Industrial and commercial job training for women : final evaluation

Final evaluation, prepared by an outside consultant, covers the period 9/79-5/83 and is based on document review and site visits. The project's overall impact was positive. The skills selected for the pilot training centers of the MOL's Office of Technical Training and Job Development (OFPPT) were appropriate, trainees readily found fitting employment, and the curricula (but not the skills) were periodically improved, although the presence of a project staff member at the pilot locations could have avoided logistical problems. AID-funded equipment proved a plus, although at 28% of the total budget a special procurement company was advisable. Training of teachers - including women - for the centers was mainly conducted on an informal, on-the-job basis by AMIDEAST, the U.S. contractor. Formal placement and follow-up activities were less successful. Although 70% of the trainees found jobs, this was due more to individual efforts than to systematic procedure. There has been little follow-up. AMIDEAST's two, relatively high-cost technical studies on sociocultural constraints to employing women technicians in industry were of questionable value. Of 23 U.S. trainees, all but the last three have completed their coursework. The 10 one-year trainees returned to Morocco, but only one of the 6 Master's candidates did so. Careful selection of participants is essential to insure that training can be capably completed and that trainees will return to work for the sponsoring institution. The latter, in turn, should identify positions and define job descriptions for participants in advance. A.I.D. should not allow participants to begin training without clearly providing to support them for its duration. AMIDEAST's performance could have been better; A.I.D. should assess host country contracting capabilities in advance. A.I.D. should also ensure that all project documents are consistent and accurate so as to preclude ambiguities in implementation responsibilities. Also, extra attention to planning and timing start-up is needed in projects of this kind to avoid disrupting teachers' schedules.