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USAID YouthPower 2
Bijoyee Activity

Prime Implementer

  • Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere (CARE)

Implementing Partners

  • Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center (BYLC)

  • The Earth Society

  • JAAGO Foundation

  • UCEP Bangladesh

  • Dhrubotara Youth Development Foundation (DYDF)

The consortium also includes the following diverse group of Bangladeshi youth-serving organizations (YSOs):

  • Access Bangladesh Foundation (with technical expertise on disability and accessibility)

  • Bandhu Social Welfare Society (works on sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) inclusion)

  • Safety and Rights Society (works on dignified work)

  • TAHZINGDONG (works on indigenous population issues)

Project Timeline

June 2023 – June 2028 

Project Goal

The USAID Bijoyee Activity aims to contribute to more effective, sustainable development that is locally led and inclusive of Bangladeshi youth, and specifically women and socially excluded young people, as core participants and decision makers.

Brief Background

Bangladesh has shown remarkable progress in poverty reduction and is poised to ascend from least developed country status by 2026. However, to achieve its transition to an upper middle-income nation by 2031, Bangladesh confronts the imperative of generating millions of jobs while empowering its youthful demographic, constituting 35% of the population. Despite this demographic strength, Bangladesh faces significant challenges in skills development, ranking low globally in critical thinking education and vocational training accessibility.

In 2019, the country ranked 117th out of 140 countries in skills assessment, with a meager 2.1% of workers accessing post-formal education vocational training. A substantial 39.6% of youth aged 15-24, including 59.2% women, were not engaged in education, employment, or training (NEET). Furthermore, only 57% of those aged 15-29 were active in the labor force. These statistics reflect a prevailing issue where low-skilled youth gravitate towards informal employment, comprising 86% of total employment, while those completing secondary or tertiary education struggle to secure job placements.

USAID Bijoyee Activity (Bijoyee)

The USAID Bijoyee Activity, a five-year initiative with a budget of $35 million, is spearheaded by the Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere (CARE) in collaboration with USAID Bangladesh Mission, the Bangladesh Department for Youth Development (DYD), and National Youth Council (NYC). Aimed at reaching 281,200 youth, with a focus on inclusivity (60% women, 1-3% youth with disabilities, and 1.7% indigenous youth), Bijoyee intends to equip youth with essential assets and agency for the evolving job market. It also aims to strengthen youth-led organizations (YLOs) and foster an enabling environment conducive to youth development.

Bijoyee will operate through a hub-and-spoke model, targeting five hubs of Bangladesh—Dhaka North and South, Chattogram, Khulna, and Rangpur—reaching 18 districts directly. Each hub will extend multiple spokes to facilitate youth access to skill development and services. Additionally, activities will operate at the national level, providing technical support to strengthen youth systems and support structures.

To increase effectiveness and sustainability of the project, Bijoyee’s approach includes three crosscutting pillars:
 

  1. Shifting power relations to foster locally-led and youth-driven development,
  2. Strengthening gender equity and social inclusion, and
  3. Fostering climate resilience and adaptability

Geographical Coverage

Bijoyee will operate through a hub-and-spoke model, targeting five hubs of Bangladesh—Dhaka North and South, Chattogram, Khulna, and Rangpur—reaching 18 districts directly. Each hub will extend multiple spokes to facilitate youth access to skill development and services. 18 districts include Bandarban, Bogura, Chattogram, Cox's Bazar, Dhaka, Gazipur, Jashore, Khagrachari, Khulna, Kurigram, Magura, Manikganj, Munsiganj, Narayangonj, Nilphamari, Rangpur, Satkhira and Sherpur.

Target Beneficiaries

Bijoyee will reach 281,200 youth, prioritizing

  • Youth Not in Education, Employment, or Training (NEET)
  • Women
  • Host communities in Cox’s Bazar
  • Indigenous youth
  • Youth with Disabilities (YwDs)
  • Youth with diverse Sexual Orientation and Gender Identities (SOGI)
  • Dalit youth

Theory of Change

Grounded in Positive Youth Development (PYD) principles, Bijoyee's Theory of Change (ToC) posits that

  • if individual youth are equipped with assets and agency that are relevant for the future of work, having increased access to equitable economic opportunities, and
  • if youth’s contributions are enhanced through organizing and networking spaces that offer a sense of belonging, and
  • if their combined impact is multiplied by having systems and structures intended to support youth in national development widely validated and embraced, creating an enabling environment,
  • then the nation will achieve more effective, sustainable development that is locally-led and inclusive of Bangladeshi youth, and specifically women and socially excluded young people, as core participants and decision-makers.

Overview of Activities

In order to achieve this goal, USAID Bijoyee Activity has three intermediate results:  

IR 1: Improved youth access to equitable economic opportunities

IR 2: Strengthened YLOs

IR 3: Reinforced local youth systems

Intermediate Result 1: Improved youth access to equitable economic opportunities:

To prepare young people for the evolving job market as Bangladesh progresses towards middle-income status by 2031, Bijoyee will train 250,000 youth in critical workforce skills. These include market-oriented soft skills, green skills, English, and digital/ICT skills. By collaborating with the Ministry of Youth and Sports (MoYS) and private sector partners, the program will develop gender-responsive and inclusive soft skills development packages tailored to youth's diverse needs. Training providers will be equipped to deliver market-oriented, gender-responsive, and socially inclusive skills training. Private sector partnerships will support gender-equitable entry-level employment opportunities and youth entrepreneurship, while coordination with Feed the Future (FTF) funded projects will expand youth businesses, ultimately increasing the income of targeted youth by 60%, and enabling 6,000 youth entrepreneurs to grow their businesses.

Intermediate Result 2: Strengthened Youth-Led Organizations

In partnership with the newly launched National Youth Council (NYC), USAID Bijoyee Activity will enhance the organizational capacity of 300 grassroots Youth Led Organizations (YLOs). These YLOs will, in turn, support youth civic engagement, access to services, networking, and advocacy actions. Gender-responsive training modules and resource banks will empower YLOs, enabling them to mobilize 30,000 youth for civic and climate action, promoting gender equity and social inclusion. The program will also disseminate information about youth services, increasing demand and reshaping traditional gender and social norms.

Intermediate Result 3: Coordinated and Reinforced Effective Local Youth Systems

USAID Bijoyee Activity will aim to create an enabling environment for youth development, informed by youth systems mapping. It will advocate for and strengthens platforms for youth participation in policy design, sector planning, and budgeting. Participatory accountability processes are initiated to assess service quality and responsiveness, with action plans developed accordingly.

The program establishes a Youth Futures Grant Facility to support social and climate-focused businesses and fosters coordination among YLOs, government agencies, and donors to influence youth policy, the Five-Year Plan, and Sustainable Development Goals. It will aim to integrate youth recommendations into national planning and budgeting processes, creating a responsive policy space at the national level.

Expected Results

  • 250,000 of youth trained in soft skills through USG-assisted programs
  • 60% of youth having increased income and/or career progression
  • 6,000 youth entrepreneurs starting/expanding their businesses through revenue
  • 300 grassroots YLOs conducting campaigns on youth rights, services, and civic action opportunities.
  • 30,000 youth mobilized to conduct civic engagement activities focusing on emerging social and gender-related issues.
  • 500 youth entrepreneurs/YLOs conducting civic engagement, social entrepreneurship, and climatepreneurship through Activity-provided grants

Contact

For more information, contact nazib.neaz@care.org

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