UNITED NATIONS INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION

Project number: 170150

Project title: Construction skills training for all

Thematic area code GC2 Adv. Econ. Competitiveness GC23 Entrepreneurship Dev.

Starting date: February/March 2018, upon arrival of funds

Duration: 12 months

Project site: Lebanon

Government co-coordinating entity: Ministry of Industry

Executing agencies/ cooperating agencies:

UNIDO

Project inputs (USD): USD 274,982

Support cost (USD): USD 35,748

Grand total: USD 310,730 (incl. 13% programme support costs)

Brief description: The objective of the proposed project is to create economic opportunities and jobs in the carpentry and construction sector in Lebanon, particularly among host and refugee communities in Northern areas of Lebanon. The proposed project will build upon two UNIDO past and on-going interventions, namely “Creating sustainable livelihoods for communities affected by influx of Syrian refugees in Northern Lebanon through improving job opportunities in the furniture industry” (SAP 150311) and “Creating jobs in the agro-food sector in Lebanon through skills training and improvement of manufacturing capacities” (SAP 160147). In doing so, the project will work with the Zgharta Carpentry Skills Training Center hosted at the Zgharta Official Technical School, introducing a new skills training module on concrete construction work (i.e. site measurements, building formworks and reinforcement).

The proposed technical assistance will focus on delivering marketable vocational skills trainings for vulnerable individuals in the Northern areas of Lebanon.

Contents

A. CONTEXT ................................................................................................................................. 1 A1. Baseline Scenario.......................................................................................................................... 1

A2. Target Beneficiaries and Areas ..................................................................................................... 1

A3. Potential Partnerships .................................................................................................................. 2

B. UNIDO APPROACH ................................................................................................................... 3 B1. Rationale ....................................................................................................................................... 3

B2. Sustainability Strategy .................................................................................................................. 3

B3. Gender Mainstreaming ................................................................................................................ 3

B4. Environmental and Social Assessment ......................................................................................... 4

C. THE PROJECT ............................................................................................................................ 4 C1. Development Output and Activities ............................................................................................. 4

C2. Indicative Timeline of Activities .................................................................................................... 5

C3. Project Logical Framework ........................................................................................................... 6

C4. Relevance to National and International Development Strategies .............................................. 7

C5. UNIDO RBM Code and Thematic Area Code ................................................................................ 8

C6. Risks and Mitigation Measures..................................................................................................... 8

C7. Visibility ........................................................................................................................................ 9

D. BUDGET ITEMS ........................................................................................................................ 9 D1. Implementation Arrangements .................................................................................................... 9

D2. UNIDO Inputs ............................................................................................................................. 10

E. INDICATIVE BUDGET ............................................................................................................... 10 F. MONITORING, REPORTING AND EVALUATION ......................................................................... 11

F1. Reporting .................................................................................................................................... 11

F2. Monitoring and Evaluation ......................................................................................................... 11

G. PRIOR OBLIGATIONS AND PREREQUISITES .............................................................................. 11 H. LEGAL CONTEXT ..................................................................................................................... 12

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A. CONTEXT A1. Baseline Scenario Lebanon continues to be by far the largest host of Syrian refugees (in proportion to population). The country is currently hosting more than one million refugees, resulting in a 25% increase in the population. The World Bank estimates that the economic impact of Syrian refugees has resulted in losses of $13.1 billion since 2012 ($5.6bn in 2015 alone), and puts additional strain on public services.

Lebanon is also under substantial pressure to deal with the economic consequences of conflict in the region. Before the start of the Syrian crisis in 2011, the economic growth in Lebanon was not accompanied by a proportional increase in jobs because of the heavy contributions of tourism spend and real estate investment at the expense of more labour intensive industries such as agriculture and industrial. The situation exacerbated since 2011; economic growth has slowed down from 8% p.a. to approximately 2%, with unemployment rising from 9% to an estimated 20% (30% amongst youth). The economic growth outlook for 2018 remains subdued at 1.5%, as the Syrian conflict and some negative effects of falling oil prices are creating headwind. As fiscal buffers in GCC countries erode and spending cuts ensue, remittances to Lebanon and service exports to the GCC (i.e. consulting services) are expected to decelerate, impacting the Lebanese balance of payment and consumptions even more. Despite these difficulties, the Lebanese Government and people have continued to extend commendable hospitality to the Syrians. In recognition for the protracted nature of the current crisis in 2016 and 2017, the international community has pledged to increase support to Lebanon to meet immediate and long-term needs of refugees and host communities via humanitarian, financial and development assistance. In particular, interventions aimed at creating jobs and economic opportunities are considered urgent by the Government, the UN and the entire international community. Moreover, according to a recently issued World Bank report, Lebanon needs to focus on growing its industrial base. Investments in industry and manufacturing have in fact a significant potential for generating more job opportunities. In light of the above and in line with its Country Programme for Lebanon 2015 to 2018, UNIDO aims to stimulate investment in the industrial sector and by doing so, provide additional job opportunities for both Lebanese and Syrians, particularly among the youth. The proposed project aims to create economic opportunities and jobs in the carpentry and construction sector in Lebanon, particularly among host and refugee communities in Northern areas of Lebanon. A2. Target Beneficiaries and Areas

