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Key aspects of a sustainable regeneration process
Eva MORRE | 05/12/2016
All over the world, people are migrating from the rural areas towards the cities. Economic reasons are often the base for this migration, but the city also attracts people for its social and cultural life. Also in Palestine people move out from the rural areas towards the bigger cities, leaving the often historic valuable centers abandoned. Most residents still living in the historic centers are poor. They are often tenants, perceived by the general public as those who don’t have the means to move to modern cities or urban extensions, reinforcing the idea that historic centers and people living in them are backward. The Regeneration of Historic Centers (RHC) program aims to change this perception and to bring life back to these historic centers by focusing on their social, cultural and economic development. Four key aspects distinguish the approach of the RHC program from other rehabilitation programs. The regeneration program goes beyond rehabilitation. Reviving, revitalizing, regenerating the historic centers needs more than stones and mortar. It is not by rehabilitating the historic buildings that people will be attracted to live or visit the historic center. When looking for a place to live, people are looking for affordable housing, job opportunities, social interaction, good public services, etc. A regeneration project takes into account all of those dimensions. Regeneration needs people. The presence of people (inhabitants) is crucial for an effective regeneration. Without people to use the rehabilitated spaces (buildings and open spaces), each and every regeneration project is doomed to fail. A good balance between the rehabilitation of historic buildings for socio-cultural or socio-economic use and the rehabilitation for housing purposes is as such fundamental. Regeneration projects don’t follow a linear trace, but are rather a multi-actor and multi-dimensional process that are characterized by having different linked processes running in parallel. While processes at the national level initiate policy making processes and encourage the development of laws and by-laws, processes at the local level focus on capacity building of the municipal staff to strengthen their heritage management skills. At the same time, participation from the community is ensured through community envisioning, memory mapping, community activation initiatives, etc. at different stages of the program. Meanwhile, socio-economic, spatial, and architectural analysis, pre-feasibility studies and business models are prepared to serve as a base for the rehabilitation designs. In a final stage, rehabilitation projects are designed and implemented. And finally, the program goes beyond the regeneration itself. Even after the functions are in place, the RHC program continues. The operators of the newly rehabilitated buildings are supported through on-job training, IT support and capacity training on marketing while local and national staff are continuously supported to fulfill their role and responsibilities.
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Palestinian e-learning project wins Belgian digitalisation prize
Eva MORRE | 01/12/2016
The Palestinian-Belgian project ‘e-learning curriculum in Palestinian Primary and Secondary Education’ has been rewarded with the Digitalisation for Development prize in Belgium. From 2011 until 2015, the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) and the Belgian Development Agency (BTC) have jointly implemented the e-learning project to introduce the use of ICT in education to enhance student centered learning. The 4 million euro project was funded by Belgium and Palestine. After the official end of the project, the efforts have been continued and scaled up by the Ministry of Education. The project has introduced the use of ICT in 288 pilot schools in the West Bank and allowed the students to acquire 21st century skills. Thanks to this project, the focus has shifted away from mere technological solutions towards the use of ICT as an enabler for student-centered learning. The project has focused on 4 main pillars. First of all, the 288 pilot schools that were involved defined their own ICT-needs and were accordingly provided with ICT material. Furthermore, over 14.000 teachers have been trained on student-centered learning through the use of ICT. A digital teacher portal where teachers can share their learning objects with each other has been launched in 2015 and has already more than 2 million hits. And finally, the project was also a source for policy advice concerning the digitalisation policy in Palestine. The success of this project was already known in Palestine, but has now also been recognised worldwide, as the e-learning project has won the Digitalisation for Development (D4D) prize in Belgium, in the category ‘IStandOut’. The Prize ‘Digital for Development’ is a new initiative of the Royal Museum of Central Africa. The prize focuses on digital creativity and innovation in the Belgian development cooperation. The IStandOut category focusses on highlighting success stories and best practices in the field of ‘Digital for Development’. The award ceremony has taken place on the 30th of November and Dr. Basri Saleh, Deputy Minister of Education is now in Belgium to receive the prize.
