Reach Mindanao: Empowering youth through flexible learning and skills building SUMMARY 
The beneficiaries of this project (implemented by Plan International Philippines), running from 15 October 2017 to 15 April 2020,  are children and young people from the most marginalized families in three target municipalities in Maguindanao, Philippines. They have little or no opportunity to continue education and lack the necessary skills to gain decent employment or engage in livelihood or enterprise activities. They are affected by conflicts, natural hazards and extreme poverty. 3,113 children and youth beneficiaries will get vocational-technical education, enterprise development training and flexible learning options. 113 teachers from DepEd and training institutions will get skills upgrading training and improved curriculum that consider the soft skills necessary to increase productivity in the workplace. Plan will ensure that girls and young women are included, and will strengthen acceptance and preference for girls’ education and economic empowerment. In the Bangsamoro region or the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), where this project is being implemented, those under 18 years make up 45% of the population. For years, the children and youth in this region have suffered from the effects of poor governance, corruption, and in particular, conflict. Instead of benefiting from education, many children and youth grow old labouring, living between homes and evacuation centres, or taking up arms and serving in the local armed forces. Reliable data is scarce in this province, but a 2009 record pointed that in ARMM’s Maguindanao province, 23% of children and youth aged 6 to 24 are out of school.  In 2012, Maguindanao was rated with 73.8% poverty incidence. It has the highest numbers of out of school youth in the region, with only 25% secondary school completion rates. Marginalized children and youth experience significant hurdles transitioning to and completing secondary education and ultimately gaining the critical life skills and assets they need to get access to decent work and other life opportunities.  
In poor families, young women who often bear the main burden of poverty, according to the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) . When poor parents have to choose, it is the girls who are forced out of schools to work and support family members. In a study conducted by the BDA, Maguindanao is the biggest source in the ARMM region for girls and young women trafficking abroad. Girls in this situation work in often dangerous conditions as domestic helpers abroad with their names and ages altered to meet legal requirements.   This was confirmed by the 2014 UNICEF Child Protection Rapid Assessment Report, that also states that poverty and armed conflict force poor parents to marry off their girls due to lack of education or livelihood opportunities, even when the girls are below legal age and have little understanding of their rights and roles as wives. The project ensures that boys and girls have increased opportunities to complete secondary education through Flexible Learning Options (FLO). The learning and skills provided through FLO will allow the youth to transition into technical, vocational and enterprise training (TVET) which requires secondary school graduation. The project will ensure that 1) there are safe, effective educational spaces for young people, and 2) young people are equipped with the education and skills necessary to graduate from secondary schools, succeed in life and contribute to their communities. The project will use ICT for Education solutions, which will expand the scope and depth of youth employment training initiatives through online training courses. Plan’s Youth Employment Solutions (YES) Digital Ecosystem provides engaging experiences for learners, effective tools for teacher training and monitoring and evaluation tools that tracks and traces youth for up to five years after the completion of the project.  This project will also help bridge the gap between technical and vocational training and finding work based on Plan’s global Youth Economic Empowerment (YEE) Framework. This framework provides information, skills, and essential mentorship and support to youth. The training for formal employment empowers youth to make informed decisions regarding future work. The project aligns with Plan International Philippines’ five-year strategy that supports youth to transition from secondary school to employment. Plan works with DepEd and TESDA—Plan’s partners for FLO and alternative learning systems (ALS), and vocational and technical training programs, respectively.  This project responds to what the children want as expressed in the UNICEF report.  By providing them opportunities to stay in schools, the children and youth will have more chances to a) get higher levels of education which can provide them with better options in life, b) delay their marriage because children staying in schools are rarely married young, and c) freely discuss with their peers social and academic issues that affect them that are not discussed in communities and in homes.  
The project also builds on the lessons from the YEE programs implemented as part of Plan’s recovery and rehabilitation program for Typhoon Haiyan-affected communities in Leyte and Samar provinces. The project developed implementation standards on the beneficiary selection process, career guidance, life skills modules, job facilitation and partnership with the business sector and government agencies. Other projects funded by the Asian Development Bank and the UK’s Big Lottery Fund (BLF) also used the same approach with an added focus on disability inclusion. Youth employment projects also use the YES monitoring and evaluation (YESME) developed for Plan Asia, designed to track and trace participants after graduation. The same monitoring system will be used for this project including the field-tested approaches on YEE and disability inclusion. 3,113 direct beneficiaries (51% girls, 49% boys), specifically 1,250 students aged 14-25 in FLO (secondary and senior high schools); 1,250 aged 14-25 in Community-based enterprise development (CBED),  500 for Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and 113 teachers The project aims to contribute in enabling male and female youth in Maguindanao to complete quality secondary education and secure decent work and contribute to local development and peace building.  

