Social Protection and Skills Development Project

The development objective of Social Protection and Skills Development Project for São Tomé and Príncipe (STP) is to support the development of an effective national safety net system for poor households and inclusive and labor market relevant skills development programs. This project has four components. 1) The first component, Institutional and Capacity Strengthening, aims to strengthen the capacity of ministerial staff and institutions responsible for activities in the social protection and skills development sectors. It has the following subcomponents: (i) Building permanent delivery systems to implement social protection programs; and (ii) Strengthening governance and institutional capacity in the skills development sector. 2) The second component, Vulnerable Families Program Conditional Cash Transfer, aims to increase income and consumption of poor households participating in the Vulnerable Families Program (VFP) in STP, through the provision of regular cash transfers and accompanying measures including a PEP and skills training opportunities under the project. It has the following subcomponents: (i) Conditional Cash Transfer VFP; and (ii) Skills Training Opportunities Targeted to VFP Beneficiaries. 3) The third component, Employability of TVET graduates and youth, aims to support the development and delivery of quality training programs in STP, with a specific emphasis on skills development needs in the Tourism sector and developing entrepreneurial skills. It has the following subcomponents: (i) Establishing a National Hospitality and Tourism School; and (ii) Building entrepreneurial skills among secondary school students in STP. 4) The fourth component, Project Implementation Support, aims to directly finance the costs associated with the fiduciary management of the project and the staff required to oversee coordination across ministries and project Monitoring and Evaluation (M and E).