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Inventory of the Palestinian heritage
Eva MORRE | 01/12/2016
People have always felt the need to refer to their history to identify themselves. Heritage is as such a collective property which tells us this history; the history of people, cities and territories. Heritage is a witness of our common identity, but also makes it possible for communities to show their uniqueness to the world. As such, heritage makes it possible for the present generation to understand their history and give a meaning to their current life, but also to get an insight in the history and life of others. Modernization, inevitable in every society, should therefore not overshadow the importance of heritage as it is a vector of development and social stability, both for present and future generations.[1] By preserving the heritage, one preserves a collective memory and identity. To valorize the heritage means to contribute to a better mutual understanding among communities and as such to more recognition and respect for the differences in the cultural identity. Preservation and restoration of cultural heritage is therefore one of the crucial dimensions of state- and nation building. After all, heritage is not only a reflection of identity, but also a powerful instrument in the economic and territorial development of a community. When properly valorized and promoted, cultural heritage could play an important role in tourism and tourism related activities. Tourism is a potential source of many types of financial gain. One can think of museum tickets, guided tours and visits, sale of handcrafts and photos, but also of the hospitality industry, transportation and restaurant services. Moreover, tourism is also a potential revenue for local governments through taxes. As such, cultural heritage can be a catalyst for tourism and the development of a city, region or country in general. Therefore, national and local governments have a major role to play in the protection of heritage. But choices need to be made as it would be vain to aspire to preserve everything. Furthermore, preservation cannot exist without development as otherwise it would lead to mummification. The question however remains; which elements deserve more than others to be preserved and to which level should the preservation be carried out? The identification and inventorying of cultural heritage is a first and fundamental step for gaining a general idea of the richness and diversity of the cultural heritage in a city or territory.[2] The scope of an inventory is to document the cultural heritage and make this documentation accessible to all; national and local authorities, policy makers, other stakeholders and the general public. Heritage inventories are an important tool for decision makers to formulate an appropriate strategy for cultural heritage conservation and management in urban contexts but could also be used to inform and sensitize the general public about the assets of cultural heritage. An inventory typically includes a wide range of information on a building, site or open space such as location, boundary, physical features, function, condition, architectural description, historic evolution, and identification of values contributing to the cultural significance. However, each inventory should be tailor-made to the researched area, it should reflect and add information to previous inventories and pave the way to get the predefined information necessary to make decisions on the management, development or conservation of the heritage. The case of the Palestinian Territory The Palestinian Territory has a rich history which can be witnessed through a lot of historic sites, landscapes, archaeological remnants, vernacular buildings and compounds, etc. However, for various reasons, the value of this heritage has not always been recognized. The historic sites and areas are often abandoned due to a lack of interest; urbanization processes that do not consider traditional structures; and Palestinian laws for the protection of historic buildings that are ineffective. Most residents living in these areas are poor. They are often tenants, perceived as those who don’t have the means to move to modern cities or urban extensions, reinforcing the idea that historic centers and people living in them are backward. Due to lots of reasons a vast amount of heritage has already been lost and the still remaining heritage is threatened – and therefore decaying – by natural forces (wind, rain, vegetation, etc.). It is common that the preservation of historic centers, the protection of heritage and the valorization of traditions are seen as a barrier against the modernization and improvement of living conditions. Most people today don’t want to live in houses made out of mud, stone or wood, but rather aspire to live in the concrete and steel residences provided in the cities. It should be the goal of all stakeholders in the heritage-field to change the sometimes negative perception with regards to ancient structures and to show the people the possibilities to adapt historic buildings to the needs and requirements of today and tomorrow, with respect for the historic values and local identity. In light of this, Belgium and the Palestinian Authority through the Ministry of Local Government (MoLG) have agreed upon cooperating within the project called ‘Regeneration of Historic Centers’ (RHC) which aims at revitalizing Palestinian historic centers. The program supports the regeneration planning, practice and policy development in the Palestinian Territory and has three main result areas:Regeneration forms an integrated element of Municipal planning in targeted Local Government Clusters;The socio-economic