WorldSkills is the largest vocational skills competition in the world. It is aimed at raising interest for vocational training, showcasing excellence in some 50 different domains as diverse as pastry making, painting, graphic design etcetera.

This year WorldSkills takes place in Abu Dhabi from 14 to 19 October; young people from 75 countries will take part in the skills competition. For the Palestinian youth it is the first time they have the opportunity to participate. Sobheya Abumusallam is a 21-year old graphic designer from Nablus. She won the silver medal at the first PalestineSkills National Competition. Ibraheem Qawasma is a 20-year old graphic designer from Hebron. Ibraheem won the gold medal at the first PalestineSkills National Competition.

As part of their preparation for the WorldSkills competition, Belgian experts are mentoring Sobheya and Ibraheem and the other members of the Palestinian graphic design delegation.

"In the past, it wasn’t considered appropriate for Palestinian women to become graphic designers, but slowly this mentality is changing, and international competitions like WorldSkills strengthen this process," says Sobheya. 

Youth unemployment is very high in Palestine. Vocational training has proven to be one of the most successful ways of tackling this issue. That is why the Belgian cooperation focuses its efforts on support to technical and vocational education and training centres.

As part of this cooperation, the Palestinian delegation of students and experts in graphic design that will compete in Abu Dhabi, is travelling to Belgium from 17 to 31 March. Recognising the importance of this cooperation, the Palestinian representation in Belgium has invited the students and the local experts to discuss this issue. During their time in Belgium, they will meet with representatives of Belgian training centres (Syntra and IFAPME).

They will also compete in the Startech’s Days, the Belgian national WorldSkills competition, taking place in Brussels on 20-21 March, as a preparation for the international WorldSkills competition later this year in Abu Dhabi. Afterwards (22-31 March) they will get a tailor-made training from the Belgian expert from the Centre de competence Forem Cepegra in Charleroi.