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Call for proposals 2017 - short training and capacity building innitiatives
Huong TRANTHANH | 12/06/2017
The project Facility for Capacity Building (FCB) is inviting public institutions at provincial level and higher education institutions to submit concept notes on capacity building initiatives to compete for FCB grants. This is the second call for proposals from the project, which aims for supporting public institutions to implement short trainings, workshop, study tours, coaching and mentoring activities to enhance the capacity of their staffs. The full call for proposal and guidelines for applicants can be obtained by contacting the PMU at minhtam@moet.edu.vn or ha.daothingan@btcctb.org. The deadline for applications is 30th June 2017.The PMU has selected 6 proposals from the call in 2016. Organizational assessment are underway before finalizing grant agreements by mid August 2017.
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Nyarugenge Hospital - Approved design
Alexis DE HERDE | 06/06/2017
As part of our health sector programme Ubuzima Burambye, we are going to construct of a 120-bed district hospital in Nyarugenge. The hospital will be located in the Nyamirambo Sector. It will be constructed on a surface area of 2 hectares. A second phase is planned to extend the capacity of the hospital to 300 beds. The total surface of the buildings would reach 4 hectares. So far in phase one the hospital will have 3 components: 1. Block X will be made of reception, emergency services, administration rooms, a laboratory and an outpatient department. 2. Block Y will include a maternity ward, an hospitalisation ward, and two operating theatres. 3. Block U will include a utility block comprising a mortuary, a laundry and a workshop. The design of the project has now been approved. The construction should start in the coming weeks. We will keep you posted!
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Belgian youth visiting the Palestinian Territory and Israel
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 31/05/2017
After Ramadan, the LGRDP program is welcoming a delegation of 20 young Belgian students enrolled in the Belgian organization OIRD (Organisation Internationale pour la Réussite et le Développement; www.oird.org). The young students, born in Belgium but coming from socially and economically vulnerable communities or belonging to ethnic minorities, will discover the development cooperation (the work of BTC, and in particular the LGRDP program), the territory of Palestine and Israel, as well as the difficulties people face here. Along the journey they will visit the bigger cities such as Jerusalem, Hebron, Bethlehem, Ramallah and Tel Aviv, but will also be hosted by families of Al Karmil Municipality (small village South-East of Hebron and part of the LGRDP program) and Palestinian Bedouins. Many questions will be raised and addressed: What is the overall aim of development cooperation? What does BTC do? What are the conditions BTC works in? What are the objectives and aims of the LGRDP program? What are the difficulties Palestinians face? How does the life in the Palestinian Territory affect schooling youth? Etc. In addition, an exchange/dialogue between Israelis, Palestinians and the Belgian students will be set up in cooperation with the Willy Brandt Center in Jerusalem. The whole trip, including preparations, will be filmed. This documentary will focus on the “discovery of the Palestinian Territory” and the view of the young people on development cooperation, identity, solidarity and the (political) situation. The documentary will be a mixture between public and private spaces and situations, between discovery and analysis. All meetings and visits will be filmed and in parallel interviews with the youth will take place to follow their thoughts and enrich the events with personal point of views.
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Belgium supports PalestineSkills
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 30/05/2017
On the 24th of May 2017 Ms. Florence Duvieusart, Consul and Head of Development Cooperation at the Consulate General of Belgium met the two young Palestinians who were selected to compete in the PalestineSkills competition and their trainers to hear about their experiences and their preparations for the upcoming WorldSkills competition in Abu Dhabi. 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. In order to prepare for this competition, Sobheya, Ibraheem and their trainers, supported by the Belgian Development Agency (BTC), received an intensive training in Belgium over the course of 2 weeks in March 2017. In his introduction Mr. Michael Buechele, Technical Delegate of WorldSkills Palestine, stressed the importance of training the trainers, because without them good results wouldn’t be possible. Both Sobheya and Ibraheem emphasized how important it was to exchange experiences with the Belgian trainers to give them a different look on international graphic design standards and techniques. Later this year both of them will participate in the WorldSkills competition in Abu Dhabi as well. This unique skills competition is aimed at raising interest for vocational training, showcasing the excellence of young talents from over 70 member countries competing in some 50 different domains as diverse as pastry making, painting, graphic design, carpentry, electronics and many more. For the Palestinian youth it will be the first time they have the opportunity to participate. During his opening remarks Mr. Bart Horemans, International Technical Advisor ECIB at BTC, emphasized the importance of supporting Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in partnership with the private sector to tackle youth unemployment in the Palestinian Territory. TVET graduates have an 80% employment rate thanks to traineeships and Work-Based Learning (WBL) in the private sector. About the Enhancing Capacities for Institution Building (ECIB) Program Since 1997, the Belgian Government has been supporting the development activities and emergency interventions in the Palestinian Territory. Since July 2013 the ECIB program focuses on improving the qualitative and quantitative aspects of Work Based Learning (WBL) Initiatives in the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programs in the Palestinian Territory in partnership with the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Labour and the private sector.
