Mid-term Evaluation Report for LISEC-Green: An OECD-DAC Evaluation of the Leather Initiative for Sustainable Employment and Job Creation (LISEC) Green Jobs Project

Overview

Internal mid-term evaluation of the EU-funded EUR 6 million LISEC Green Jobs project in Modjo and nearby communities, Oromia Region, Ethiopia. The project is implemented by People in Need (lead), Solidaridad and the International Rescue Committee. It aims to create green jobs in the leather sector, improve tannery waste management and readiness for Leather Working Group certification, strengthen TVET colleges and job-linkage institutions, and improve social cohesion, gender equality and GBV services. The evaluation used the OECD-DAC criteria of relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability to improve the project for its remaining period, and complemented an EU ROM review and a midline survey.

Key findings

• Relevance was rated very satisfactory: the project addresses tannery pollution, community-tannery tensions and workplace discrimination and harassment. However, the 4-day Youth Leadership Programme training lacked employability content such as CV writing, interviews and online job search.
• Existing MSMEs that received business training and improved machines reported production increases of 50% to 300% among those interviewed, and the report estimates 50-75% more manufacturing efficiency with better product quality.
• Effectiveness was rated averagely satisfactory. New MSMEs trained at TVET colleges were judged unlikely to thrive: all participants interviewed preferred self-employment because tannery wages are low, but a 3-month course plus a one-month internship was considered insufficient.
• The government's 70/20/10 forex surrender policy restricted tanneries' access to foreign currency. At the time of the evaluation, 19 of Ethiopia's 34 tanneries had shut down and the rest operated at a maximum of 30% capacity.
• TVET participants received a monthly stipend of about ETB 2,000, as much as or more than typical tannery staff pay (ETB 1,500-2,000), which may distort incentives. Many recipients lived in the city rather than rural areas.
• Efficiency was rated unsatisfactory: the three partners' components ran with little synergy, coordination and communication were weak, the monitoring plan was not followed, and spending was low (Solidaridad's tannery work was significantly delayed; only IRC was on track).
• Sustainability was rated average: TVET colleges will keep the new leather curricula and LLPI staff are being trained to support tanneries, but no local institution can continue growing the VSLA and YLP groups, and One-Stop Shop capacity remains very low.

Recommendations

• Add employability content (CV preparation, interviews, online job search) to the 4-day youth training.
• Strengthen One-Stop Shops' ability to engage employers, analyse labour shortages and link job seekers to jobs; no employers were subscribed to the Modjo jobs web application.
• Address TVET capacity gaps (links to industrial internships, steady supply of training consumables) and add courses on CSR, solid waste management and circular economy.
• Identify a local institutional partner and build its capacity to form VSLA and YLP groups.
• Manage the project through a single road map led centrally by PIN, and treat gender (including GBV services and VSLAs) as cross-cutting for all beneficiary groups.
• Link MSMEs to supply chains of leather produced with circular economy practices, and give them finance options through MFIs, start-up funds or grants.
• Investigate whether extending shoemaking training to 5 months is technically needed or driven by the stipend.

Lessons learned

• Working with MSMEs that already show traction and viability is more successful than supporting start-ups, which need long-term technical support and funding that the project did not provide.
• Participatory, needs-based analysis at design stage made the project highly relevant to youth, women, communities, tanneries and the sector.
• Projects should build in room for policy advocacy, as macro policies such as forex surrender rules can undermine results even when a project has no advocacy component.

Methodology

Theory-based evaluation combining theory of change and contribution analysis against OECD-DAC criteria. Data came from document review (including the baseline, ROM report and midline data), key informant interviews and focus group discussions in Modjo and Addis Ababa, with findings rated using traffic-light colour codes. Sample size is not stated in the report beyond an annex listing about 21 KII and FGD participants.