Job Creation in Ethiopia - Impact Evaluation Survey, 2016-2020

The impact evaluation estimates the impact of supporting and facilitating the job application process for young women seeking a production line position at three factories in the Bole Lemi Industrial Park in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia). These firms were all foreign-owned and produced finished garments for export. They also had large-scale hiring plans for the study duration. Each firm agreed to interview the applicants the research team randomized into the study sample. Given that all firms were only considering female applicants, the study sample comprises only women.

The research team advertised for the factory positions and directed interested applicants to a local sub-district (woreda) administration office for registration. The factory positions were advertised using various methods, including posting advertisements in public places, passing out flyers in high-traffic areas of the city, coordinating with youth associations and utilizing other forms of community mobilization. Unemployed individuals who have registered with their local woreda were also contacted directly by a professional HR consultant.

During the recruitment process, those individuals identified as potential candidates were told to bring their identification and qualification documents to the nearest screening center which was set up in several woreda offices across three sub-cities of Addis Ababa. These screening centers were staffed by trained enumerators every day of the working week from 9am-3pm.

During the scheduled opening hours, enumerators reviewed the documentation of the interested applicants who visited the screening centers and determined their eligibility for the advertised positions. Applicants with incomplete documentation, for example, those who did not have personal identification cards or those who did not meet any of the firms’ eligibility criteria (i.e. applicants fell outside the targeted age range or were unable to provide proof of the required education) were screened out from the study.

Eligible individuals received an invitation to interview with an Industrial Park firm and were provided transportation to the factory for the interview. All applicants who met the eligibility criteria and had proper documentation to prove their eligibility were selected into the sample and asked to stay for the baseline survey. Study participants were then randomized into treatment and control, with two-thirds of applicants in the treatment group and one-third in the control group using a public lottery method. Once randomized, the treatment applicants were assigned a specific firm to interview with. Following the interview, the firms decided whether to make a job offer to the applicants and initiate any hiring procedures for the individuals who they wanted to hire.