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A la conquête de nouveaux clients
Meriem HILALI | 29/05/2017
Le safran est surtout vendu via des circuits informels, aux mains de quelques intermédiaires, agissant de concert pour peser sur les prix du safran, au souk hebdomadaire. Les producteurs les plus fragiles vendent une partie de leur récolte à bas prix dès la fin de la récolte afin de pouvoir financer leurs dépenses immédiates.L’objectif est qu’à l’avenir, les groupements d’intérêt économique, dont celui pour lequel travaille Hassan, achètent et commercialisent la majorité de la récolte du safran à un prix plus juste et équitable. En 2016, le prix de vente perçu par les producteurs via les ventes à leur coopérative ou GIE est de 0,50 € par gramme supérieur au prix du souk.Renforcer les capacités commerciales des groupements d'intérêt économique permet d’ouvrir une voie alternative, de commercialiser le safran à travers des circuits formels. Si on y combine une hausse de la qualité du safran, c’est tout bénéfice pour le producteur ! Voilà le pari, le parti pris de Khadija, Fatima, Fatima-Zahra, An et Hassan.
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Le laboratoire, un enjeu majeur pour la filière
Meriem HILALI | 26/05/2017
La qualité du safran fourni par les coopératives n’est pas toujours clairement définie, ce qui rend difficiles les ventes, notamment sur les marchés à haute valeur ajoutée. D’où l’importance du travail de Fatima-Zahra et An et la mise en place d'un système d’évaluation de la qualité.Logé dans la Maison du safran, à Taliouine, non loin des safranières, le laboratoire mis en marche par Fatima-Zahra et An est une première au Maroc, par son accessibilité financière et géographique. Nul besoin de courir jusqu’à Agadir ou toute autre ville pour effectuer des analyses.Goût, odeur, couleur, humidité, volatilité… autant de critères qui déterminent la qualité du produit. En 2016, 84 % des échantillons de safran analysés ont été classés en catégorie 1 (sur une échelle de 3). Grâce à ce système d'évaluation de la qualité, basé sur des critères physiques et scientifiques, reconnus au niveau international (ISO 3632-1-2011), le prix payé aux producteurs est fonction de la catégorie du safran fourni. Prochainement, cela se reflètera aussi sur le prix de vente au consommateur. Une gamme de produits avec des prix différenciés selon le niveau de qualité sera en effet proposée.Ce système incite les producteurs à améliorer la qualité de leur produit pour en obtenir un meilleur prix. Faut-il encore qu’ils en connaissent les tenants et les aboutissants...
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Merveille, la fille maçonne.
Julie CLAASSENS | 24/05/2017
Sûre d'elle, Merveille raconte pourquoi elle a choisi l'option maçonnerie à l'Institut Technique Professionnel Labo de Gemena.En RDC, à peu près quatre millions d'enfants vont à l'école, mais ce nombre représente seulement la moitié de tous ceux qui devraient être à l'école. Lorsque les ressources sont rares dans la famille et des choix doivent être faits, les filles restent souvent à la maison, tandis que les garçons sont envoyés à l'école.En Equateur, le Programme d’Appui à l’enseignement technique et à la formation professionnelle dans les districts de la Mongala et du Sud Ubangi vise l’amélioration de la qualité de la formation (surtout de la formation pratique) des élèves et des apprenants, avec une attention particulière pour les filles, pour une meilleure insertion sur le marché de l’emploi, dans l’économie familiale ou pour un travail autonome. Le projet part d’une vue globale sur le système d'enseignement qui permet de tenir compte des éléments essentiels pour arriver à améliorer le fonctionnement des écoles et centres de formation ciblés.
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Closing the skills gap through livelihood actors
Hanna DEKERK | 24/05/2017
On the 4th of May in Moroto, the Support to Skilling Uganda (SSU) project launched the Skills Development Fund (SDF) and opened the Regional Skills Development office for Karamoja. Partners from the local and national level gathered to learn about the funding opportunities of the SDF and to visit the new office, all in the presence of First lady and Minister of Education, Janet Museveni. This component of the Support to Skilling Uganda project is financially supported by Irish Aid for 6 million euros and will be implemented from 2016 to 2020. Irish Ambassador in Uganda, Donal Cronin added “We are confident that with Irish Aid’s underground experience operating in Karamoja and the great expertise of BTC in skills development, we will get the program to work for the people of that region.” “Karamoja has many economic opportunities” The SDF for Karamoja aims at establishing work-based learning and to let skills development respond to the needs of Karamoja’s labor market. The fund will be awarded to Public-Private-Partnerships between local training providers and private sector actors that jointly and in a flexible way, organize relevant and qualitative trainings. As Karamoja is currently transitioning from an emergency context to one of post-conflict development, these training providers are mostly working on livelihood activities. This allows them to skill professionals in domains like water sanitation, irrigation techniques, etc. The launch gathered private sector members and political authorities from the national level as they are needed to further develop and implement priority sectors. Local authorities, civil society and livelihood actors were also present as they play a key role in the projects’ implementation. The event emphasized the contributions of all these stakeholders in the success of the project. In the words of Belgian ambassador Hugo Verbist: “Karamoja has many economic opportunities and we need to make that count.” Reaching the Karamojong In February 2017 SSU together with the Ministry of Education and Sport opened a Skills Development office in Moroto to oversee the implementation of this programme. The project is based in Moroto and remains active the districts of Abim, Kaabong, Nakapiripirit, Kotido, Amudat and Napak. This new office will improve access to the karamojong, while increasing the collaboration with key stakeholders and local district leaders. In short, it will enhance the response and integration of local skills development issues. As Minister of Education, Janet Museveni, stated: “Skilling the young people of Uganda is a vital step in the transformation of our education system”.
