Bridges to Employment Project Task Order No

Bridges to Employment Project Task Order No. AID-519-TO-15-00001 Under Youth Power IDIQ Contract No. AID-OAA-I-15-00014

PROJECT ACTION MEMO REQUEST #343

To: Christopher Moore, COR, USAID ǀ El Salvador Cc: Noemi Danao-Schroeder, Project Director; Adrian Carroll, Project Manager From: Leesa Kaplan, Chief of Party – Bridges to Employment Date: October 18, 2017 Subject: September 2017 Monthly Project Report

Dear Chris,

Per the above referenced contract (p.32), DAI will submit to you a monthly report with the following parameters: “Every month, the contractor shall provide the USAID COR with a bullet- type report of the main activities, achievements, events, and issues of the period related to activity implementation."

Attached, please find the report covering September of 2017. The USAID Bridges to Employment team respectfully requests your technical review and approval of the monthly report.

Kind regards, Leesa

Attachments: 1. September 2017 Monthly Report – USAID Bridges to Employment

USAID Bridges to Employment Monthly Report September 2017

The following monthly report details the USAID Bridges to Employment (Puentes) main activities, achievements, events, and issues for the month of September 2017.

Events

YouthPower  Puentes presented at the annual YouthPower meeting in Washington, DC on September 26th, sharing its approach to Positive Youth Development (PYD), along with its successes and challenges. USAID's PYD framework "illustrates that to achieve the vision of healthy, productive, and engaged youth, ... programs, practices and policies must work with youth to improve their assets, agency, contribution and enabling environment." See http://www.youthpower.org/positive-youth-development-pyd-framework.

Global Youth Economic Opportunity Summit  Puentes also presented at the annual Global Youth Economic Opportunity Summit, the leading event for experts who create and implement innovative solutions for young people, which was held September 27th-29th in Washington, DC. Plan International, DAI's sub on the project, presented its cloud-based Value Chain Tool, which Puentes is going to pilot in El Salvador to identify entrepreneurship opportunities for at-risk youth.

GRANTS

Grants Manual Update  Completed and submitted to USAID on September 21st the revised version of the Grants Manual, including a) an increase in the amount ceiling; b) the environmental mitigation and monitoring criteria for grantees; and the related forms (the latter in the annex).

RFA 001 “Grants for Technical Training Services and the Strengthening of Workforce Development Service Providers in Four Economic Sectors”  RFA 001 will provide funding to build the capacity of training centers, improve the quality of the training services provided, strengthen the capacity of training center staff and operations, and provide technical and life skills training to at-risk youth. o Signed grant contracts with Asociación Fe y Alegría and Corporación de la Pasión – Servicio Social Pasionista (SSPAS). o Met separately with representatives of grantees to train them on how to successfully manage their approved grants. o Provided ongoing guidance and support to assist grantees in the implementation of grants.

RFA 002 “Implementation of Software Development Centers (CDS) Program”  RFA 002 will 1) fund training of at-risk youth on software development and on six different computer programming languages, 2) establish fully-equipped Software Development Centers, which will serve as practice laboratories where youth and businesses come together to work on real company projects, and 3) build a partnership between the training centers and Cámara

Salvadoreña de la Tecnología, Informática y Comunicaciones (CasaTIC) and its members to facilitate job placement for trained youth. o Signed grant contracts with Universidad del Oriente (UNIVO) and Universidad Alberto Masferrer (USAM). o Began drafting grant contract to be signed with Fundación Gloria de Kriete. o Held a day-long workshop for approved RFA 002 grantees on how to successfully manage their grants. o Participated in a training organized by CasaTIC to provide RFA 002 grantees with an overview of the industry-accredited curriculum that they will implement through new technical training courses.

RFA 003 “Grants for Training Centers Authorized by INSAFORP to Develop 40 Training Courses for At-Risk Youth”  RFA 003 will provide funding to training centers to cover services (including expanded curriculum, internship opportunities, job placement, organizational capacity building of training centers, and strengthening of private sector linkages) to build upon the Salvadoran Institute of Professional Development’s (INSAFORP’s) existing, authorized technical training courses. o Signed the grant contract with Capacitación Profesional en Computación (CAPUCOM) and trained CAPUCOM on how to successfully manage their approved grant. o Met with staff of CAPUCOM and Asociación para la Organización y Educación Empresarial Femenina de El Salvador (OEF) to provide guidance on how to implement environmental monitoring plans for grant-funded activities. o Provided ongoing guidance and support to assist grantees in the implementation of grants.