regeneration of targeted historic centers is enhanced using a multi-dimensional approach; and Lessons learnt from the RHC project contribute to the evidence based policy framework and planning strategies for the Palestinian National Authority. The update of the existing inventory, which dates back to the period 1999-2003 and was done by Riwaq is needed and is above all one of the activities that will contribute to the first result of the program. In order to develop the inventory a consultant (Mr. Corrado Minervini) was hired to develop the data framework and manual for the building construction assessment and inventory. Complementary with an effective inventorying tool, which provides the analysis of Historic Buildings in view of rehabilitation, a quick survey method was proposed in order to get an overall picture of the Historic Centers’ location, condition and value in the Palestinian territory. Together with the consultant 3 successive stages were taken: the information retrieval phase where all existing data is collected, the inventory fieldwork and on-site investigation phase, and finally the recording of the collected data phase where collected data is entered into a GIS system in order to make the data available and readable for all. Moreover, in order to make the Ministry staff and the engineers of the targeted localities of the RHC program aware of the purpose of an inventory, and how to use it for decision making, several workshops and training activities were conducted. But what’s next? Documenting and inventorying the valuable heritage of a territory is only the first step in the right direction. After defining and documenting the heritage worth to be protected, a regulatory framework, including protective measures, needs to be set up to safeguard this valuable heritage. The integration of heritage in the development strategies and the creation of adapted and applicable regulatory tools and policies are essential for a sustainable management of heritage sites. These policies should be prepared based on urban and territorial planning documents, regional development schemes and local development plans. While the State remains in charge of protecting the national heritage through different policies, efficient protection and preservation cannot be accomplished without the establishment of operative partnerships at local level. As decentralization policies and processes continue to evolve (see the LGRDP program of BTC in the Palestinian Territory), the Local Authorities will increasingly have a greater role to play in the protection and management of the local cultural heritage. Communities are for example already responsible for issuing building permits for new constructions or building renovations and should be aware that these activities have a strong and lasting impact on the local heritage.[3] However, very often municipalities do not have any skilled personnel in the field. Therefore it is crucial to strengthen the capacities of the staff of Local Government Units. This can be done through training, but also trough the establishment of strong alliances between government Ministries, National or professional institutions for Heritage Conservation (such as in the Palestinian case; Riwaq, CCHP, Welfare Association and Hebron Committee) and the local governments. And finally, management tools should be developed as not only the conservation of heritage should be encouraged, but more importantly the regeneration and revitalization of historic sites should be aimed for. Only by protecting, regenerating and sustainably managing a historic site, heritage can be integrated and play its socio-economic role into the existing urban fabric. [1] Cultural heritage and Local Development, A Guide for African Local Governments; UNESCO; 2006. [2] Cultural heritage and Local Development, A Guide for African Local Governments; UNESCO; 2006. [3] Cultural heritage and Local Development, A Guide for African Local Governments; p. 51; UNESCO; 2006.
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Beautification: a Work Based Learning Success Story
Eva MORRE | 01/12/2016
Since she was in 5th grade Ghada (seated) has always dreamed of opening her own beauty salon. In 1994, she successfully graduated from the Vocational Training Centre (VTC) in Khanyounis in the Gaza Strip. Now, 12 years later, she is the owner of 2 beauty salons with a total of 14 employees. She is eager to further expand the two salons, and to attract more skilled employees. Therefore, she is now enrolled in the Work Based Learning programme of her former training institution in Khanyounis. Since this year, the VTC works closely together with the private sector to give their beautification students an internship period in the private sector during their studies. This cooperation allows the students to acquire more practical skills in the private sector and to be better positioned to find a job afterwards. The advantages of this system for the private sector are that they receive trainees who already have theoretical skills, and who might, once graduated also become employees. “I would like to further expand my beauty salons, but it is not easy to find skilled employees. Therefore, I enrolled in the Work Based Learning scheme” - Ghada Ghada will accept 4 students from the VTC as trainees. In the beginning she will just cover their food expenses, but once they become more productive, they will receive a proper salary. Also the tasks the students will execute will gradually become more difficult, and will depend on the progress and motivation of the students themselves. After the end of the training period, she will hire all students that meet the requirements and have obtained the skills to become good employees.