The key beneficiaries of the project will be individuals who are currently working in a job category classified as low skilled labor-intensive work. These beneficiaries will be selected from areas that have been affected by the humanitarian crisis in Lebanon and particularly in areas located in the Northern regions of Lebanon. It is widely documented that the labor force in this category, due to

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their comparatively low skills, are often vulnerable to exploitation, irregular work and/or commonly dismissed if the economic environment is not favorable. The aim of this project is to target such beneficiaries in order to upgrade their skills and knowledge to be better prepared to handle any external shocks to the labor market as well as enhance their employability in the market-place.

Geographic Coverage – Proposed Project Area The proposed geographic coverage of the project will prioritize areas that have been negatively affected by the Syrian humanitarian crisis. This will include (1) North Lebanon and (2) Mount Lebanon. Due to the short duration of this project it will be necessary to focus activities on a single area or a few selected areas in order to ensure efficiency and a scalable level of impact. The areas and sectors that have the arguably greatest potential and need for job creation will be prioritized.

Map of Proposed Project Areas

A3. Potential Partnerships

The project will aim to establish technical partnerships with the private sector and/or technical institutions in Japan. The aim of these partnerships is to provide human resource development for the project’s institutional partners. This may be in the form of study tours, use of technical expertise or technology transfer (i.e. equipment) from Japan. The perceived risk of working in Lebanon, at times, is a barrier for external technology partnerships to engage with the project. UNIDO will

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utilizes the expertise of the UNIDO ITPO Office in Tokyo to help bridge this gap and create awareness for partnership opportunities to support the construction industry in Northern Lebanon. B. UNIDO APPROACH B1. Rationale

UNIDO has a significant amount of experience in post-crisis project implementation, in areas such as Iraq, Sudan, South Sudan, Lebanon, Jordan, DRC, Ivory Coast, Somalia, Djibouti, Afghanistan, and Indonesia. The projects range from livelihood recovery, micro-enterprise support, trade capacity building, revitalization of productive industrial infrastructure, support to the agro-industry sector, private sector development, public-private development partnerships and extensive vocational training. In these projects, the organization has consistently shown that it can provide effective means and realistic prospects for the rehabilitation of destroyed industrial infrastructure, employment creation, improvement of household income levels, and poverty reduction. The proposed project will build on the experience and numerous lessons learned from earlier UNIDO post-crisis projects, especially those that have been implemented in Lebanon.

B2. Sustainability Strategy

The proposed project will build upon two UNIDO past and on-going interventions, namely “Creating sustainable livelihoods for communities affected by influx of Syrian refugees in Northern Lebanon through improving job opportunities in the furniture industry” (SAP150311) and “Creating jobs in the agro-food sector in Lebanon through skills training and improvement of manufacturing capacities” (SAP 160147). In doing so, the project will again collaborate with the Zgharta Carpentry Skills Training Center hosted at the Zgharta Official Technical School, introducing a new skills training module on concrete construction work (i.e. site measurements, building formworks and reinforcement). Building on these successful interventions, this project will capitalize on the local knowledge and institutional relations previously developed, thus rendering the planned activities under this project more sustainable and better integrated into the local context and its specific situational requirements.

The proposed technical assistance will focus on delivering marketable vocational skills trainings for vulnerable individuals in the Northern areas of Lebanon. The proposed skills training will be designed in close consultation with the local vocational and technical education actors, particularly Zgharta Official Technical Institute. Once the module will have been developed possibilities for its continuation under the auspices of the Institute will be further explored.