RFA 004 "Grant for Virtual High School Education Modality for At-Risk and Vulnerable Youth”  RFA 004 will provide funding to make it possible for at-risk youth to complete their high school education through a virtual education program. As Universidad Francisco Gavidia (UFG) is the only educational institution accredited by the Ministry of Education (MINED) to provide virtual high school education, RFA 004 was previously approved by USAID to be a limited competition RFA. o Received grant proposal from UFG, which was evaluated by the Grants Evaluation Committee (GEC) and deemed eligible to proceed to the best and final offer (BAFO) phase. Met with UFG to discuss the GEC’s comments or concerns about their application. UFG agreed to submit a revised application addressing these concerns the first week of October.

RFA 005 "Grants for Life and Soft Skills Trainings for at Risk Youth"  RFA 005 will provide funds to organizations oriented to youth workforce development, workforce development service providers, companies or firms specialized in human talent management, civil society organizations (CSOs), and similar entities to provide the National Youth Institute’s (INJUVE’s) soft and life skills curriculum (“Habilidades y Competencias para la Vida y El Trabajo”). o Signed grant contracts with Fundación Pro Educación de El Salvador (FUNPRES), Asociación Salvadoreña Pro-Salud Rural (ASAPROSAR), Fundación Salvador del Mundo (FUSALMO) and Asociación Conexión al Desarrollo de El Salvador (CONEXIÓN). o Trained representatives of ASAPROSAR on how to successfully manage their grant. o Submitted grant approval documentation to USAID for Talento Humano.

RFA 006 "Grant for Blended High School Education Modality for At-Risk and Vulnerable Youth"  RFA 006 will provide funding for at-risk and vulnerable youth to complete their high school education through the use of blended modalities (a combination of classroom instruction and

independent study). Grant funding is limited to the following nine educational institutions authorized by MINED to provide blended education: o Universidad Francisco Gavidia o Universidad Católica de El Salvador o Universidad Capitán General Gerardo Barrios o Universidad Pedagógica de El Salvador “Dr. Luis Alonso Aparicio” o AGAPE de El Salvador o CIDEP o FIECA o Fe y Alegría o María Auxiliador . The GEC met separately with representatives of Universidad Pedagógica de El Salvador “Dr. Luis Alonso Aparicio,” FIECA, and Fe y Alegría, who are currently in the BAFO phase, to discuss GEC comments or concerns about the applications. Received revised applications from the three institutions. . The GEC began reviewing the revised proposals of Fe y Alegria and FIECA to determine if they will advance to the approval phase.

RFA 007 "Strengthening Plastics Industry Workforce"  RFA 007 will 1) fund specialized training for at-risk youth in seven technical careers in the plastics industry, 2) provide machinery and laboratory equipment for youth to practice producing and testing plastic products, and 3) integrate new teaching methods and methodologies into curricula. o Received technical approval from USAID for a limited competition process for RFA 007. In order to do this; however, it requires USAID approval of the amended Grants Manual, discussed above.

OBJECTIVE 1: IMPROVED ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

Promotion of Laws and Policies  Continued ongoing efforts to address the legal barriers to youth employment in El Salvador through the following activities to promote existing laws and new policies: o Apprenticeship Contracts: Met with the Employment Director and communications team from the Ministerio de Trabajo y Previsión Social (MTPS) on September 26th to learn about apprenticeship contracts, a new incentive for companies to hire youth, and to discuss possible ways for Puentes to support this effort. MTPS aims to facilitate greater private sector employment of youth (aged 18-29 with no previous work experience) during the Christmas season by funding 50% of the minimum wage during a 3-month contract. MTPS will invite businesses to attend the following informative sessions in October to learn more about this opportunity: . October 10th - San Salvador . October 18th - San Miguel . October 19th - Santa Ana