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Un impôt sur le bétail? Pas bête du tout!
Stephanie EECKMAN | 30/11/2016
Le troupeau est aux éleveurs nigériens ce qu'un compte en banque est à la plupart d'entre nous. Il faut en prendre soin. Parmi les nombreuses mesures de soutien proposées aux éleveurs du Sahel nigérien, la CTB finance des programmes de vaccination du bétail et des points de vente sous le contrôle des communes. A 150 km à l'est de la capitale Niamey, le marché de Gouala est le plus important de la commune de Kiéché. Chaque mercredi, toutes sortes de marchandises s’échangent du matin au soir dans une ambiance joyeuse et poussiéreuse. Mais tandis que les commerçants présentent leurs produits sur des étals bien alignés, le business du bétail se faisait dans une belle anarchie. Impossible d’en contrôler les échanges. Il y a deux ans, la mairie de Kiéché a donc décidé de faire le ménage dans le marché. Grâce à l’appui de la CTB, elle a réussi à construire deux marchés de bétail à Gouala. Un parc à petits ruminants – moutons et chèvres – où l’entrée est fixée à 50 FCFA par tête et à 200 FCFA par vente, et un parc à gros ruminants – bovins et camélidés – qui engrange des montants plus importants, car la valeur d’une vache est bien supérieure à celle d’une chèvre. Ces marchés ont connu un succès immédiat qui permet non seulement d’optimiser les échanges entre acheteurs et vendeurs. «On s’est levé à Kiéché, » nous confirme Boubacar China, président du comité de gestion du marché de bétail à Gouala. « C’est vrai que notre système de taxation nous permet d’investir davantage dans le développement de notre commune, mais il ne faut pas oublier que nous avons surtout institué ce marché pour éviter les plaintes entre les populations, » explique-t-il. Il relate que pour chaque animal vendu, le comité établit un ticket de vente. Sur ce ticket, qui constitue la carte d’assurance contre les tracasseries, sont mentionnés le nom du vendeur, les caractéristiques extérieures de l’animal et toutes les indications permettant d’identifier l’animal et de disculper, le cas échéant, son propriétaire. « Et comme ça, il n’y a plus d’accusations de vol ni d’autres chamailleries, » nous dit-il. « Toutes les transactions sont désormais bien documentées. » Pas de développement durable sans coût Mais les marchés de bétail permettent bien sûr aussi d’alimenter les caisses communales. Les bénéfices ainsi engrangés permettent de financer une partie du Plan de Développement Communal dont Kiéché s’est doté. Un apport bienvenu, quand on sait que depuis la réforme gouvernementale de 2002 prônant la décentralisation, les communes du Niger doivent faire face à davantage de responsabilités. Cependant, le pouvoir central ne met guère à la disposition des communes les moyens financiers dont elles ont besoin pour mettre en œuvre cette réforme. Comme elles ne peuvent pas compter sur l’aide de l’Etat central, les communes - tout comme celle de Kiéché - font preuve d'initiatives et de créativité pour disposer des fonds nécessaires afin d'améliorer durablement le bien-être de leurs administrés. En donnant un coup de pouce simple mais concret à aux communes de la région de Dosso, la CTB initie un processus irrémédiable.
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Un dispositif pour prévenir les risques d'inondations
Meriem HILALI | 29/11/2016
Financé par la Coopération belge, le système d'annonce des crues dans le bassin du Loukkos au nord du royaume est désormais opérationnel. Le total des investissements de ce projet se chiffre à 2,3 millions de Dirhams. L'Agence de bassin hydraulique du Loukkos (ABHL) complète ainsi son réseau avec ce dispositif de télétransmission (réseau de radars reliés à un serveur central) capable de fournir la situation hydrologique des grands oueds avec précision et en temps réel dans le bassin de Neckor. Les informations sont retransmises instantanément au poste de contrôle provincial et central afin d’assurer la sécurité des populations, et limiter les dégâts matériels. A rappeler que la région de Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima au nord du Maroc est parmi les zones les plus vulnérables aux crues rapides et torrentielles. Depuis le début des années 2000, des crues de grande ampleur s’y sont succédé: Tétouan 2010, Tanger 2008, la plaine d'Oued Martil (2000), Al Hoceima (2003 et 2008) et, plus récemment, l’amont de l’oued Martil en 2015.
