Youth Represent DRC, CERC’s Youth Excel project in Kinshasa, funded by USAID through IREX: a network of youth organisations doing research, a Data Summit and 45 young people supported back into work.
Young people as researchers, innovators and leaders of change in Kinshasa.
youth-led and youth-serving organisations in the Kinshasa ICON
organisations in a joint Quick Impact Project
unemployed and underrepresented young people supported towards socio-economic reintegration
received from IREX in all: US$32,506.71 in 2021, US$51,529.10 in 2022 and US$6,746.05 in 2023
Youth Excel helped young people in Kinshasa produce the evidence that should guide the programmes and policies that affect them.
This report presents Youth Represent DRC, the Youth Excel project implemented in Kinshasa by the Centre de Recherche sur l’Anti-Corruption (CERC), with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through IREX and technical support from Search for Common Ground (SFCG). It covers the activities and results of 2022 and the project’s expenditure at 31 December 2022, under sub-agreement FY22-YOUTH_EXCEL-CERC-01 (funds received: US$90,781.86 in all – US$32,506.71 in 2021, US$51,529.10 in 2022 and the final US$6,746.05 in February 2023).
In 2022, the network of 10 youth-led and youth-serving organisations formed by CERC presented its research at a Data Summit in Kinshasa in August. Nine of these organisations then joined forces in a Quick Impact Project for the socio-economic reintegration of 45 unemployed and underrepresented young people.
IREX fully approved CERC’s November 2022 report and approved the December 2022 report. The final disbursement of US$6,746.05 was scheduled for payment on 2 February 2023, and a one-month no-cost extension carried the project through 28 February 2023.
Youth Excel is a global initiative funded by USAID and led by IREX. It strengthens youth leadership by supporting youth-led and youth-serving organisations to generate evidence through implementation research, improve development programmes using data, and foster dialogue between young people and decision-makers. CERC was selected by IREX, together with its consortium partners, to implement the project in the DRC as Youth Represent DRC.
Implementation research is a mixed-methods approach to collecting data during programme implementation in order to improve it. It helps teams learn how to adapt tested programmes to new contexts, scale up, achieve cost-effectiveness and strengthen impact.
The work built on the issue-based collaborative network (ICON) formed in 2021: 10 youth-led and youth-serving organisations in Kinshasa, including one LGBTQI-led organisation and two organisations led by people living with disabilities. Trained by CERC in implementation research and in gender equality and social inclusion, the young members of the network designed and carried out research on how to include underrepresented and marginalised young people in education and workforce development programmes, and compiled their findings in final knowledge products.
In August 2022, CERC, in partnership with IREX and SFCG, held the ICONs Data Summit in Kinshasa. The summit was part of the Youth Excel ICONs, a youth participatory research project in Kinshasa and North Kivu that aimed to improve the ability of underrepresented youth to sustain positive livelihood outcomes and to support them in advancing development agendas.
Under the theme “Increasing inclusion of underrepresented and marginalised young people in education and in workforce development programmes”, the ICON participants presented their final knowledge products to a diverse range of stakeholders.
Building on their research, 9 organisations trained under the ICON project joined forces to design and implement a joint Quick Impact Project (QIP), “Socio-Economic Reintegration of 45 Unemployed and Underrepresented Youth in Kinshasa”.
The project offered the 45 young people vocational training, capacity-building workshops, mentoring and access to resources to look for a job or start a business. Group activities and networking helped them build a supportive community and exchange ideas and experiences.
In December 2022, CERC delivered the ICON trainings of Activity 4. The micro-grants for income-generating activities, the printing of the training participation certificates and the monitoring and evaluation visits were planned for the following weeks, pending the validation of the November report.
Results in 2022
CERC thanks USAID and IREX for their trust and support, Search for Common Ground for its technical support, and the youth-led and youth-serving organisations of the Kinshasa ICON and the young people who took part in the project, as researchers, innovators and leaders of change.
