VZCZCXRO6828
PP RUEHBC RUEHDH RUEHKUK RUEHROV
DE RUEHAM #0425/01 0491357
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 181357Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY AMMAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6927
INFO RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 AMMAN 000425 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR NEA/PPD AGNEW; NEA/ELA GREGONIS 
 
E.O. 12958 N/A 
TAGS: TAGS
SUBJECT: JORDAN:  S/GWI PROJECT PROPOSAL 
 
REF:  09 STATE 132094 
 
¶1. Embassy Amman received 22 proposals in response to the S/GWI 
project proposal solicitation.  The Public Affairs Section reviewed 
the proposals, with input from USAID and POL sections, and is 
pleased to support the proposal, "Empowering Young Women: Life 
Skills and Vocational Training for Leadership, Health, and Personal 
Safety," by the Al-Aman Fund for the Future of Orphans. 
 
¶2. Al-Aman Fund's project would help one of Jordan's most vulnerable 
populations - young women who grew up in orphan care centers and 
lack career training and other important life skills.  The project 
would provide 50 of these young women, ages 18 to 21, with 
vocational training at certified institutions as well as life skills 
training to include problem-solving strategies, social 
responsibility, and personal health. These women would then be 
involved in teaching 120 adolescent girls in orphan care centers, 
ages 13 to 17, in a similar life skills training program. 
 
¶3. We believe the project would deliver a practical, positive impact 
to women most in need at a critical time. Recent reports of abuse at 
orphan care centers in Jordan have brought to light the need to 
provide adequate services and meaningful programs to these young 
people.  This project is in line with our mission priorities, 
hitting on numerous themes suggested by the S/GWI initiative, 
including women's economic opportunity, education, democratic and 
social empowerment, and addressing gender-based violence issues. In 
addition, the organization is well-regarded and has not benefited 
from any major USG funding; we also like the fact that the 
organization has factored in cost-sharing for overhead and salaries. 
Finally, the proposal itself is well-researched, thorough in its 
description and implementation strategies, and includes a reasonable 
and clear budget. 
 
¶4.  Following is the proposal from Al-Aman Fund: 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
Empowering Young Women: 
Life Skills and Vocational Training for Leadership, Health, and 
Personal Safety 
 
 
The Al-Aman Fund for the Future of Orphans will provide a pilot life 
skills and vocational training program for orphaned adolescent girls 
and young women to assist them in moving into adulthood with the 
skills, knowledge and self-confidence they need to insure their 
economic security, their health, and their safety from gender-based 
violence. 
 
The Problem 
----------- 
In Jordan, 28 care centers host around 1000 orphans, age 1 to 18. At 
the age of 18 they are required by law to leave the centers. They 
find themselves without a home, and perhaps more important, without 
the emotional and financial support needed for this critical step in 
life. For some the social, psychological and economic challenges are 
overwhelming. 
 
During adolescence there is extensive psychological growth as 
children adjust their personality to accommodate rapid physical and 
sexual development. These changes may cause unrest and confusion; 
moreover, girls who grow up in an orphan care center have a narrow 
range of life experiences.  This program will provide orphaned girls 
at care centers and just leaving care centers with the skills and 
knowledge that a mother normally passes to her daughter.  It will 
also provide vocational skills to assist them in living 
independently. 
 
Young women growing up in orphan care centers face double jeopardy 
to gender based violence, being poor and having limited family 
support. GBV can cause psychological as well as physical harm to 
women and girls and in some instances result in death. Through life 
skills training and counseling the young women will acquire a clear 
understanding of GBV and the social and legal supports available to 
them through government and NGOs. 
 
The transition from school to work is one of the hurdles of growing 
up.  For poor female orphans it presents a number of special 
challenges. As orphans they don't have the advantage of family 
networking and family connections.  Perhaps their most significant 
disadvantage, however, is their lack of parental role models to 
introduce them to the world of work. This life skills and vocational 
training program will assist them in working through some of those 
disadvantages and meet the challenges they face as they enter 
adulthood. 
 
