Bezawit is a 23-year-old young woman and a graduate of Nefas Silk Polytechnic College in secretary science level three. She was also a beneficiary of a LIWAY supported intervention titled “Sustainable TVET Graduate Employment Programme” (STGEP).

STGEP aims to ensure soft skills training is integrated in the TVET curriculum and employability of graduates is increased. It involves the customisation of training materials and training of trainers (ToT), as well as development of an employer network and internship/job placement of TVET graduates.

Before LIWAY support, Bezawit was unemployed. When she heard about the Graduate Employment Programme that Nefas Silk Polytechnique College was offering in partnership with Kepler and LIWAY, she thought it would benefit her and she registered for the programme. As part of the programme, she received soft skills and employability focused training, which helped her identify new job opportunities and secure a job. She now works as a Secretary in the Human Resource Department at Zenbaba Hospital where she earns 3,100 ETB (59 USD) per month.

Reflecting on her experience in the programme, she was impressed by the teaching methodology used in the training, especially the teamwork among trainees, and the friendly relationship with trainers. Working with other peers and the collaboration with trainers helped her and her colleagues learn from each other and apply the skills through the support from trainers. Through a lot of practice, she improved her professional writing skills, especially developing professional documents and writing professional emails.

In her current job, Bezawit applies several of the different skills developed in the training, especially goal setting, task prioritisation, and time management. Her goal setting and prioritisation skills help her create weekly schedules and ensure that she follows-up on the schedule as planned. In addition, she uses different time management techniques learned in the training to manage different tasks and deliver on time.

In the coming five years, Bezawit aspires to enrol in a graduate degree programme to get more skills and to get a promotion at her workplace in the field of Human Resources.