o Municipal Youth Policy of Soyapango: Puentes and INJUVE worked together to assist Soyapango in the development of a municipal policy on youth, which would address the topics mentioned in the National Youth Law -- education, health, youth civic participation, environment, and employment -- according to the particular needs of youth in Soyapango. INJUVE shared a first draft of the policy, based on the feedback of 750 youth who participated 3

in the consultation process in prior months, with Puentes for editing. Puentes and INJUVE expect to submit the draft municipal youth policy to Soyapango’s city council for its review the second week of October. o Municipal Strategy for the Participation of People with Disabilities: The Technical Commission of the National Council for the Integral Attention of People with Disabilities (CONAIPD) began revising the draft Municipal Strategy for the Participation of People with Disabilities, incorporating feedback received during the consultations facilitated by Puentes in July. One significant improvement was related to how municipal governments assist people with disabilities. Members of CONAIPD will review the strategy and vote on it the first week of October. If approved, Puentes and CONAIPD will share the policy proposal with municipal governments for their adoption as a municipal law.

Improving Private Sector Practices  Met with the following companies that expressed interest in assistance from the project to help them to implement inclusive hiring and employment policies and practices to better support youth and other vulnerable groups, including women, young parents, LGBTI individuals, and people with disabilities: o Lafarge Holcim: on September 6th met with the Human Resources Director and the Corporate Social Responsibility Director of Lafarge Holcim, a multinational concrete manufacturing company that is also entering the renewable energy sector. The company has strong policies and practices on gender inclusion but is interested in strengthening them even further by creating a specific program to train and employ women to drive concrete mixer trucks. Puentes agreed to support the company in the development of this program, analyzing potential assistance focused on safe driving training and requirements for heavy vehicle licenses. Holcim expressed interest in creating a training and certification process for their employees through alliances with project-funded training centers. In addition, Puentes agreed to facilitate awareness-raising sessions for the company’s managers about ways to provide greater support for and inclusion of youth with disabilities. Holcim shared that it has three existing job openings (bilingual receptionist, automotive mechanic, and mechanic operator for concrete mixers) and requested that Puentes share CVs of qualified youth beneficiaries. o International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC): On September 7th met with the ICRC Mission Director and the Regional Manager to share information about the project and identify opportunities to collaborate. The ICRC is currently meeting with companies in El Salvador to promote hiring of youth and invited Puentes staff to accompany them to these meetings and share information with the companies about the project. o Editora El Mundo/Grupo Mundo Multimedia: On September 13th met with the Executive Director of Editora El Mundo/Grupo Mundo Multimedia who is interested in Puentes-trained youth applying for two current job openings (mechanic/electrician and press supervisor) and for future job openings. Puentes will send CVs of qualified youth beneficiaries. In addition, the Executive Director shared hiring needs and training gaps in the digital industry and expressed his strong interest in exploring an alliance with training centers to develop curricula on digital data analytics.

Strengthening of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs)  Met with the following CSOs to learn about their work and identify their interest in receiving technical assistance from Puentes to improve their organizational capacity and to increase their support of at-risk youth and other vulnerable groups:

4 o Fundación Coatepeque: Met with the Executive Director of Fundación Coatepeque on September 8th to share information about Puentes and to learn about their work promoting economic development around Lago Coatepeque. The organization conducts ongoing outreach to youth in the Coatepeque basin and the surrounding region as part of USAID’s Crime & Violence Prevention Project. Puentes provided an overview of the opportunities available to youth through the project, including: completing their high school education through a blended learning modality, receiving support for entrepreneurship initiatives, and participating in technical training courses. Fundación Coatepeque expressed interest in receiving technical assistance from Puentes to improve their organizational capacity and invited Puentes staff to attend an upcoming board meeting to share information about the project with its member companies. o Operación Bendición: Held a follow-up meeting with Operación Bendición on September 11th to identify potential ways to strengthen the organization’s institutional capacity. In addition, the following agreements were made: . Puentes will share a list of upcoming training courses and accompany Operación Bendición when it conducts medical campaigns in the municipalities prioritized by Puentes to hold a booth to share information about Puentes and recruit at-risk youth. . Once the grants under RFA 004 and RFA 006 are approved, Puentes will inform Operación Bendición, who promised to share the information with youth about the opportunity to return to school to finish their high school education through flexible modalities. o Fundación Borja- On September 13th met with a board member of Fundación Borja, who expressed interest in receiving assistance from Puentes to help strengthen the foundation’s capacity. Fundación Borja is a private family foundation working to increase the employability of strongly motivated Salvadoran youth with limited economic resources. o Asociación Trabajemos por La Paz - On September 18th met with the Director of the Asociación Trabajemos por La Paz to share information about Puentes and to learn about the CSO’s work with at-risk and vulnerable populations in many of the same municipalities prioritized by Puentes, including San Martín, Soyapango, Tonacatepeque, Cuscatancingo, San Salvador, Mejicanos, and Ciudad Delgado. Asociación Trabajemos por La Paz provides technical training to at-risk youth, helps raise awareness of companies in the San Martin area of the value of providing internship opportunities for at-risk youth, and links the youth to these companies. In addition, the CSO has been working on “Acciones Mujer,” a gender program in Cuscatancingo, providing training to young women on soft and life skills in order for them to build the skills necessary to participate in an internship program through the company Río Grande, which exports Salvadoran artisan products. Identified the following ways to collaborate: . Puentes will provide the CSO with information about upcoming technical and life skills courses to share with their at-risk youth beneficiaries and encourage them to participate. . Asociación Trabajemos por La Paz submitted a formal letter of interest to receive technical assistance from Puentes to strengthen the organization’s institutional capacity. o Asociación Teletón Pro Rehabilitación (FUNTER): On September 28th held a follow- up meeting with FUNTER, who will complete the USAID Organizational Capacity Assessment (OCA) in early October. The organization’s Executive Director offered to 5

collaborate with Puentes to support companies in improving their policies and practices by helping raise awareness about how companies can better support youth and people with disabilities. In addition, FUNTER has taken initial steps in the process of accreditation of its training center, Acceder, and Puentes agreed to provide guidance during the process.

o Fundación Salvadoreña para la Salud y el Desarrollo (FUSAL): On September 28th met with FUSAL to learn about their ongoing efforts to provide technical training to youth in Tonacatepeque in the areas of health and tourism and to coordinate internships for participating youth at the local health center, Hotel Real Intercontinental, and Las Gardenias Restaurant. Puentes will collaborate with the CSO to help recruit its youth beneficiaries to apply to take part in Puentes life skills trainings.

 Reviewed the OCA and decided to use the 2015 version, which includes questions related to an organization’s inclusion of people with disabilities. Puentes will use the OCA tool to measure the institutional capacity of CSOs in seven areas: governance, administration, human resources management, financial management, organizational management, program management, and project performance management. The assessment’s results will shape the technical assistance Puentes provides to each CSO to help strengthen their institutional capacity.

Accreditations and Certifications  Received a letter of commitment from Corporación de la Pasión – Servicio Social Pasionista (SSPAS), certifying that with Puentes assistance, the training center will pursue institutional accreditation and certification of its courses through INSAFORP.

OBJECTIVE 2: IMPROVED QUALITY OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES THAT EFFECTIVELY RESPOND TO MARKET DEMAND TO INSERT AT-RISK YOUTH INTO TARGET ECONOMY SECTORS

Technical Assistance to Workforce Development Service Providers  Provided technical assistance to the following project-funded training centers: o Met separately with staff of the OEF training center in Ciudad Arce, the CAPUCOM training center in Santa Tecla, and the Escuela Superior Franciscana Especializada/AGAPE (ESFE-AGAPE) training center in Sonzacate to provide technical assistance on how to meet Puentes contract requirements related to the start of project-funded training, including: 1) use of pre- and post-test assessments, 2) use of participant registration templates, 3) review of the grant implementation plan, and 4) reporting requirements. o Met with the staff of the Centro de Formación Profesional AGAPE (CFP AGAPE) training center to provide technical assistance on how to prepare the final reports for two “Waiter & Bartender” training courses. o Met with staff of CAPUCOM training center to provide technical assistance on how to meet Puentes contract requirements related to the start of the project-funded Refrigeration and Air Conditioning course, specifically on the use of pre- and post-test assessments. o Met with staff from SSPAS to provide technical assistance on how to meet Puentes contract requirements related to: . the timeline of activities . monitoring and evaluation . branding, marking and communications 6

. institutional accreditation . dates and topics of training courses . institutional capacity building efforts. o Met with staff from CFP AGAPE and OEF training centers to provide technical assistance on how to prepare quarterly technical report.