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Un festival pour promouvoir la filiére du safran
Meriem HILALI | 29/11/2016
Les 26 et 27 novembre dernier, à Taliouine au sud du Maroc, a eu lieu comme chaque année le Festival du Safran, qui a pour objectif de promouvoir la région et de favoriser la commercialisation du safran, dans le but d’améliorer les conditions de vie des populations rurales. Cette édition intervenait, pour rappel, après la tenue du 5ème Symposium sur le Safran (du 23 au 26 novembre à Agadir), organisé quant à lui par le Ministère de l’Agriculture et de la Pêche Maritimes et la Société Internationale des Sciences Horticoles. Lors de ces deux manifestations, le projet belgo-marocain de Développement des Filières du Safran et du Palmier-dattier a mis l’accent sur deux points importants, à savoir l’influence de la composition des sols et des méthodes de séchage sur la qualité physico-chimique du safran, ainsi que les résultats préliminaires de l’étude de positionnement du safran marocain sur le marché national et international.
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Expotech: a yearly event to promote the ICT sector
Eva MORRE | 28/11/2016
The Palestinian Information and Technology Association (PITA) is a non-profit organisation founded in 1999 by a group of Palestinian entrepreneurs with the objective of advancing the interests and the positive societal impact of Palestine’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector. PITA organises an annual event called ‘EXPOTECH’ in the West Bank and Gaza. It succeeds to gather more than 20.000 visitors each year. The objective of the EXPOTECH is to promote the ICT sector in Palestine and to serve as a vehicle for discussing state of the art technological trends both locally and globally. The main components of this event are the ICT Exhibition and the IT Conference Days. In addition, there are a Business and Technology Forum, Multinational Days, a boot camp for ICT graduates from the technical and vocational education and training (TVET) and many more activities. The Palestinian ICT exhibition welcomes more than 45 Palestinian professional companies that are specialized in the field of ICT. It is designed to demonstrate the exceptional growth of the ICT industry in Palestine by showing the latest technologies, innovative solutions and services from Palestinian national suppliers. This ICT event gives the exhibitors and the audience both the opportunity to meet new ICT companies in the market and to see the latest updates from market experts. Several recent studies show the high growth potential of the ICT sector in Palestine. Taken into account the current level of youth unemployment, the further development of the ICT sector will significantly contribute to a decrease of youth unemployment. This employment potential is not limited to jobs for university students but encompass also TVET graduates with an ICT training. Therefore, the Belgian Development Agency (BTC) is actively participating in the Expotech 2016, both in the West Bank and in Gaza. In Gaza we focus on the benefits of employing graduates from the TVET sector in ICT companies. Expotech offers a unique forum to promote the high employment potential of TVET in ICT, to improve the perception of the potential of TVET and to strengthen the relationship between the private sector and TVET institutions in the ICT sector. In the West Bank our focus is mainly on stimulating entrepreneurship among young people. It is important that young people realise they have the potential to create their own job, by focusing on self-employment opportunities. Therefore, BTC tries to enhance the entrepreneurial mind-set amongst recent graduates.
