Call for Proposals: Job Creation through Information & Communication Technologies in Mozambique

Deadline: 03-Nov-23

The Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) is seeking proposals to contribute to sustainable, inclusive, and decent work-creating economic development in Mozambique, especially for the growing youth population.

Objectives and Priority Issues

• The specific objective of the action financed through the grant of this call for proposals consists in increasing youth employment in the capital Maputo and the provinces of Maputo, Manica and Tete, by a strategy focused on the ICT and articulated in supporting and integrating different lines of intervention for the investment in human capital and the creation of decent and quality employment for young women and men, promoted and coordinated by the SEJE.
• The priorities of this call for proposal are two.
  • The first priority of the action aims to an integrated and strengthened offer of vocational training courses delivered by IFPELAC with a better response to the market needs and absorption capacity, with an emphasis on ICT, ensuring fair access and adaptation of the curricula themselves for full utilisation by fragile youth groups (in particular women, persons with disabilities and possibly young people in detention or street dwellers).
    • The main outputs identified as capable to achieve ER1, through a set of activities to be proposed by the applicants, are the following:
      • dialogue between IFPELAC training institutions and the private sector facilitated and supported to identify the most in-demand skill profiles, involving experts, government, and economic operators (target: at least 20 meetings per year);
      • existing ICT-related curricula revised and/or new ones developed, based on the skills required by labour market, with specific attention to students with special needs (adaptation of content and training methods);
      • existing ICT and non-ICT tools introduced or improved to adapt courses (and where necessary the infrastructure of training centres) to ensure full accessibility of people with disabilities (the target will be set at the beginning of the activities jointly by the grantee and IFPELAC);
      • ICT Education-support centre established by refurbishment of existing facilities (to be identified by IFPELAC), with computer and educational equipment, and adaptations for full access and use by persons with disabilities (target: 1 – most likely at the IFPELAC headquarters compound in Maputo City);
  • The second priority of the action aims to the job creation through better conditions in order to employ or self-employ 3,000 youth especially fragile youth groups (in particular women, persons with disabilities and possibly young people in detention or street dwellers) by supporting the M/SMES with high potential in terms of turnover growth, by increasing the availability of funding to youth and promoting effective organisational formulas.
    • The main outputs identified as capable to achieve ER2, through a set of activities to be proposed by the applicants, are the following:
      • baseline survey conducted (processing of relevant statistical data collected from INE, MITESS, INEP, IPEME, MEF – including publication and distribution to stakeholders) and study on the perspectives for ICT in traditional sectors (digitalisation of business processes) and for the digital economy;
      • job fairs (in person and/or virtual) organised (including communication) and run according to INEP’s standards, which shall also involve scholarships, pre-professional and professional internships (target: at least 4 fairs per year and 5,000 participants);
      • Various forms of dialogue (meetings, platforms, open days, etc.) promoted and realised between the business world and Employment Centres for the provision of professional and pre-professional internships (remunerated, if possible), with links with start-ups, cooperatives, other initiatives supported by the program and its partners (target at least 8 meetings or structured, facilitated interactions per year, per target province);
      • SEJE and its operational entities provided with technical assistance for the promotion and management of dialogue and coordination of the involved stakeholders (target: the three target provinces are supported);
      • remunerated internships funded and management expenses covered for unpaid internships.

Sectors or Themes

Sustainable Development Goal target:

• SDG 4: Quality Education.
• SDG 5: Gender Equality
• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

Funding Information

• The overall indicative amount made available under this call for proposals is EUR 2,290,000.00 (two million, two hundred and ninety thousand Euro).
• Any grant requested under this call for proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts:
  • minimum amount: EUR 2,290,000
  • maximum amount: EUR 2,290,000
• Duration: The initial planned duration of an action may not be lower than 30 months nor exceed 36 months.

Location: Actions must take place in the following country and provinces: Mozambique, Greater Maputo area, and for specific activities Manica e Tete provinces.

Eligibility Criteria

• Lead applicant
  • In order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:
    • be a legal person and
    • be non-profit-making and
    • be established in Mozambique or in one of the Member States of the European Union and
    • be authorized to operate in Mozambique and
    • not be linked to any of the mentioned central authorities partnering AICS in the programme AID and
    • be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies), not acting as an intermediary.
  • The Lead Applicant shall also:
    • demonstrate adequate capacities for planning, monitoring, evaluation, advocacy, communication applicable to the action proposed, and
    • demonstrate expertise in similar projects worldwide, if possible, in a developing country. This set of experience and competences may be complemented by co-applicants and/or affiliate entities.
• Co-applicant(s)
  • Co-applicants participate in designing and implementing the action, and the costs they incur are eligible in the same way as those incurred by the lead applicant. In order to be eligible for a grant, the co-applicants must:
    • be a legal person and
    • be established in any of the countries belonging to the Organisation for the Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) as member countries or eligible for development aid according to the OECD-DAC List of ODA Recipients and
  • Co-applicants must sign the mandate form.
  • If awarded the grant contract, the co-applicant(s) (if any) will become beneficiary(ies) in the action (together with the coordinator).
• Affiliated entities
  • The lead applicant and its co-applicant(s) may act with affiliated entity(ies).
  • Only the following entities may be considered as affiliated entities to the lead applicant and/or to co-applicant(s):
    • Only entities having a structural link with the applicants (i.e. the lead applicant or a co-applicant), in particular a legal or capital link. This structural link encompasses mainly two notions:
      • Control, on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings:
        • Entities affiliated to an applicant may hence be:
          • Entities directly or indirectly controlled by the applicant (daughter companies or first-tier subsidiaries). They may also be entities controlled by an entity controlled by the applicant (granddaughter companies or second-tier subsidiaries) and the same applies to further tiers of control;
          • Entities directly or indirectly controlling the applicant (parent companies). Likewise, they may be entities controlling an entity controlling the applicant;
          • Entities under the same direct or indirect control as the applicant (sister companies).
      • Membership, i.e. the applicant is legally defined as a e.g. network, federation, association in which the proposed affiliated entities also participate or the applicant participates in the same entity (e.g. network, federation, association,) as the proposed affiliated entities.

For more information, visit AICS.