CONSULTING SERVICES
Stories for Development emerged from the work of Russell and Associates Consulting which, since 2012, has been offering governments, international development organizations, and NGOs consulting services in human development. This includes consultancies to improve the socio-economic condition of people through education, training, employment, and civic engagement.
We have conducted qualitative and quantitative data collection activities such as literature reviews, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and surveys, using internationally recognized ethical practices. We use the most rigorous research and evaluation techniques to determine what policies and programs work, for whom, why, and the costs and benefits to governments, society, and individuals.
We can assemble the most qualified team from our network of professionals to assist with your consulting needs.
“We are all experts in our own little niches.” – Alex Trebek
Among our areas of expertise:
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Education Reform: Higher levels of education can lead to higher earnings, better health, stable employment, and community and individual well-being. Lessons can be learned from countries with modern education regimes that have travelled successful paths to education reform – Singapore, Finland, Ontario (Canada), and Finland. Policies to reform education must have concrete action plans and monitoring and evaluation systems to help drive continuous improvement. See presentation delivered at the Commonwealth Education Conference in Grenada in 2019 on education reform in the Caribbean.
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Technical and vocational education and training (TVET): Education and training systems of the 21st century ensure that learners have access to both academic learning and competency-based training to fill a range of labour market needs. Recognition of the duality of academic and skills training is the best way to find balance between the needs and interests of the individual learner and those of the labour market.
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Youth Development: Youth development remains one of the pressing policy challenges facing countries worldwide. Many countries and international organisations have developed policies to help youth succeed in the mainstream education system, and to tackle low labour market participation, inadequate skills, and weak civic engagement. The result is youth who can make a smooth transition from school to work, especially those who are Not in Education Employment or Training (NEET).
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Youth entrepreneurship: Entrepreneurship can play an important role in economies with high unemployment and low skills. Young entrepreneurs can help address challenges with a growing youth population that lacks meaningful opportunities for employment, especially given a slowing global economy that needs new sources of growth. Supporting under-served young entrepreneurs through financial and non-financial supports is central to driving development for this unique cohort of entrepreneurs.
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Labour market development: Without functional labour markets even the best education and training system will result in slow economic growth, and barriers to innovation and creativity. Governments need to adopt policies that lead to diversified, dynamic, and competitive labour markets capable of absorbing an educated labour force. A functional labour market is one that uses labour laws and regulations or labour market policies and practices to create sufficient and decent jobs, pay competitive wages, and provide workers with opportunities to upskill.
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Labour migration: The migration of people continues to be a feature of today’s global labour market. Migrant workers have an immense impact on host and receiving countries. There are a range of policy tools used to impede or favour migrant workers which have intended and unintended consequences. For example, the flow of trafficked people are often associated with labour migration and it has expanded exponentially since the early 2000s. The most commonly cited estimates indicate that as many as 2 million people are trafficked internationally each year.
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