Workforce and Higher Access to Markets Activity
The goal of the USAID WHAM (Workforce and Higher Access to Markets) Activity is encouraging the creation of new jobs in export-oriented small and medium enterprises.
About us
USAID WHAM provides grants and technical support to export-oriented small and medium-sized enterprises in BiH from the wood processing, metal processing, textile and information and communications sectors. WHAM is funded by USAID, and implemented by IESC, in collaboration with ENOVA.
The USAID WHAM project began in June, 2017 and will end in June, 2022.
In the first three-year phase, the Activity has had a $1.65 million (USD) fund, which, among other things, aims to support 165 companies, recruit 1545 people, fund training for 585 people and achieve 43 certifications. In the second two-year phase, from June 2020 to June 2022, a $1 million (USD) fund is planned to support 110 new companies, create 840 new jobs, and train 1,400 people.
Request for Proposals
Public AnnouncementUSAID’s Workforce and Higher Access to Markets Activity (WHAM) invites eligible organizations to submit concept notes for grant funding as detailed below
Issuance Date: 14-July-2020
Closing Date: 7-September-2020
Total Potential Funding: USD 150,000
Estimated Number of Awards: 13
Maximum Award: USD 75,000WHAM published a Requests for Applications (RFAs) targeted to support training centers that provide training to companies in metal, wood, textile/footwear and ICT industries, aiming to expand capacity, reach more markets, and generate greater employment.
RFA published is focused to financially support the development of sector-specific workforce learning centers.
For full RFA visit http://www.whambih.org/.
If you would like more information about this public call, you can attend online webinar that we organize in effort to present the public call and answer your questions.
Webinar presentations are:Join webinar Thursday 23.7. at 10:00 A.M.
Join webinar Thursday 6.8. at 10:00 A.M.
If you would like for a member of the WHAM team to provide a presentation of this public call to you individually, please get in touch with us via our email whamgrants@iesc.org. A WHAM team member will contact you to arrange an individual presentation and answer any questions you may have.
Deadline for receiving Grant Applications is 6:00PM local time on September 7, 2020. The RFA will be closed earlier if all the potential funding is exhausted. We encourage interested organizations to submit their application as soon as possible.
Any questions about the application process please submit via email to whamgrants@iesc.org.
Download Links:
Request for Applications (RFA) WHAM-AID-168-LA-17-00011
Our results
Results to date according to last quarter's report
1743
New jobs
32%
Employees are women
164
Companies that have received our support
48
Certified companies
Our beneficiaries
Map with location of grantees
Our stories
Follow our results and events
STEP BY STEP JOBS COME TO BUGOJNO
Success story of the Bugojno company STEP
FROM TRAINEE TO PROFESSIONAL
The story of new workers at the BELT Banja Luka factory
Aida Musa, new employee Saraj-Komerc, Gornji Vakuf
I am grateful for the opportunity to educate myself and finally employ at age 49. It is very difficult in mine find any job for years, and even harder to find worthy work. Thanks to support training USAID WHAM project, I finally have a job, salary and financial security that made it easy and improved the quality of both my and my family's life. It's strong a nice feeling of being useful to the company and society. Happy alone and with working conditions and working environment in Saraj-Komerc.
Amil Domjanovic, mechanical engineer at the factory STEP, Sarajevo
Thanks to the education provided by the project USAID WHAM, I am now a Certified Engineer for welding, which is a prerequisite for improving the processproduction of the STEP factory. Even though I ended up machined college, i had no knowledge or certification to follow i manage production processes and procedures in in accordance with European standards. With the support of the project USAID WHAM the entire production process is up to a higher level, and STEP can compete participate in tenders in the international market.
Miro Lukić, Director Mandeks Molding Ltd., Laktashi
Our company is assisted by the USAID project WHAM realized design of tool design for injection, modular tooling, advanced ISO 9001 quality management standards i environmental standard ISO EN 14001, and trained employees in project related areas solutions. The USAID WHAM project team, in constant Contacting us has allowed us to quite easily we overcome all obstacles to realization. Increase export by 15% would not be possible without this kind USAID WHAM project support.
Contact us
This web site was made possible through support provided by the U.S. Agency for International Development. The opinions expressed herein are the sole responsibility of IESC and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.