Building Capacity of Training Centers  Assessed the institutional capacity of the CFP AGAPE and OEF training centers using the Technical Vocational Education and Training Capacity Assessment Tool (TVET CAT) to determine the institution’s strengths and weaknesses and to identify opportunities for improvement. The two grantees signed letters expressing their interest in receiving assistance from Puentes to help build their institutional capacity.

 Requested and obtained from INSAFORP the curricular design format in order to share it with grantees from RFA 002, so they can use this template as an example to design their training programs.

 Held a Training-of-Trainers (ToT) workshop with 27 representatives (13 women and 14 men) from the following training center grantees to teach them about: 1) Puentes methodology, 2) how to support the different needs of at-risk youth, 3) competency-based approach to education, 4) competency-based job profiles, and 5) how to conduct the required pre- and post-test assessments: o OEF o CFP AGAPE o CAPUCOM o USAM o UNIVO o CasaTIC o ESFE-AGAPE

Start of Technical Training Courses  A total of 68 at-risk youth began the following technical training courses funded under RFA 003:

Training Center Course Location Numbers of youth CFP AGAPE Hotel Housekeeping Mejicanos 25 OEF Vegetable Production Ciudad Arce 20 OEF Vegetable Production Santa Tecla 23 TOTAL 68

Completion of Technical Training Courses  A total of 21 at-risk youth completed the “Artisanal Processing of Dairy Products” training course at the OEF training center in Zacatecoluca funded under RFA-003.

Events  Attended an event on September 27th in Zacatecoluca hosted by the USAID Crime and Violence Prevention Project (CVPP) and the Zacatecoluca City Hall to inaugurate the new Center for Vocational Training and Music. This center will offer technical training courses for at-risk youth on information technology (IT), industrial sewing, music, and fruit processing.

OBJECTIVE 3: IMPROVED WORKFORCE READINESS DEMONSTRATED BY TARGET AT-RISK YOUTH

Youth Outreach & Recruitment  Held the following outreach events in Antiguo Cuscatlan, Santa Tecla, Colón, Mejicanos, Ciudad Arce, San Miguel, Soyapango, Sonsonate, Santa Ana and San Salvador to share information about the project and encourage at-risk youth to participate.

Date Location Municipality Youth registered Sept 2 Centro ¡Supérate! Merlet Antiguo Cuscatlan 8 Sept 6 Centro de Formación Laboral Santa Tecla 7 Sept 7 Casa de la Cultura Colon 14 Sept 8 Casa de la Cultura Proceres de Oriente Mejicanos 11 Sept 12 Iglesia Ríos de Agua Viva de las Asambleas de Ciudad Arce 45 Dios, cantón La Joyita Sept 13 CONAMYPE’s 8th Micro and Small Business San Salvador 26 Conference Sept 18 Iglesia Ríos de Agua Viva Ciudad Arce 47 Sept 21 Casa Comunal Canton El Carmen San Salvador 19 Sept 21 Centro Escolar Los Chorros Colón 6 Sept 22 League Ciudad Arce 57 Sept 24 Colegio Santa Inés Santa Tecla 59 Sept 26 Casa de la Cultura Santa Tecla Santa Tecla 11 Sept 27 Casa de la Cultura Colon 12 Sept 27 Comunidad Santa Lucia-Bufalo Mejicanos 24 Sept 27 Centro de Formación SSPAS Mejicanos 21 Sept 28 Colegio Jeriel Ciudad Arce 24 Sept 28 Conexión San Benito San Salvador 44 Sept 28 Conexión Soyapango Soyapango 43 Sept 28 Conexión Sonsonate Sonsonate 29 Sept 28 FUSALMO Soyapango 61 Sept 28 FUSALMO San Miguel 126 Sept 29 Comunidad Bella Vista San Salvador 33 Sept 29 Cafetalón Santa Tecla 29 Sept 29 Iglesia Bautista Jehova Jireh Sierra Morena Soyapango 23 Sept 29 Casa de la Cultura Colon 5 Sept 29 ASAPROSAR Sonsonate 24 Sept 29 ASAPROSAR Santa Ana 81 Sept 29 ASAPROSAR Ciudad Arce 46 Sept 29 FUNPRES Santa Tecla 9 Sept 30 Iglesia Abundante Gracia Colón 9 Total 953