 
The Program 
------------ 
 
Fifty young women will be provided a vocational training program in 
 
AMMAN 00000425  002 OF 004 
 
 
beauty care, hospitality management, dental manufacturing, nurse 
assistant, secretary, graphic design, or jewelry manufacturing. 
Counseling and current job market information will be provided to 
assist the women in deciding which program they wish to access. 
Women interested in university education are provided for in a 
different Al-Aman Fund program. 
 
The young women will also participate in a life skills training 
program.  The program will address: 
--Identifying personal strengths and interests 
--Building self confidence and self esteem 
--Keeping healthy - physically, emotionally, sexually, socially 
--Dealing with gender-based violence 
--Empathy and interpersonal communication 
--Cooperation and teamwork 
-- Advocacy 
--Problem solving 
--Decision making 
--Household and financial management 
--Managing stress 
--Social responsibility 
 
In presentations on gender-based violence the program will put into 
words the often unspoken problem of GBV, thereby giving the 
participants a safe place to discuss and explore their worries and 
fears and develop strategies to be safer. All the topics will be 
explored through participatory workshops and field trips to maximize 
the participants' skill development and personal growth. 
 
Girls who grow up in an orphan care center have a narrow range of 
life experiences.  The life skills training program will include 
field trips and a summer holiday camp component to better prepare 
participants for the challenges of adulthood. 
 
A similar life skills training program will be provided to 120 
adolescent girls, age 13 to 17, who are still living in orphan care 
centers. It will be presented on Saturdays to allow 24 of the young 
women, 18 to 21, in the vocational training program to present the 
workshops. This arrangement will make the program more powerful for 
both the adolescent girls and the young women.  The adolescent girls 
will see role models they can readily relate to in their presenters. 
 The young women presenters will hone their leadership skills. 
 
Vocational Training Institutions 
-------------------------------- 
 
All certified by Government of Jordan Higher Education Council 
 
Jewelry manufacturing: University of Jordan/ Consultation Center (5 
women at $1,550 total per person for 7-month course) 
 
Secretary: Sight and Sound (5 women at $1,400 total per person for 
6-month course) 
 
Beauty Care: French Art & Beauty Academy (10 women at $1,380 per 
person for 6-month course) 
 
Hospitality Management: Jerusalem College (5 women at $2,400 total 
per person for 8-month course) 
 
Graphic Design: Jerusalem College (5 women at $1,415 total per 
person for 5-month course) 
 
*Dental manufacturing: Al Balq'a University (5 women at $1,400 total 
per person for 24-month course) 
 
*Nurse assistant: Red Cross / Jordan (15 women at $1,500 total per 
person for 18-month course) 
 
Total Cost    $69,625 
 
*Employment market research shows these two fields being in highest 
demand in Jordan. 
 
 
Timeline 
--------- 
 
Duration of Program: 16 months 
 
April, 2010 - Hire coordinator, workshop development consultant, and 
contract workshop facilitators 
 
May, 2010 - Prepare life skills workshop materials, orientation for 
facilitators, develop KPI measurement and other evaluation 
instruments 
 
June 2010 - Deliver life skills workshop to women 18 to 21 
 
July 2010 - Deliver life skills workshop to women 18 to 21 
Enroll women in vocational training programs 
 
AMMAN 00000425  003 OF 004 
 
 
 
August 2010 - Deliver life skills workshop to women 18 to 21 
 
September 2010 - Women 18 to 21 in vocational training 
Training for women who will be presenting life skills workshops to 
adolescents 
 
October to December 2010 - Women 18 to 21 in vocational training 
Deliver life skills workshop to adolescents 13 to 17 - First cohort 
 
January to March 2011 - Women 18 to 21 in vocational training 
Deliver life skills workshop to adolescents 13 to 17 - Second 
Cohort 
 
April 2011 - Women 18 to 21 in vocational training 
Preliminary Evaluation 
 
May to July 2011 - Women 18 to 21 in vocational training 
 
August 2011 - Initial program evaluation 
 
August 2013 - Evaluation focus group to measure impact 
 
 
Evaluation Plan 
--------------- 
 
The program will be evaluated first for immediate effect and later 
for medium term impact.  Participants will be administered a written 
pretest as they enter the program to ascertain base line data on 
both their cognitive knowledge of the material to be covered in the 
life skills program and their feelings about themselves and their 
future place in society as they enter the adult world.  The same 
instrument will be used at the completion of the program to measure 
its immediate effect. 
 