B3. Gender Mainstreaming

Gender equality and women’s empowerment are key to UNIDO’s goal of achieving ISID, as mandated by Member States in the Lima Declaration adopted in December 2013 (GC.15/Res.1) and highlighted in SDG 9: “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation”. The multiplying effect of industrialization on all other areas of development contributes to the entire 2030 Agenda, and also supports SDG 5: “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”. To address the issue within the project’s mandate, the gender equality and women’s empowerment subject will be taken into consideration during the implementation of all project activities. Female

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candidates will be encouraged to apply for the positions of project staff recruited (consultants/experts). The recruited project staff will be encouraged and instructed to target female trainees and trainers, and to engage local gender/women’s groups, associations, NGOs and/or gender focal points in the respective partner institutions to actively participate in the implementation of the project activities. To enhance the capacity of project implementation staff in gender mainstreaming, the basic gender e-learning course (UN Women’s “I Know Gender” course) will be made available to the recruited project staff. Specifically, the training aims to ensure that project implementation members are aware of gender issues; are able to address them appropriately throughout implementation, and are able to respond to gender based barriers in project activities. Women will be encouraged to participate in the skills training to the extent possible. The project will seek to target women beneficiaries (at least 10%), in order to promote the economic empowerment of women generally, but especially of female headed households and youth. B4. Environmental and Social Assessment

In addition to the enhancement of the socio-economic resilience and stability in targeted, vulnerable communities in Mount Lebanon and the North of Lebanon, the proposed project will focus on the promotion of greener value chains, thereby paying special attention to environmental impacts of project interventions to increase energy efficiency, etc. Moreover, to the extent possible, the proposed project will attempt to source materials for the trainings from sustainable sources. Furthermore, the trainings will contribute to improving awareness for occupational health and safety, and thus positively influence work-related social aspects of the host communities. C. THE PROJECT C1. Development Output and Activities

The overall aim of this project is to create economic opportunities and jobs in the carpentry and construction sector in Lebanon, particularly among host and refugee communities in Northern areas of Lebanon. More specifically, the proposed project outcome is to improve employment opportunities in the wood and construction sector for vulnerable host and refugee communities in the North of Lebanon by providing skills training to project beneficiaries in the wood and construction sector.

Output 1: Capacity of members from vulnerable communities enhanced through market-based wood and construction skills training.

Activities:

1.1 Design of new training modules for concrete construction works.

1.2 Upgrading of training center with machines and equipment for the delivery of construction training modules using foams, concrete and wood.

1.3 Selection of trainees and delivery of Training of Trainers on the new training module for concrete construction works.

1.4 Selection and delivery of training to members from vulnerable communities on wood and construction sector skills training.

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C2. Indicative Timeline of Activities

Month

Activities 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Output 1

1.1 Design of new training modules for concrete construction works.

1.2 Upgrading of training center with machines and equipment for the delivery of construction training modules using foams, concrete and wood.

1.3 Selection of trainees and delivery of Training of Trainers on the new training module for concrete construction works.

1.4 Selection and delivery of training to members from vulnerable communities on wood and construction sector skills training.

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C3. Project Logical Framework

Results KPI’s/Indicators Means of verification Assumptions

Outcome Economic opportunities and job matching in the carpentry and construction sector enhanced, particularly among vulnerable host and refugee communities in Northern areas of Lebanon.

- # of trainees having been awarded a certificate of completion for participation in the skills training (sex-disaggregated data) (target: 150 in total; at least 15 women)

- # of job matches identified between the training contents and business sector requirements

- # of certificates awarded

- Documented comparison between training contents and current job advertisements; consultations and job matching with local Vocational and Technical Education sector.

- Political and security situation will

remain stable and not interfere with or delay project implementation.

- Continued flow of information between implementation partners and third parties regarding skill and job matching.

Output 1 1. Capacitating via Skills Training Capacity of members from vulnerable communities enhanced through market-based wood and construction skills training.

- # of training modules for skills training in the wood and construction sector developed (target: 1)

- # of equipment procured and installed in the training center required for successful delivery of the new training module, using foams, concrete and wood in construction

- # of trainers trained for concrete construction work (target: 5)

- # of trainees upskilled through training module on wood and construction works (sex-disaggregated data) (target: 150 in total; at least 15 women)

- Module contents and training materials developed.

- List of equipment and materials procured.

- List of training participants.

- Project reports.

- Targeted beneficiaries will have

continuous and free access to the support services offered by the project.

- Timely and adequate procurement of necessary equipment.

- Interest in cross-institutional and -organisational cooperation to avoid implementation overlap.