 The events were held in coordination with the youth program ¡Súperate!, the Mejicanos City Hall, the Santa Tecla City Hall, the Asociación Juventud Unidad de Lourdes, Consejo Nacional de Micro y Pequeñas Empresas (CONAMYPE), the Ciudad Arce City Hall, League, the Santa Ines School, AGAPE, Iglesia Bautista Jehova Jireh, Iglesia La Luz del Mundo de Hermosa Provincia, Asociación Juventud Unidad de Lourdes, Gobernación de La Libertad, San Salvador City Hall and Ciudad Arce City Hall.

 A total of 953 youth were registered into the project database. Each registered youth completed the full registration process (including the Unique Participant Registration (RUP), psychometric tests, and/or an interview) and were referred to participate in upcoming training courses and job readiness sessions.

Life Skills Training  Held a Life Skills ToT workshop in partnership with INJUVE on September 4th at Hotel Crowne Plaza, where 29 staff from the following institutions completed the final day of a three-day life skills training, which included both classroom instruction and a practicum: 1. Fé y Alegría 6. CONEXION 2. Fundación Empresarial para el 7. FUNPRES Desarrollo (FEPADE) 8. FUSALMO 3. Asociación Salvadoreña de Industriales 9. INJUVE (SI) 10. Evangelical University of El Salvador 4. ASAPROSAR 11. Asociación Integral de Redes Juveniles Rurales 5. Talento Humano de El Salvador

 Held a ToT workshop in collaboration with INJUVE on September 25th-26th at Hotel Crown Plaza in San Salvador, training 28 staff from the following institutions on how to deliver life skills curriculum to at-risk youth: 1. Fé y Alegría 7. El Centro de Capacitación y Promoción de la 2. FEPADE Democracia (CECADE) 3. ASAPROSAR 8. Fundación Gloria de Kriete 4. FUSALMO 9. ESFE-AGAPE 5. INJUVE 10. USAM 6. UNIVO

 Visited the following technical training courses to observe instructors’ delivery of life and soft skills training and to provide feedback to instructors on how to strengthen trainings: o Computer Maintenance & Repair course at the OEF training center in Ciudad Delgado o Hotel Housekeeping Course at the CFP AGAPE training center in Zacatecoluca o Vegetable Production course at the OEF training center in Zacatecoluca o Hotel Housekeeping course at the CFP AGAPE training center in Mejicanos o Computer Maintenance and Repair course at the OEF training center in Ciudad Delgado o Computer Maintenance and Repair course at the OEF training center in Zacatecoluca o Life Skills course at the FEPADE training center in Santa Tecla o Life Skills course at the UNIVO training center in San Miguel o Life Skills course at the ESFE-AGAPE training center in Sonsonate o Life Skills course at the USAM training center in Mejicanos

 202 at-risk youth completed life skills training at the OEF and CFP AGAPE training centers in Zacatecoluca, Santa Tecla, Ciudad Arce, Mejicanos, and Ciudad Delgado funded under RFA-003.

Job Readiness Session  Participated in the September 27th “Employment Fair for Inclusion of People with Disabilities,” organized by the Fundación Empresarial para la Acción Social (FUNDEMAS) and the Santa Tecla City Hall, where Puentes hosted a job readiness session for six hearing-impaired youth through the assistance of a sign language interpreter. In addition to the six youth participating in the job readiness session, five others began the process of registering to become a project beneficiary.

Psychosocial Assistance  Held a workshop at Hotel Crowne Plaza to gather feedback from 11 youth (7 young women and 4 young men) and 10 representatives of the following institutions on the draft psychosocial assistance protocol and referral guides that Puentes is developing to assist communities and institutions to better support youth facing a variety of challenges: o Ministry of Foreign Affairs o Procuraduria de los Derechos Humanos (PDDH) o Ministerio de Salud (MINSAL) o Survivors Network o FUNTER o Save the Children o SSPAS o FUSALMO.

