Project profile — West Africa Governance and Economic Sustainability (WAGES) in Extractive Areas

• Guinea (30.00%)
• Ghana (35.00%)
• Burkina Faso (35.00%)

• Secondary Education: Vocational training (11330) (25.00%)
• Decentralisation and support to subnational government:
Decentralisation and support to subnational government (15112) (25.00%)
Democratic participation and civil society (15150) (20.00%)
• Industry: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) development (32130) (20.00%)
• Mineral Resources And Mining: Mineral/mining policy and administrative management (32210) (10.00%)

• Gender equality (significant objective)
• Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting) (significant objective)
• Participatory development and good governance (significant objective)
• Trade development (significant objective)
• Biodiversity (not targeted)
• Climate change mitigation (not targeted)
• Climate Change Adaptation (not targeted)
• Urban issues (not targeted)
• Desertification (not targeted)
• Children's issues (not targeted)
• Youth Issues (significant objective)
• Disability (not targeted)
• Indigenous Issues (not targeted)
• ICT as a tool for development (not targeted)

This project supports inclusive sustainable economic development and poverty reduction, with a focus on women and youth, as well as accountable governance in three mining regions: the Sahel Region in Burkina Faso, the Western Region in Ghana, and the Préfecture de Boké in Guinea. The project works with the private sector, local governments, chambers of mines and communities and aims to enable communities (especially women and youth) to maximise the socio-economic benefits from extractive industry operations. By identifying business opportunities for communities and strengthening local and national businesses, sustainable natural resource development is leveraged to the benefit of the broader economy, expanding the indirect and multiplier effects of resource extraction. Project activities include: (1) strengthening local skills training and employment services, focusing on helping women and youth acquire market-relevant skills; (2) conducting market assessments to identify ways to enhance procurement and supply linkages between the private sector and local businesses; and (3) supporting knowledge-sharing on natural resources management through existing regional organizations and platforms, such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Mining Vision.

The expected intermediate outcomes for this project include: (1) increased employment and income for community members, especially youth and women, in selected mining regions; (2) strengthened sub-national governments and local institutions to leverage opportunities arising from the extractives sector within selected mining regions; and (3) improved dialogue on local economic growth and governance strategies in mining regions both within the three target countries and across West Africa.

Results achieved as of March 2018 include: (1) the laws and norms of the mining sector were disseminated to 505 community leaders (62% women) to increase people’s awareness of their rights and potential opportunities; (2) 1,191 people in Burkina Faso, including 260 young people (22%) and 931 women (78%) received technical skills training on entrepreneurship, this created job opportunities for them; (3) 753 people, including 618 (82%) young people and 135 (18%) women were trained on entrepreneurship and market development, gender equality and environment sustainability in Guinea; and 60 young entrepreneurs including 30 women were trained on how to access finance and to develop new markets in Burkina Faso; (4) 797 of which 161 (20%) are young people and 636 are women (80%) were trained on entrepreneurship, market development, gender equality and environment sustainability in Ghana, this improved their skills and knowledge for independent workers; (5) 160 local or elected local government staff (including 31 women) were trained on planning and financial management, which allowed elected officials to contribute to planning and monitoring budgets; 6) 358 information kits were distributed to beneficiaries (local government authorities, communities, civil society organizations, the private sector, and women's and youth groups), which better informed beneficiaries about their roles and responsibilities in the community in Ghana, Burkina Faso and Guinea; (7) 155 people, including 56% women, were trained and technically supported in their economic initiatives; (8) 51 business links established between private sector buyers, mining companies, and businesses and co-operatives helped seize economic opportunities for communities bordering mining companies; (9) 500 young men and women were trained in entrepreneurship and business plan development strengthened their capacity to create business opportunities with mining companies; (10) 6 supported national forums in the 3 countries enabled the beneficiaries to expand their networks of partners and create new markets; and (11) 478 people, including 296 women (62%), reinforced their technical job search skills, which boosted their confidence in their job search.

• Proactive disclosure