Feasibility and Formative Evaluation of Integrated Services for NEET Youth in…

UNICEF Thailand is seeking a qualified institutional contractor to conduct an Evaluability Assessment and Formative Evaluation (EAFE) to generate timely evidence to strengthen the NEET model effectiveness prior to and during scale-up.

Thailand has piloted an integrated service delivery model for Youth Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) aimed at identifying, engaging, supporting and reintegrating vulnerable adolescents and youth into education, training, or employment pathways. The pilot was adapted from the EU Youth Guarantee scheme. Two pilot modalities have been implemented:

Both pilots emphasize mentorship and individualized support as critical mechanisms for youth retention and successful transitions. Building on early implementation experience, the Government of Thailand is currently scaling up the NEET model in ten (10) additional provinces, bringing the total number of provinces that are currently implementing the pilot to twelve (12), as Yala and Songkhla were dropped in 2026. The scale-up has started in Q1-2026 and expects initial results in Q2-2026. The scale-up draws primarily on existing public systems and volunteer outreach workers. UNICEF’s role is increasingly focused on evidence generation, policy advocacy, lessons learned documentation, and system strengthening – including capacity building of service providers – rather than financing or direct implementation.

Key differences between the SBP pilot and the scale-up provinces relate to both implementation modalities and context. In the SBP pilot, outreach workers/youth mentors are Labour Graduates who are government employees. In contrast, the 10 new scale-up provinces engage Labour Volunteers, who typically have lower educational qualifications and receive minimal compensation. Additional differences arise from contextual factors, including governance arrangements and geographical conditions.

Despite the existence of monitoring data, current M&E systems are insufficiently used and no