Supporting Youth Entrepreneurs  Met with representatives of CONAMYPE to discuss collaboration on the 8th Micro and Small Business Conference to be held on September 13th and the following future events: o September 22 – Workshop for the Validation of the National Entrepreneurship Policy o September 26 – Presentation of the National Entrepreneurship Policy in an International Forum o September 29 – Meeting of the Entrepreneurship Advisory Board.

 On September 19th and 22nd, participated in the Workshop for the Validation of the National Entrepreneurship Policy, organized by CONAMYPE to provide the tools necessary for institutions to help strengthen entrepreneurship in El Salvador. As a member of CONAMYPE’s Entrepreneurship Advisory Board, Puentes provided input on how to improve the policy, such as using language that includes at-risk youth and vulnerable populations and ensuring schools include entrepreneurship as part of their curricula.

 On September 29th, participated in a meeting of CONAMYPE’s Entrepreneurship Advisory Board, which focused on planning the Global Entrepreneur Week, in which institutions across the country will hold various activities to support entrepreneurship during the week of November 13th-17th.

Protecting Youth Safety  Met with leaders in the municipalities of Colón, Soyapango, and San Salvador to visit available facilities to host upcoming technical training courses as well as youth outreach and recruitment events, ensuring the locations meet the necessary security and training requirements set by Puentes. The following agreements were made: o Scheduled a youth outreach and recruitment event at Hermosa Provincia in Colon. o Selected the locations to hold the following Puentes-funded technical training courses: . A Processing of Dairy Products course will be held at an event space in Comunidad Hermosa Provincia in Colón . A Vegetable Production course and Processing of Dairy Products course will be imparted at the Casa de la Cultura in Colón . A Refrigeration & Air Conditioning course will be held at Centro Biblíco Jehova Jiréh in Soyapango . A Hotel Housekeeping course will be held at an event space in Cantón El Carmen in San Salvador

PRIVATE SECTOR ENGAGEMENT

Strengthening Relationships with the Private Sector  On September 27th participated in the “Employment Fair for Inclusion of People with Disabilities” mentioned above, which helped provide a direct link between people with disabilities who are actively searching for a job and private sector companies hiring people with disabilities. Presented the project to companies participating in the job fair, and the following companies expressed interest in working with Puentes: o ADOC: Met with the Human Resources (HR) Manager of ADOC, a shoe company, who is interested in hiring Puentes youth and partnering with a technical training center to develop a shoe-sewing curriculum for their operations in Soyapango and Ateos. o Grupo Bimbo: Met with an HR representative of Grupo Bimbo, a bread company, who expressed interest in a follow-up meeting to identify areas in which they can work with Puentes. o Super Selectos: Met with the Recruitment Manager of Super Selectos, a major supermarket chain in El Salvador, as a follow-up to previous meetings with Carlos Calleja (Vice-President of Grupo Calleja, owners of the Selectos brand). The supermarket’s Recruitment Manager requested an additional meeting in order to discuss specific training and hiring needs of their stores located in high-risk communities. o La Neveria: Met with the Recruitment Manager of La Neveria, an ice cream company, who requested an additional meeting in order to discuss specific hiring and training needs. o EPA: Met with HR representatives of EPA, a hardware store, who expressed interest in providing technical training for their sales staff. o Pollo Campero and Telepizza: Met with HR representatives, who provide services to the restaurants Pollo Campero and Telepizza. The representatives stated that Pollo Campero is already hiring Puentes youth and will continue to share job openings. o Premium Restaurants of America: Met with the HR Analyst of Premium Restaurants of America, the parent company of Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, China Wok, Starbucks and Wendy’s, who expressed interest in a follow-up meeting in October to identify how the company can collaborate with Puentes.