At the end of a year and again at the end of three years a sample of 
participants will be invited to participate in a focus group to 
discuss the impact of the program on their lives. This will provide 
information valuable for planning future programs to meet the needs 
of this population. 
 
 
Anticipated Outcomes and Performance Measures 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
We anticipate that at the completion of the life skills training 80% 
of the participants will 
--demonstrate more clearly defined vocational goals, 
--demonstrate more knowledge about community resources for dealing 
with gender based violence, 
--demonstrate more knowledge about sexual health, and 
--express confidence in their economic future. 
We anticipate that a year after completing the vocational training 
program 70% of the women will have employment in the area they 
trained for. 
 
 
Sustainability 
--------------- 
 
This is a pilot program.  After completion of the first 12 months of 
activities we will have enough experience and data to demonstrate 
the program's viability and value so that funds for continuation can 
be raised from the Government of Jordan, the international 
community, NGOs, or individual and corporate donors. 
 
 
Al-Aman Fund Capacity 
--------------------- 
 
The Al-Aman Fund for the Future of Orphans was established in 2006 
by Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah as an independent 
non-governmental organization registered under the Ministry of 
Social Development in order to provide orphaned youth with a better 
future.  Its mission is to equip orphaned youth with the education 
and skills necessary to become self-reliant members of society by 
operating relevant and effective support schemes responsive to their 
needs. 
 
The Board of Trustees, headed by Her Majesty Queen Rania 
Al-Abdullah, includes HE Governor of Central Bank, HE Minister of 
Social Development, HE Chief Islamic Justice / Imam of the Hashemite 
Court, and HE Minister of Finance, in addition to other influential 
members from the private and public sectors. 
 
The Fund targets orphaned youth who have resided in orphan care 
centers for part of or all their childhood, as well as orphans 
supported by orphan support organizations who live in poverty with a 
guardian or an immediate relative and are between the ages of 18 and 
¶21. At the end of 2009, the total number of orphans who received 
 
AMMAN 00000425  004 OF 004 
 
 
support from Al-Aman Fund reached 1000, out of which 80% were women. 
The Fund aims to raise the number of beneficiaries to 1200 in 2010. 
 
 
The Funds' support is extended in the form of educational 
scholarships, financial support to secure safe and decent living, 
specialized subject training, vocational training, academic and 
psychosocial counseling, and internships and job placements. 
 
The Empowering Young Women program will be implemented by a team of 
5 social workers, all experts in social and psychological counseling 
for orphans.  The project manager holds an MSc in psychology and has 
8 years experience in managing social development programs. 
 
 
Program Impact 
-------------- 
 
For the participants the program will increase their chances of 
happy fruitful lives.  For the Al-Aman Fund for the Future of 
Orphans the program broaden our repertoire of interventions. 
Ultimately, this will strengthen society, not only for orphans, but 
for all citizens of Jordan. 
 
 
Budget 
------- 
 
United States S/GWI funds US $ 
 
Life skills workshops (50 women 18 to 21) 
--Facilitator fee  (24 workshops x 3 groups @ $70 = 5,040) 
--Facilitator travel expense (24 workshops x 3 groups @ $20 = 
2,400) 
--Materials and refreshments ($3 per participants per meeting = 
3,600) 
 
Life skills workshops (120 girls 13 to 17) 
--Facilitator travel expense (30 workshops x 8 groups @ $20 = 
4,800) 
--Materials and refreshments ($3 per participants per meeting = 
8,640) 
--Field trip expenses (11 groups @ $200 = 2,200) 
--Vocational training  (69,625) 
--Evaluation contract consultant (2,000) 
Total = $98,305 
 
Al-Aman Fund contribution 
--Project coordination ($700/month x 16 months = 11,200) 
--Project manager (10% time = 2,200) 
--Financial manager (10% time = 2,200) 
--Staff travel expenses to Irbid (1,500) 
--Staff office and group meeting space (2,000) 
--Subsistence allowance for women 18-21 during training (580 months 
@ $35 = 20,300) 
--Camps (1,600) 
Total = 41,000 
 
 
BEECROFT