We aimed at increasing the opportunities and benefits for the growing workforce of older workers because the retirement age is increasing to 65, and with the significant impact of COVID-19 on jobs at that time, where millions of people lost their employment, older workers faced the risk of not being able to secure new jobs before retirement or maintaining their current employment. The primary goal was to improve the employability of individuals aged 55 and above who are either unemployed and struggling to re-enter the job market, on the brink of the job market, or interested in pursuing self-employment or starting a business. We aimed to motivate and empower them to acquire new soft skills and strategies necessary to enhance their prospects of finding new employment or exploring entrepreneurial opportunities. Another objective was to strengthen the organizational capacity of our partners by establishing a small transnational cooperation partnership that addresses common needs and priorities in the field of adult education. This involved training trainers to educate and provide guidance/mentorship to adults aged 55 +, as well as sharing experiences and best practices to enhance partner sustainability and educator skills.
Before applying both partner organizations realized they had encountered similar challenges. They faced difficulties in addressing the needs of their adult learners aged 55+. There was a pressing need for their educators, trainers, and mentors to enhance their competencies and adapt to digitalization. Since 2020, Elit-S had witnessed a significant number of its students discontinuing their studies due to the constantly changing COVID-related restrictions which imposed limitations on face-to-face classes, including restrictions on the number of people allowed in a room and the requirement for physical distancing. Additionally, health certificates and new prerequisites for attending indoor classes made it challenging for a small learning center to comply and caused financial hardship. Our goal was to meet the increasing demand by offering employability skills courses and entrepreneurship courses to our adult learners. The second partner Gondomar Municipality had started a large scale informal education initiative for adult leaners and was in the capacity to transfer their precious experience. Additionally, the post-COVID-19 era brought about a demand for social enterprises and a need to connect social entrepreneurs with mentors.