to secure a job?

What type of support do you need most in order to start a business?

What types of groups, organisations, or banks in your community are lending money to start or maintain small businesses? (check all that apply)


How do people most often acquire money to start a new or maintain a business?


How easy is it to acquire capital this way?

What types of groups, organisations, or banks in your community are lending money to maintain existing small businesses? (check all that apply)


How easy is it to obtain capital to maintain an existing business?

Are there any trade/business associations or cooperatives in this area?

What kind of services do these associations provide?


What do you think makes a business successful in your community? [do not read answers] (check all that apply)


What skills do you think are most important for a business owner to have in order to make their businesses successful? [don’t read answers] (check all that apply)


Which of the following business skills have you received training for? (check all that apply)


What type of business training would you like to receive?

Have you ever received career counselling from an NGO in your community?



What was the name of the NGO that provided you career counselling?

SOCIAL COHESION MODULE

Would you be willing to work in a business with people from another ethnic group?

Would you be willing to work in a business with people from another religious group?

What would be the ideal size for a group of people starting a business?

Do you think that it is good if people from different ethnic and religious backgrounds work together in new businesses would increase trust or create tension?



ANNEX 3: MARKET OPPORTUNITY SURVEY Market Opportunity Survey

Phone ID:

Enumerator Name:

Enumerator Code:

Tracking Sheet Number:

Location

Please enter today's DAY

Is this a TEST or LIVE case?

Good morning/afternoon Sir/Madam, my name is ______________. I work for Optimum Analysis and, on behalf of Mercy Corps, I am here to ask a few questions about the business opportunities in the labour market in this community. Your participation in the survey is fully voluntary, and you can end the interview or refuse to answer any question as you choose. Your information is confidential, and it will not be possible to link your identity with the responses that you give. Your responses will help in improving the services in your community and we thank you very much for your time and thoughts. Do you consent to participate in this survey?

Are you the owner of this business?

DEMOGRAPHICS MODULE

Gender (Do not ask. Observe)

How old are you?

Enter Number

(Do not ask, observe) What is the approximate age?

Can you write and read?

What is the highest level of education you have attained?

How many years of formal education have you obtained?

Are you currently employed?

Are you the head of your household?

How would you describe your household?

In Iraqi Dinar, what was the income for your household in the past 30 days (month)?

Does this amount of household income represent the amount you generally make during the other months of the year or is it more or less money than you generally make in other months of the year?

If you had an emergency and needed 50.000 Iraqi Dinar in 2 weeks, how likely would you be able to gather the money?

What do you think would be the main source of the funds?


BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY MODULE

Thank you for your answers so far. Now, I would like to ask you a few questions about your business and your customer’s needs.

Have you ever received any vocational or skills training?

How useful are the skills you learnt in your CURRENT business?

How would you describe your business?

What are the MAIN products you sell? [MAX 3]

Other (please specify)

I would like to take a photo of the products you are selling today (not of you). Do you consent to this?

TAKE A PHOTO OF THE PRODUCTS ON SALE AND SHOW IT TO THE VENDOR. MAKE SURE THE VENDOR IS NOT IN THE PHOTO HIM/HERSELF

What is the MAIN service that you offer?




I would like to take a photo of the service you are providing today. You or your customers will not be in the photo yourself. Do you consent to this?

TAKE A PHOTO OF THE PRODUCTS ON SALE AND SHOW IT TO THE VENDOR. MAKE SURE THE VENDOR IS NOT IN THE PHOTO HIM/HERSELF

Do you think that a woman could run this business in this area and context?

Why?

What type of business do you think that women are allowed to run in this area?

Do you think that it is acceptable for a woman to be employed outside of her house?

Why not?

Do you think that it is acceptable for women to own a business attached to their house?

Why not?

Do you think that it is acceptable for women to own a business that is not attached to their house?

Why not?

Are most of your customers -? (I)

Are most of your customers -? (II)

Who do you offer your finished product/offer services to? (multiple choices)

Where do you procure your goods or inputs from? (multiple choices)


How often do you purchase stock or raw materials?


How satisfied are you with the traders in your area?


Do you work with brokers when you purchase stock or raw materials?

In any given month, how many days per month do you work with brokers?

How satisfied have you been with the work brokers have conducted?


In this area, how many competitor businesses exist?

Do you have any employees as part of this business?

How many employees do you have, other than yourself?

Enter number

How many of these employees had received vocational training before beginning work with you? (check against Q41a)

Enter number

What kind of vocational training skills do you look for when you are hiring new employees?


Would you be willing to hire staff from another ethnic group?

Would you be willing to hire staff from another religion?

Would you be willing to hire female staff?

Would you be willing to hire persons with a disability as a staff?

Has your business ever trained mentees?

How many mentees have you trained?

Would you be willing to take on mentees?

Do ever you feel like are unable to satisfy your current or potential customers?

What are the reasons you feel your customers might be dissatisfied with your goods/services?


What are the reasons why you can’t better meet your customer’s demand?




How often do you feel like you are unable to meet your customer’s demand?

Do you feel you are able to compete with others selling similar goods/services?

What do you think would enable you to be more competitive?


Would you be interested in additional training?

What type of training would you be interested in?

Other(specify)

Specify what business training you would like to receive

Do you plan to expand your business in the next few years?

In order to expand, will you need to hire trained workers?

What topic should they be trained in?

Other(specify)

How many additional trained workers will you need to hire?

Enter number

What do you think is the most profitable type of business you can run in this area?


What do you think is the least profitable business in this area?


Do you save some of your income every month?

Where do you keep the money you are saving?


What types of groups, organisations, or banks in your community are lending money to start small businesses? (check all that apply)


How do people most often acquire money to start a new business?


How easy is it to acquire capital this way?

What types of groups, organisations, or banks in your community are lending money to maintain existing small businesses? (check all that apply)


How easy is it to obtain capital to maintain an existing business?

Are you aware of any trade/business associations or cooperatives in this area?

What kind of services do these associations provide?


What do you think makes a business successful in your community? [do not read answers] (check all that apply)


What skills do you think are most important for a business owner to have in order to make their businesses successful? [don’t read answers] (check all that apply)


Have you ever received career counselling?

Thinking about your current business, how would you describe the income you receive?

What type of business support do you need most in order to expand your business?

What type of business support do you need most in order to increase your profit?

I now want to ask some questions about businesses in your area. What is the age range of most business owners in your community?

Do you think the population of youth aged 18-28 are interested in restarting/restoring their businesses or would they prefer to find jobs in the private/public sectors instead?



Are there many young people (28-28) engage in micro and small enterprises in your area?

What kind of micro and small enterprises?

Were many businesses damaged during the war in your area?

Among businesses that were damaged, how many of them have now been restored?

What do you think is the ideal size of people to start new businesses?

Do you think that it is good if people from different ethnic and religious backgrounds work together in new businesses would increase trust or create tension?

What kind of micro and small enterprises do you think have the least competition in this area?

What kind of micro and small enterprises do you think have the most competition in this area?

Documents

LABOUR MARKET ASSESSMENT IN SINJAR · This publication is produced with the financial support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) The content and opinions