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Quick fruit projects as the first step towards the revitalization of historic centers
Eva MORRE | 24/11/2016
Preservation and restoration of cultural heritage is one of the crucial dimensions of state- and nation-building. In a context of occupation, separation, fragmentation, and limited national planning power, the Palestinian identity is often the only handhold for Palestinian citizens. However, the occupied Palestinian territory is marked by a sharp deterioration of its architectural and cultural heritage. This deterioration is based on several factors: the destruction related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; the abandonment of buildings due to ignorance and lack of interest of local populations; urbanization processes that do not consider traditional structures; and Palestinian laws for the protection of historic buildings that are ineffective.Most residents living in the historic buildings are poor. They are often tenants, perceived as those who don’t have the means to move to modern cities or urban extensions, reinforcing the idea that historic centers and people living in them are backward.[1] The Belgian Development Agency believes that by 'Regenerating [2] Historic Centers in Local Government Units' (RHC), and with the involvement of local stakeholders, we could generate a new dynamic in the state-building process. The program supports the regeneration planning, practice and policy development in the Palestinian Territory. The integration of the protection and development of Historic Centers in Local Governments combines three key national strategic priorities:Supporting Palestine’s historical cultural significance;Integrated planning processes; andLocal economic developmentA participatory approach towards regeneration The RHC project supports twelve (small and medium-sized) Local Government Units (LGUs) in the West Bank, and is designed to address the regeneration planning, practice and policy development in these areas. In the first step of the process, a team, consisting of representatives of the local authority, the private sector, local organizations and the community, was formed to analyze and review existing planning documents (Strategic Development and Investment Plan, Spatial Development Framework, the National Spatial Development Plan, etc.). Secondly, two workshops, with a wide community participation, were held to develop a community vision and strategic objectives. In the first workshop the elderly of the village told stories about the old social (weddings, festivals, etc.) and economic (trade, transportation, agriculture, etc.) traditions of the village. During the second workshop, focus groups determined the potential development areas for regeneration. At the end of the workshops a regeneration program was proposed. This community-participation and consensus-building output was complemented with a survey and a diagnostic study of the current social, economic, physical and cultural condition of the historic center and its citizens. To ensure the sustainability and viability of the regeneration plans, preliminary feasibility assessments and business plans were developed in a second phase.Quick Fruit Projects Not all of the twelve localities will be targeted at the same time. To enable learning from previous experiences, five localities (Assira, Deir Istiya, Bani Zeid, ‘Abud and Bani Na’im) are listed as 'Quick Fruit Projects'. They have a pilot function for the seven remaining (and more valuable) localities. 'Quick Fruit Projects' are characterized by their quick return on investment. They are try-outs where a smaller amount of money is invested and where one can easily and quickly see the output, results and impact. Moreover they provide lessons learnt for the remaining projects in other localities.The Center for Cultural Heritage Preservation (CCHP) in Bethlehem has been contracted to design and technically supervise the implementation of those quick fruit rehabilitation projects. Their work focusses on preserving the authenticity of the building and maintaining the integrity of the urban fabric where it is located, while at the same time transform it to host socio-economic functions or services. These new functions were defined through a participatory approach and meet the needs of the local community as well as potential local and international visitors. Assira: The project includes the rehabilitation of a traditional abandoned building composed of two floors with a total surface area of 200 m² for the adaptive reuse as an agricultural craft center. Secondly, the pathway adjacent to the building (around 100 m²) will be rehabilitated.Deir Istiya: The project includes the rehabilitation of a traditional abandoned building (Qaser Al Qasem) composed of three floors with a total surface area of 1020 m². The building will be used as a guest house and restaurant. Bani Zeid: The project includes the rehabilitation of a traditional abandoned building (Dar Khatab) composed of two floors with a total surface area of 190 m² for the adaptive reuse as a multipurpose building, and the rehabilitation of 210 m² courtyard that connects the traditional building with its surroundings. ‘Abud: The project includes the rehabilitation of 600 m long pathway with an average width of 4 m that connects the town of ‘Abud with the Barbara Church. This church is known as the most important tourist site of the town. A second project is the rehabilitation of Samra square which has a total surface of around 560 m² and the upper square with a total surface area of around 220 m². Both squares will be reused as public squares for ‘Abud’s events and festivals. Bani Na’im: The project includes the rehabilitation of a traditional abandoned building composed of two floors with a total surface area of 1130 m² for the adaptive reuse of a handicraft center. Additionally, the pathway (130m) that connects the traditional building with the Mosque will be rehabilitated.The construction on site for each of the quick fruit projects will start in the first week of December, 2016. More pictures and drawings of the rehabilitation projects can be found here. [1] Tashgheel, Riwaq’s Job Creation through Conservation 2001-2011, Khaldun Bshara, Ramallah, 2011, p. 20 [2] Regeneration refers to the revitalization (making socially and economically alive again) of historically valuable buildings and compounds.
