Social impact assessment
Funding: Christoffel Blindenmission (cbm)
Research Institution: Technical University of Munich | Sociology of Diversity
Project Management:
Sociology of Diversity Chair
Prof. Dr. Elisabeth Wacker
Uptown München-Campus D
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 60/62
80992 München
Tel.: +49 (89) 289 - 24460
Fax: +49 (89) 289 - 24463
E-Mail: elisabeth.wacker(at)tum.de
Cooperation with:
Pwani University, Kilifi (Kenya)
Project Management at Pwani University:
Prof. Dr. Halimu Shauri
Department of Social Sciences
Pwani University Kilifi, Kenia
Duration: 2014-2015
Final Report: expected in December 2015
Project Collaborator: Yvonne Kuhnke, M.A.
Project Background:
Worldwide, people with disabilities face a number of challenges when it comes to obtaining adequate training in order to find a job and earn their living. In Kenya, very little is known about the current situation of youths and young adults with disabilities with regard to their transition into the world of work and related challenges. How exactly youths and young adults earn their living, how they benefit from livelihood promotion programmes and which (broader) benefits and opportunities have been generated by support programmes, remains unclear. Hence, the project follows an explorative approach in order to gain more evidence and knowledge about these issues.
Aims:
During the first part of the project (until March 2015), the research team aims to assess which impact livelihood development programmes have on the situation of youths and young adults with disabilities and other disadvantaged groups. Therefore, a participatory inclusive instrument for Social Impact Assessment (SIA) will be developed and field-tested in a study tracing the impact of livelihood development programmes run by two organisations in the Kenyan Coastal Region.
‘Inclusive’ means that the tool has to take into consideration the perspectives and needs of persons with disabilities and other vulnerable and marginalised groups. ‘Participatory’ means that it involves relevant target groups and stakeholders in the identification of those social outcomes that are relevant to them. Moreover, information will be gathered on the conditions of life experienced by persons with disabilities in Kenya as well as on their transitions into work and employment:
How exactly do youths and young adults earn their living? How do they benefit from livelihood development programmes – if they have (had) access to them? If not, what are barriers to access these programs?
What is the outcome of projects in the area of livelihood development on the individual, family, community and society levels?
Which contextual factors have an influence on the social outcome?
During the second part of the project (April – September 2015), the team will elaborate a tool based on the Social Return on Investment (SROI) approach for an “input-outcome analysis”. This tool will incorporate the SIA instrument developed during the first part of the project. It will again be tested in cooperation with the two organisations offering livelihood development programmes. Questions related to SROI as well as to the areas of vocational education and livelihood promotion for persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups will have to be addressed:
- How can the SROI approach be applied to the area of livelihood development in the Kenyan context?
- How can all stakeholders be involved when weighting and monetising the broader value created by livelihood promotion programmes?
- How (far) can social outcomes of projects in the area of livelihood development be measured in monetary terms (SROI) on the individual, family, community and society levels? At which stage should qualitative data be included to illustrate the (broader) value?
- How can less tangible factors, such as the impact of policies and legislation on the social outcome be captured adequately?
Thus, the SIA and SROI tools represent an important outcome of this project since they can then be used as general for the area of livelihood development.
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