The figures below are those of CERC’s Monthly Financial Report and Cash Advance Form for 1–31 December 2022, under sub-agreement FY22-YOUTH_EXCEL-CERC-01, as approved by IREX. Amounts are in US dollars.
| Budget category | Approved budget | Expenditure December 2022 | Cumulative expenditure | Budget variance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | 31,636.66 | 2,286.39 | 34,551.13 | −2,914.47 |
| Fringe benefits | 19,860.01 | 1,586.16 | 23,578.01 | −3,718.00 |
| Travel | 3,480.00 | 200.00 | 1,806.65 | 1,673.35 |
| Equipment | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Supplies | 900.00 | 0.00 | 910.00 | −10.00 |
| Contractual | 10,000.00 | 0.00 | 3,870.00 | 6,130.00 |
| Other direct costs (ODC) | 23,150.52 | 3,189.00 | 20,124.73 | 3,025.79 |
| Subtotal direct costs | 89,027.19 | 7,261.55 | 84,840.52 | 4,186.67 |
| Indirect costs | 8,500.72 | 651.16 | 7,876.07 | 624.65 |
| Total expenses | 97,527.91 | 7,912.71 | 92,716.59 | 4,811.33 |
The expenditure to December 2021 is that of 2021 (2020–2021 report, note 2); the 2022 expenditure is the cumulative expenditure to 31 December 2022 less 2021.
| Budget category | 2021 US$ | 2022 US$ | Cumulative to 31/12/2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salaries and fringe benefits (labor and fringe) | 18,150.72 | 39,978.42 | 58,129.14 |
| Travel | 392.00 | 1,414.65 | 1,806.65 |
| Supplies | 785.00 | 125.00 | 910.00 |
| Contractual | – | 3,870.00 | 3,870.00 |
| Other direct costs (ODC) | 2,410.00 | 17,714.73 | 20,124.73 |
| Indirect costs | 2,023.78 | 5,852.29 | 7,876.07 |
| Total expenditure | 23,761.50 | 68,955.09 | 92,716.59 |
| Funds received from IREX | 32,506.71 | 51,529.10 | 84,035.81 |
Funds received: US$32,506.71 in 2021 and US$51,529.10 in 2022; the final disbursement, US$6,746.05, was received in February 2023 – US$90,781.86 in all.
| Budget category | Cumulative advances to date | Cash available | Projected expenses | Advance requested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | 32,156.01 | −2,395.12 | 0.00 | 2,395.12 |
| Fringe benefits | 21,926.93 | −1,651.08 | 0.00 | 1,651.08 |
| Travel | 1,406.65 | −400.00 | 531.77 | 931.77 |
| Equipment | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Supplies | 910.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Contractual | 6,000.00 | 2,130.00 | 3,330.00 | 1,200.00 |
| Other direct costs (ODC) | 20,562.73 | 438.00 | 512.16 | 74.16 |
| Subtotal direct costs | 82,962.32 | −1,878.20 | 4,373.93 | 6,252.13 |
| Indirect costs | 7,819.54 | −56.53 | 437.39 | 493.92 |
| Total expenses | 90,781.86 | −1,934.73 | 4,811.32 | 6,746.05 |
The advance requested, US$6,746.05, was the final disbursement of the sub-agreement.
| Expense | Category | US$ |
|---|---|---|
| Salaries of the project staff | Labor | 2,286.39 |
| Statutory contributions, housing, medical care and transport of the project staff | Fringe benefits | 1,586.16 |
| Rent contribution, November 2022 | ODC | 300.00 |
| Office internet connection, November | ODC | 89.00 |
| Per diem, field staff | Travel | 200.00 |
| Activity 4 ICON – trainings | ODC | 2,800.00 |
| Subtotal direct costs | 7,261.55 | |
| Indirect costs | 651.16 | |
| Total, December 2022 | 7,912.71 |
Micro-grants for income-generating activities (Activity 4 ICON), per diem, monitoring and evaluation, and the printing of training participation certificates were pending the validation of the November report.
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