With ILO’s assistance young entrepreneurs wash away unemployment challenges

Jigjiga, ETHIOPIA (ILO News) – In a city where youth unemployment remains a pressing challenge, young entrepreneurs are proving that innovation and determination can create sustainable job opportunities. 

Kader Ali, 20, and his partner Adani Omar, 21, exemplify this transformation. Being unsuccessful in the national university entry exam, they refused to let their circumstances define them. Instead, they built a thriving car wash business—creating not only employment for themselves but also contributing to their community’s economy. 

They benefitted from the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Partnership for Improving Prospects for Forcibly Displaced Persons and Host Communities (PROSPECTS) and Edukans Foundation supported Youth-to-Youth Fund (Y2YF), through a youth-led organization- Jigjiga Kefita Youth Coalition (JKYC). 

“I was an unemployed youth and it was not easy to find a job after failing the exam but JKYC gave me another chance,” Kader explains. 

We started the car wash business to create self-employment. In just five months, we realized that the demand for our services is huge and we see a big business opportunity for us. 

Kader Ali, a young entrepreneur from Ethiopia

JKYC, engages with youth from host and refugee communities to implement Youth to Youth fund (Y2YF) and promote youth employment. Through this initiative, Kader and Adani along with other 100 youth received entrepreneurship and Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) training. Selected business plans were further offered financial assistance, mentorship, and coaching through JKYC. 

© ILO/Zelalem Alemenew Desta

Kader complimented, “The training provided before we started our business gave us the confidence and skills to turn our idea into reality. That is how ‘Best Car Wash’ was born.” 

The financial assistance allowed the young entrepreneurs to purchase working tools and covered six months of their initial rents. 

“Now, after covering all operational costs, we each earn 5,000 Birr (US $ 40) per month,” Kader said proudly. 

We have become self-reliant and we now dream of expanding our business by opening more branches.

Kader Ali, a young entrepreneur from Ethiopia

The success of “Best Car Wash” underlines the importance of investing in youth led initiatives. Hassen Abshir, Executive Director of Jigjiga Kefita Youth Coalition, explained, "The Youth-to-Youth Fund has allowed us to design and implement employment programmes empowering young people to find their own solutions. Traditionally, youth is attracted more towards jobs and to shift them towards entrepreneurial mindset was a challenge. We invested intensively in imparting entrepreneurship and leadership skills, which is now showing results.” 

Beyond entrepreneurship, JKYC engages in advocacy, volunteer work, and social awareness campaigns to create long term impact on youth development in Ethiopia. 

Stephen Opio, Chief Technical Advisor of ILO PROSPECTS in Ethiopia and Sudan, said "The ILO is committed to empower youth in Ethiopia with skills and employment. Our initiatives like Youth-to-Youth fund, training materials and resources are designed to promote entrepreneurship. In areas with limited job opportunities and higher unemployment, entrepreneurship can create sustainable sources of livelihood. Moreover, it generates jobs for locals." 

Marta Tsehay, National Programme Officer at the ILO, added, "We believe that working with youth led organizations like JKYC and building their capacity in entrepreneurship training will create lasting impacts for the youth in this region and offers meaningful youth engagement opportunities. With the organization’s strong youth network and better understanding of young person’s needs, they are able to drive youth led solutions apt for the local context.” 

The story of Kader and Adani is one of the many successful enterprises supported by ILO’s PROSPECTS programme in Jigjiga, Somali region in Ethiopia. The Partnership, supported by the Government of the Netherlands, works to provide quality education and training, decent work and livelihood opportunities, protection services and critical infrastructure for refugees and their host communities. 

About Y2YF 

The ILO Y2YF is part of the Netherlands-supported PROSPECTS programme. It is a youth employment model of the ILO that provides a competitive grant scheme designed to support youth-led organizations with funding, capacity building and direct technical assistance.   

The ILO PROSPECTS programme, through Edukans Foundation Ethiopia, is supporting ten youth-led organizations, selected through a competitive process, to implement innovative entrepreneurship programs to promote decent employment for youth.   

These organizations received funding from the ILO Y2YF to implement innovative entrepreneurship projects that support 1,000 young people to start and improve their business to promote decent employment for youth projects.