Outcome 1: To increase equitable access to quality education among secondary school-aged children through:
Increasing completion rates of girls and boys and young men and women in equitable and quality secondary education leading to effective learning outcomes by: a) developing transparent student selection processes with project stakeholders; b) providing academic peer tutoring and support for secondary school aged-children; c) enhancing participatory educational pedagogies to increase student completion rates; d) providing a Student Support Fund to cover critical needs to access  quality education; and e) monitoring participation of learners through learning and reflection to enhance quality.

Upgrading education spaces to be safer, inclusive and effective learning environments.  This includes supporting efforts to implement school improvement plans (SIP) through service leadership and community engagement.  Structural and non-structural assessments and upgrading will be conducted in schools and training facilities to improve learning and increase security.  

Supporting administrators, teachers, parents and communities in ensuring that children and youth in target areas have unhampered access to education. Alumni associations and other civil society organization (CSOs) in the communities will be engaged to support secondary school-aged children with their need for material, financial and on-the-job training opportunities while relevant bodies such as the Parents Teachers Associations (PTA) and School Governing Councils (SGC) will be assisted in the development and implementation of their SIPs. 

Outcome 2: To strengthen capabilities of young people in Maguindanao to gain livelihoods and build inclusive, peaceful communities through:

Supporting youth with access to TVET, employability, life skills and linkages to the job market.  This involves the conduct of market scan, transparent selection process for TVET training, partnership with TESDA and other accredited schools, partnership with industry sector for market driven skills training using different modality to include a dual track training system (DTS), center-based and community-based trainings. Plan will also work with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) to assist the young men and women to apply for summer employment through job fairs and receive career coaching and develop/formulate youth group enterprises.

Increasing capacity and technical skills of skills to form community groups and to engage in dialogue, conflict resolution, advocacy and media.  The youth will be provided with opportunities to engage in barangay or community events to provide service leadership by, among others, organizing activities/events/advocacy campaigns and other civic-oriented activities. Youth alumni association established at the municipal level will encourage youth engagement beyond the project life. Part of the plan is for the alumni to set up a fund to help finance the basic needs of youth who will transition to employment. It will be repaid in a few tranches when he/she is receiving a salary. They in turn will become alumni and contribute to the fund. Part of their task is mentoring other youth enrolled in skills training or engage in micro enterprises. 
TESDA, DepEd, PESO, and the local government units will be engaged to ensure sustainability of project beyond the project life. TESDA personnel will be trained on gender and disability inclusion to ensure that facilities and training methodologies will be appropriate and inclusive following the minimum requirements specified by law. Life skills training will be integrated in the curriculum of TESDA and accredited TVET institutions in Maguindanao. DepEd personnel will be trained on the different methodologies under the Flexible Learning Options such as the modular Open High School and the accreditation and equivalency program. With trained teachers, the established Open High School will continue to cater to youth in difficult situations to access basic education after the end of the project. 
The PESO and local government will be oriented to advocate to the industry and companies to be more inclusive in their hiring policies and encouraged to establish the youth hub which will serve as venue for youth engagement with companies and local employers and mentoring and coaching of students by alumni members.