The Employment and Livelihood for Adolescents (ELA) programme combines livelihood and life-skills training with credit facilities to help improve the quality of life of rural adolescent girls and young women between the ages of 14 and 25. It was established as a means through which they could build a savings habit to allow them to be self-supporting in the future. The programme’s target group is varied, with preference given to graduates of BRAC Education Programme schools. ELA village organisations consists of 20 to 30 members who obtain credit in order to operate income generating activities either with the help of family members or on their own. The members invest their loans in tailoring, poultry, livestock, nursery, vegetable cultivation and other small businesses.