Fair Programming  Received USAID approval of a new initiative on Fair Programming. Puentes staff worked with CasaTIC board members to develop the concept of a Fair Programming Certification Seal to label software products created by companies in Latin America that employ at-risk and other vulnerable youth and provide them with decent incomes and working conditions. Similar to the Fair Trade programs developed for coffee, tea, cocoa, and other crops that focus on ensuring equality and fair treatment of everyone in the value chain, especially the farmer, Fair Programming aims to ensure that at-risk and other vulnerable youth from developing countries who are providing software development services to IT companies in developed countries receive a fair wage, fair treatment, and professional development opportunities while still residing in their home countries. Through this seal, consumers would be able to identify which products are developed by companies that meet agreed-upon standards to support at-risk and other vulnerable youth employees.

Leverage  Submitted to USAID the Government of El Salvador (GOES) leverage plans for the following institutions: INSAFORP, MINED, CONAMYPE, INJUVE and MTPS.  The total leverage for September is $21,958.88. The total for Year 2 is $1,031,360.52.

Collaboration with Partners  Met with representatives of both CasaTIC and USAID's Municipal Competitiveness Project to share information about Puentes' role in the Software Development Centers (SDC) project under RFA 002 and to discuss ways to coordinate in order to avoid any duplication of efforts.

Labor Market Assessment Follow-Up  Restructured the evaluation tool to be utilized in the Labor Market Assessment Follow-Up in year three.  Carried out a four-day workshop with IPSOS Herrarte senior staff and JBS International to share Puentes’ experience from the first assessment, lessons learned, and suggestions for the update document.

MONITORING & EVALUATION

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System  Hosted a Plus Consulting programmer and DAI Home Office staff member from September 4th- 14th, who worked with Puentes staff on the development of the new CRM system. This consolidated data management system will be used by Puentes as well as the project-funded training centers to improve and unify the registration of youth beneficiaries and to facilitate the reporting of indicators and the generation of data used by the project. The following were accomplished through their assistance: o Completion of the online RUP entry module and development of the module to fill out the RUP offline. o OEF, CAPUCOM and AGAPE training centers were trained in the use of the CRM and were given the credentials to use the system. Visited OEF to reinforce the knowledge acquired through the training and answer their questions about the system. o Began to develop a new module to track project indicators for Objectives 1 and 2. Held meetings with project staff to understand their needs and to provide a training on the CRM system. This module will be finalized by November.

Pilot Study of the USAID/Washington Impact Evaluation of Puentes  Followed up with CFP AGAPE and OEF training centers, who are implementing training courses that are part of a pilot study being conducted by the USAID contractor, Mathematica. The pilot study will analyze the effectiveness of the various pre-selection methods for identifying youth to be project beneficiaries, and the results will shape the impact assessment of the project in 2018. The pilot study will be conducted using a random sample of youth participating in eight technical training courses funded by RFA 003 at CFP AGAPE and OEF training centers. o The training centers confirmed that youth who enrolled in the courses have been assigned to either a treatment or control group. Mathematica expects to complete the pilot study in October.

USAID Environmental Compliance  In accordance with USAID regulations, verified that training centers conducting courses on “Vegetable Production” or “Artisanal Processing of Dairy Products” have completed the necessary steps to comply with their environmental mitigation and monitoring plan.

COMMUNICATIONS

Social Media  Utilizing social media, Puentes has been able to connect directly with youth, sharing the opportunities that are available to them through the project to contribute to their personal and professional development. o In September, 219 new fans joined the Facebook page, which now has a total of 14,520 fans (66% women, 34% men). In the month of September, reached 14,891 and engaged 2,606. o Posted announcements for 10 recruitment events, which reached a total of 23,207 youth through social media. The post that reached the highest number of youth was an announcement for an event in Mejicanos on September 8th, which reached 9,118 youth.

Success Stories  Through a new alliance with the Telecorporación Salvadoreña (TCS) Corporation and Foundation, recorded the success stories of four Puentes beneficiaries, to be highlighted on television channels 2, 4 and 6 as part of the “Salvadorenos Compremetidos” program. Promoting the hard work of committed individuals to improve well-being in their communities, the program aims to create hope and motivation for people to serve others, showcasing the highly-valued Salvadoran characteristics of generosity, service, and the tireless effort for a job well done. The TCS Corporation reached out to Puentes for its work to help committed at-risk youth make advances in education and employment. The four stories will be broadcast nationally every day in November 2017 and January 2018 before the news.