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Supporting young entrepreneurs
Eva MORRE | 16/11/2016
The Business Startups Incubators Support project (BSIS) supports young Palestinian entrepreneurs to develop their ideas into viable businesses. Recently BSIS has organised a number of awareness sessions and bootcamps to promote entrepreneurship around the country. Sessions have been organised on different occasions in the major cities - Hebron, Nablus, Ramallah, Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Gaza - around the country. These meetings were an opportunity for young people to become aware of the available entrepreneurship opportunities across the Palestinian Territory. A more specific awareness session on the Tourism sector took place in Bethlehem. The focus of this session was the recent challenges the sector faces in attracting tourists to Bethlehem and in providing the desired services to them. After the brief explanation about the situation, the participants were given the time to ask questions to the members of the panel. At the end of the discussion, participants were asked to collect information on the problems and work on creating various solutions. Afterwards a Tourism Hackathon was organised in Bethlehem. This is a 2-days meeting aimed to tackling the challenges facing the tourism sector in the city, and help create solutions which can lead into solving the existing challenges. For those potential entrepreneurs who already have a concrete business idea, the BSIS project has organised bootcamps for Business Start-ups. These bootcamps consist of a 2-day training to help them transform their ideas into entrepreneurial start-ups. During the bootcamps the participants did market research, learned how to pitch their idea and how to develop their business plan. More information on the upcoming events of BSIS can be found on the project website: http://bsis.ps/events/ and the facebook page: www.facebook.com/BSISpal/
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The BSIS website is now online !
Eva MORRE | 16/11/2016
BSIS – Business Start-up Incubators Support – supports the development of a dynamic and vibrant private sector through supporting Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). Helping young entrepreneurs means giving them access to finance for their innovative ideas and projects. But it also means giving them easy access to all information that is relevant for developing their ideas into viable businesses. Therefore, the BSIS project has now created a website where potential entrepreneurs can find an overview of the different financial tools that are at their disposal. Furthermore, they can read different success stories of young entrepreneurs who have made it into a successful career. And they can directly contact different incubators willing to help them to further improve their own ideas. You can find the BSIS website here: http://bsis.ps/
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Go Green – An evaluation Study of the Green Governmental Schools in Palestine
Eva MORRE | 16/11/2016
The School Construction, Rehabilitation and Equipment project of the Belgian Development Cooperation builds new schools in the Palestinian Territory. The focus lies on quality education through environment and child friendly school designs, while experimenting with innovative and eco-sustainable solutions. In order to raise awareness, the project also invests in capacity building for engineers of the ministry of education and higher education, the directorates, school headmasters and teachers, students and communities. Special attention is paid to interactions between schools and communities, to gender and to energy efficiency and other environment-related aspects. One recent achievement in terms of environmental awareness, is the translation, supported by the Belgian Development Cooperation, of the book “An Evaluation Study of the Green Governmental Schools in Palestine “ of Basma Saadeh from Arabic to English. The book is divided into three main chapters. In a first part, the book gives an overview of the evolution of governmental schools in terms of student numbers and architectural development from 1994 until 2014. The second part of the book is dedicated to green schools, including aspects such as the sustainability of the school location, water use reduction, efficiency use of energy, used materials and resources as well as the learning environment. In the final part, an analysis was conducted of a sample of prominent governmental school buildings that can be classified as ‘green’. The study discusses the success of the attempts made by the ministry to achieve the specifications and standards of green school building based on the international standards and specifications. It also identifies the future potential in this domain. The writer, Basma Saadeh studied architectural engineering at the An Najah University. She currently works as an architectural designer and developer at the general directorate of buildings in the Ministry of Education and Higher Education situated in Ramallah. More information is available here: http://tinyurl.com/jmslch4
