YouthBuild

WHAT WE DO

The YouthBuild program helps unemployed and out of school youth ages 16-24 go back to school, get a job or start their own business. CRS is targeting 15,000 youth in Central America with a comprehensive approach that includes life skills, vocational training, entrepreneurship, savings groups and community service in the kind of positive environment young people need to flourish.

A member of the YouthBuild Alliance, the program is based on the model developed by YouthBuild International in the United States and later adapted by CRS in Central America.

Project Details

Name: YouthBuild (Jóvenes Constructores in Spanish)

Project Years: 2009-current

Countries: El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua

Project Value: $ 19,200,000.00

Names of Donors and Partners:

• USDOL
• USDOS
• Interamerican Development Bank
• CRS private funds
• National Institute for Professional Training of El Salvador (INSAFORP)
• CRS and the following partners, by country
  • Regional: YouthBuild International
  • El Salvador: Agape and National Institute for Professional Training of El Salvador (INSAFORP), Glasswing International, Fe y Algeria, CARITAS
  • Honduras: Caritas, Glasswing International, Fe y Alegría
  • Guatemala: EPRODEP, Caritas, Fundación para la Paz Barbara Ford
  • Nicaragua: Instituto Nicaragüense de Promoción Humana, Fe y Alegría

GOALS OF THE PROJECT

The goal of the program is to foster social and economic resilience for youth at risk in targeted sites across six countries in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Ecuador and Dominican Republic. Our goals are to:

• reach 15,000 unemployed and out of school youth by 2020;
• help 80% of graduates return to school, land a job, or start a business;
• create a youth leadership network; and
• increase government and private investment in positive youth development programs.