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C4. Relevance to National and International Development Strategies

Linkages with the Humanitarian Development Nexus The political landscape in the Middle East is changing. The ongoing conflict in the region with state and non-state actors has cemented a protracted crisis in several countries. The influx of Syrian refugees into Lebanon has created a situation where humanitarian assistance alone is unable to sustain the many needs of vulnerable people in the country, including Lebanese nationals. Linkages to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) The project aims to assist the Government of Lebanon to work towards several national and international initiatives to support communities which are affected by the humanitarian crisis in the country. It is consistent with the Sustainable Development Goals to End poverty in all its forms everywhere (Goal 1), Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls (Goal 5), Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive and decent work for all (Goal 8), and Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation (Goal 9). Linkages with the Lebanon Crisis Response Plan 2018-2020 and the United Nations Strategic Framework (UNSF) 2017-2020 This project is in-line with the Lebanon Crisis Response Plan 2018-2020 (LCRP). Within the framework of the LCRP, UNIDO has aligned its technical assistance capacity to support the livelihood pillar with a focus on strengthening small and medium sized enterprises via technology transfer and skills development. Within this framework, the LCRP is heavily underfunded (during 2017 only 10% of the pledge was received), which adds a further element of urgency to the intervention. The Ministry of Social Affairs, which is part of the Livelihood working-group within the framework of the LCRP, further recognizes skills development and job creation opportunities as a key priority. This project is moreover in line with the United Nations Strategic Framework 2017-2020 (UNSF). Within the UNSF UNIDO has aligned its technical assistance to the output 3.1: “Productive sectors strengthened to promote inclusive growth and local development especially in most disadvantaged areas”. Linkages with the UNIDO Lebanon Country Programme 2015-2018 This intervention also fits within Pillar 5 of the UNIDO Country Program framework 2015–18 for Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development. Within this component of the country programme, UNIDO wishes to support all vulnerable communities affected by the Syrian refugee crisis in Lebanon by providing them with jobs and livelihood development opportunities. Women and youth in these communities are specifically targeted by all projects designed under this pillar’s interventions. Linkages and Policy Coherence with Main Counterpart – Ministry of Industry The project will support the Ministry of Industry’s vision to guide and support the development and promotion of the industrial sector in Lebanon (Ministry of Industry integrated vision for the Lebanese Industrial Sector 2025). This strategy particularly aims at defining the industry’s role towards achieving inclusive and sustainable development, emphasizing the expansion of domestic markets, the growth of industrial exports, job creation, enhancing competitiveness, and investments in industry. Linkages with priorities set by the Government of Japan The project is coherent with policies set by the Government of Japan (GoJ) to support the Middle East, which includes:

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The Government of Japan at the 42nd G7 Summit in May 2016 explicitly declared that Japan will “commit to assist the front-line states in creating education and employment opportunities for refugees in order to empower them as future assets contributing to the stability and prosperity of host communities.”

The Government of Japan has committed to provide an assistance package of about $6 billion for the Middle East from 2016 to 2018, including human resource development programs for 20,000 people, in order to prevent the expansion of violent extremism and build a “tolerant and stable society "in the region.

Additionally, the proposed project component is also in harmony with UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ approach for “sustaining peace", ranging from prevention, conflict resolution and peacekeeping to peacebuilding. C5. UNIDO RBM Code and Thematic Area Code

Results Based Management (RBM) code: Adv. Econ. Competitiveness Thematic area code: GC23 Entrepreneurship Dev.

C6. Risks and Mitigation Measures

Specific risks are to be considered during the entire duration of the project. The below table outlines specific risks related to this project including mitigation measures:

Description of Risk Risk Rating Mitigation Measures

Political Stability – Unstable and/or unpredictable security situation within the country incl. target areas.

High

- Continuous monitoring of the security situation will be undertaken and work plan revised at regular stages. In the case of serious worsening of situation, activities will be contained to safer areas.

Institutional – Lack of clarity on division of responsibilities as well as different agenda amongst stakeholders incl. competing interests of government institutions.

Medium

- Project will engage a wide range of local project partners and stakeholders to facilitate and enable the project implementation and ensure the project ownership by communities/target groups.

High Expectations – Negative perception of segments of the public regarding project due to limited information of the various activities and unmanaged expectations.

Medium - Ensure a communications strategy is in place to

share information and results with communities/target groups.

Procurement Functions Medium

- The requirement to procure equipment from outside the country may possibly impact the schedule. It is important that equipment which is not available locally is purchased at the on-set of the project and understanding the requirements of the local port authorities is met. At all times where project equipment is available locally, efforts will be made to secure these items to improve delivery time and contribute to the local economy.

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C7. Visibility

The project will deploy a number of actions to ensure visibility of the project in the host country and to highlight the generous contribution from the Government of Japan. These actions will include preparation of press releases, the use of social media to disseminate updates on the project, the placement of stickers on all equipment procured under the project, the hosting of formal ceremonies and inviting of officials from the Embassy of Japan and Government of Lebanon (i.e. special ceremonies, graduations, equipment handovers, etc.), the sign-boards for main project sites (i.e. schools or enterprises).