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LAUNCH LOCAL COMPETITIVENESS FACILITY
Elisabeth BULCKE | 15/11/2016
new grant facility supporting business partnershipsOn the 7th of November 2016, the national launch of the “Local Competitiveness Facility” (LCF) grant fund took place simultaneously in the four pilot districts in Rwanda. LCF is a matched grant fund with the objective to support private business partnerships to enhance Local Economic Development (LED). The fund will focus on innovative value chain projects including pro-poor businesses in various sectors. Through the cooperation of Belgium and Rwanda, the LCF grant fund (worth 2,4m EUR) will be implemented by the Local Administrative Entities Development Agency (LODA) of Rwanda together with four pilot districts throughout the country. The main purpose of LCF is to fund innovative economic partnership projects to enhance pro-poor local economic development (LED). LCF will support partnerships companies of different sizes, cooperatives and also NGO’s and TVET centers can under certain circumstances be part of a partnership. The supported projects must be innovative in the area of value chain development and must have a positive LED and a real pro-poor impact. The following budgets are available for beneficiaries: Projects under window 1:Project Value: Between 6.170 EUR and 11.460 EUR Grant from LCF: 90% Own Contribution from project partners: 10% own contribution (cash or in-kind)Projects under window 2:Project Value: Between 11.460 EUR and 45.853 EURGrant from LCF: 70%Own Contribution from project partners: 30% own contribution (cash or in-kind)LCF will not only provide financial support to the beneficiaries, there will also be an important focus on capacity building. Each potential applicant can benefit from capacity building related to the elaboration and application to the LCF Fund. In addition, each beneficiary will have the opportunity to benefit from additional capacity building training related to project management, financial management and procurement and marketing. In cases where other skills development is required to implement a project, this skills development, or capacity building, can be part of the project budget. As from the moment of the launch, information sessions and training on LCF will be organized in the 4 pilot districts and their sectors. Purpose is to raise awareness among local businesses, farmers, cooperatives, TVET centers, NGO’s, etc. on the possibilities and procedures of LCF. Brochures in both Kinyarwanda and English are distributed among the attendants who can also ask their questions regarding the application procedures. More information: www.lcf.rw
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".be Belgium Day" in Vietnam 13th Nov 2016
Huong TRANTHANH | 15/11/2016
BTC's booth in the ".be Belgium Day", representing BTC's activities to assist Vietnamese government and people to confront with climate change effects. The booth attracted many families and children with various materials illustrating the climate change effects and BTC's interventions in the three provinces of Ha Tinh, Binh Thuan and Ninh Thuan. Family members can participate in a quiz game to test their understanding on climate change effects and/or explore some of the solutions for energy savings. Children enjoy drawing the city of their dreams and special gifts from the drawing contest. The event attracted nearly three thousand local people to explore the Belgian culture and Belgian activities in Vietnam.
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BTC recognized for supporting the science and technology start-up ecosystem in Vietnam
Huong TRANTHANH | 15/11/2016
BTC is one of the main supporters for science and technology business incubators and related policy development support in Vietnam. On 12th Nov 2016, the BTC Regional Representative - Mr. Alain Devaux - received public recognition from the Minister of Science and Technology Mr. Chu Ngoc Anh for BTC’s strong commitment in supporting the science and technology start-up ecosystem in Vietnam. The BTC funded project - BIPP - actively participated in the TECHFEST Vietnam 2016, which was staged, in Hanoi during 12 - 13 Nov 2016. Noticeably, the TECHFEST is one of the largest national start-up ecosystem event endorsed by MoST and co-organized by many Ministries, agencies and start-up supporting organizations in Vietnam. The TECHFEST was attended by close to 1,000 start-up ecosystem stakeholders nationally and internationally. Vice Prime Minister Mr. Vu Duc Dam delivered the keynote speech underlining the importance of further accelerating the start-up ecosystems for Vietnam’s economic development process. TECHFEST is a superb platform for BIPP project to present the project objectives, networking with many start-up ecosystem players such as venture capital and start-up angel specialists, other technology incubators and accelerators, young tech-entrepreneurs as well as to dialogue with many professionals from the S&T entrepreneurship network in Vietnam and abroad.
