In 2021, the Rumbo Joven Program, one of the most significant programs for our Foundation, completed seven years of implementation. More than 1,500 young people have benefited since it began, of which 60% have found formal employment within three months of completing their educational process.
Leonardo Fabio Navarro, Project Coordinator, highlights that 2021 was a very good year characterized by the return to on-site work, learning from the social crisis and the generation of new alliances that have strengthened Rumbo Joven.
The most significant achievements:
- The alliance with the “Compromiso Valle” project which saw in Rumbo Joven a commitment to impact the youth of the region with concrete results that demonstrate its effectiveness. This alliance made it possible to impact more than 150 participants who completed their training process in November.
- A low dropout rate of 15% per year, which was achieved thanks to the return to classroom attendance and the constant monitoring of each participant to ensure their continuity in the program.
- A historical employability figure of 68% after the pandemic and the challenges brought by virtual learning, surpassing the goal set at the beginning of the year. This was possible thanks to the work done in the psychosocial and labor management areas, in addition to the willingness of local businesses to hire graduates of the Program.
Main challenges we faced in 2021
- The return to the classroom created new dynamics, which at the beginning were received with surprise, but little by little became normalized.
- Facing the social crisis and the challenges derived from this situation, which made the young participants feel the need to receive political and civic responsibility training which enlightened them as Colombian citizens.
The main challenges we will face in 2022
- Expanding the program’s coverage to reach more young people. Currently donors who have shown interest in continuing to support this program are being approached.
- Generating new strategies to address the mental health of the young participants is a need that has been identified and will be managed as a priority.
- Attract more local businesses to hire graduates of this program, listen to their needs and train participants according to the profiles they are looking for.