Note: All equipment procured will display this kind of sticker to ensure visibility for the GoJ. D. BUDGET ITEMS D1. Implementation Arrangements

To achieve the objective outlined in this project document, the project will support the formation of a Project Management Office in Lebanon to carry out the outreach program in affected communities.

Organizational Structure of the Project

HQ – UNIDO: The headquarters in Vienna will monitor and support all project activities and

resources based on the defined project requirements, scope and objectives. The project

UNIDO Ministry of Industry

Technical Expertise Local Logistics

Technical Team Project Coordination Unit

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manager at headquarters is Japanese. UNIDO will hire Vienna Based international experts at L-2

Level and 5 percent of overall budget (excl. PSC) will be allocated to the recruitment of these

experts.

Project Coordination Unit: A project coordination unit will provide local support to manage

activities, resources, equipment and information, and report back to headquarters in Vienna.

The project coordination unit will also be liaising with the technical teams of the government

counterpart and donor on a regular basis to communicate the project status and progress.

Project Engineer: A project engineer will provide technical support by overseeing the technical

disciplines involved in the project, including training and the procurement and use of adequate

equipment, which meet the technical requirements for fulfilling the project objective.

D2. UNIDO Inputs

UNIDO will provide inputs in terms of project management expertise, staff, experience, facilities and know-how, in general terms:

Identification and preparation of job description(s) and recruitment of all the international

and/or national experts and consultants required for the project, whereby the recruitment of

qualified female candidates will be encouraged;

Preparation of recruited experts in terms of familiarizing them with the relevant UNIDO

methodologies and operations, local contexts and mandatory trainings, including the

completion of the UN Women’s gender sensitization e-learning course;

Identification of suppliers (national/international), preparation of respective terms of

reference(s) and technical specification(s), and procurement of services and equipment as

needed;

Remuneration of project staff, experts and consultants recruited by UNIDO, as well as payment

of suppliers;

Preparation and arrangement of trainings and their costs;

Project monitoring and evaluation as required;

UNIDO methodologies, resource materials and platforms as required.

E. INDICATIVE BUDGET The project financial and technical assistance requirements are summarized in the table below. The project follows the results-based management budget structure. In order to be able to respond to changing conditions and so as to ensure swift implementation, UNIDO may make budgetary adjustments, not foreseen in the project document, according to its rules and regulations: UNIDO will inform the donor about changes between budget components. In the case that shifts between outputs greater than 15 per cent become necessary, UNIDO will submit a revised budget for approval by the donor, showing and explaining the required changes. Changes between budgetary components are not to affect the total budget made available for the project.

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BL Description Total (USD)

Output 1: Capacitating via Skills Training

11-00 International experts 40,000

11-00 Staff (5%) 13,749

15-00 Project travel 10,000

16-00 Staff travel 5,000

17-00 National experts & admin staff 74,000

30-00 In-service training, conferences, workshops 100,000

45-00 Equipment 25,000

51-00 Miscellaneous 7,233

TOTAL 274,982

SC Support Costs (13%) 35,748

Total proposed budget: 310,730

F. MONITORING, REPORTING AND EVALUATION F1. Reporting

UNIDO will prepare a work plan at the beginning of the project and it will be submitted to and approved in the first Steering Committee Meeting (SCM). A progress report and final report will be prepared and submitted to the Government of Japan adhering to the following reporting schedule: 1. Report I: 6 months progress report incl. work plan – estimated delivery: June 2018 2. Report II: 12 months progress/final report incl. work plan – estimated delivery: March 2019 F2. Monitoring and Evaluation

The project will establish a results-based management mechanism (RBM) to ensure timely identification of possible implementation challenges and provide support in addressing them. The results of the RBM will be presented and discussed during the Steering Committee Meeting.

Monitoring of the project activities will include data collection and analysis arrangements, baseline information, work plans and budget expenditures. Data collection will be sex-disaggregated.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) will be leveraged. Mapping data will be used to present specific details on the beneficiaries and their exact locations in Lebanon.

G. PRIOR OBLIGATIONS AND PREREQUISITES The project will start as soon as after the donor has transferred the requisite funds onto the specified UNIDO account. UNIDO’s assistance is subject to the continuing commitment of the country and the other stakeholders towards project’s vision and objectives. The project is also designed on the premise

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that the Government of Lebanon will maintain the political will to promote the international orientation of the local economy as well as outward and inward investments. In view of not duplicating development efforts, the project will aim to coordinate with international and national organizations which are working to support similar objectives related to skills upgrading. H. LEGAL CONTEXT The present project is governed by the provisions of the Standard Basic Cooperation Agreement between the Lebanese Republic and UNIDO, signed on 14 March 1989.