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Un travail de proximité
Meriem HILALI | 22/05/2017
Fatima et ses collègues accompagnent 27 coopératives (dont celle de Khadija) et deux unions de coopératives. Au total, ce sont près de 1.400 producteurs et productrices de safran qui sont soutenus. Fatima les aide, via un coaching, des formations, un accompagnement de proximité, à mieux s’organiser, à se professionnaliser et à accéder à de nouvelles opportunités économiques.En 2016, elle a notamment travaillé sur la conception de plans de développement pour établir une meilleure visibilité sur l'avenir, la mise en place d'outils administratifs et financiers et l'obtention d'autorisations sanitaires.L’intégration des femmes dans les instances de décisions est au cœur de ses préoccupations. Toujours en 2016, cinq coopératives ont élu des femmes dans leur Conseil d’Administration. Une petite victoire. Les choses évoluent, petit à petit.
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South to South exchange on private sector involvement in skills development
Hanna DEKERK | 22/05/2017
On the 27th of April 2017 BTC Uganda, together with the Belgian Embassy, organized a South –south skills development conference in Kampala on “private sector-led change towards sustainable financing & coordination of skills development”. Ugandan Minister of Education and First Lady, Janet Museveni, participated in the discussions. Training the hand The event gathered specialists in skills development from Uganda and the wider region, with representatives from Ghana, Namibia and Rwanda. Members of the Ugandan business community also shared their ideas on skills development, emphasizing that the reinforcement of technical and vocational training is a necessary condition for the socio-economic development of Uganda. First lady and Minister of Education Janet Museveni added: “In Uganda we used to train the head and the heart. But we didn’t include the hand, so we have an incomplete training cycle in our nation. A lot of people think to use your hand is a shame but we are changing this.” BTC is implementing the Support to Skilling Uganda program in joint partnership with the Ministry of Education and Sports. The aim is to implement the Skilling Uganda reform agenda at national and grass root levels by making Ugandans’ skills more responsive to the employer’s needs. In the words of Dirck Teerlinck, Belgian head of bilateral cooperation: “The private sector should be directly involved with TVET, they can only offer jobs if the people match their needs and technical profiles.” The private sector as a motor for change Within this context and in close collaboration with the Education Development Partners, the discussion focused on private sector-led change in skills development. In presence of a set of international guests from Ghana, Namibia and Rwanda, invitees discussed the way forward on 3 thematic areas: -Alternative financing for Skills Development -Work Based learning & apprentices -How to ensure quality standards in Skilling Uganda efforts. Knowledge and experience of advanced countries in the region were shared through bench-marking of their successful skills development systems. For example, Albert Nsengiyumva, Skills Development Expert from Rwanda stated that “Public-private dialogue must be held on a regular basis. That is why every year in Rwanda we organise a TVET –expo: the training schools showcase their capabilities and the private sector is there to see what the schools and government can offer.” In short, the south-to-south conference identified new areas for building synergies on private sector integration in skills development through sharing of innovative ideas that can be replicated for the realization of the Skilling Uganda Reform Agenda.
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Le Centre Al Waleed, un Centre de Référence.
Julie CLAASSENS | 19/05/2017
Docteur Eliane Ndibu, Médecin Directeur du centre de santé Al Waleed, Kisangani: "Le Centre Al Waleed existe depuis 2007. Au début on recevait uniquement des victimes des violences sexuelles. On garantissait la prise en charge médicale et psycho-sociale et on travaillait avec des ONG pour la réinsertion des victimes dans leurs familles. Depuis 2008 que je suis ici, le centre reçoit d’autres patients en plus de victimes des violences sexuelles, cela pour éviter la discrimination et la stigmatisation. Au début on était trois médecins généralistes et spécialisés, maintenant on est treize y compris les chirurgiens, remplissant ainsi un service complet 24 heures sur 24, alors qu’avant le service était assuré seulement le matin. On reçoit environ 32 victimes par mois, mais le nombre varie et est plus remarquable pendant les journées de fêtes et des cérémonies, comme par exemple le 8 mars (journée de la femme) et le 25 décembre (Noël). Pendant ces journées-là, femmes comme filles se promènent, sortent et deviennent victimes de diverses violences. Parfois elles sont droguées parce que quelqu’un a mis quelque chose dans leur boisson et elles ne s’en souviennent pas beaucoup. En plus, il y a aussi des hommes et petits garçons qui sont victimes de mêmes actes. Leur âge est très variable. Une fois, on a reçu une femme qui était violée par son petit-fils qui avait pris le chanvre indien. A l’arrivée des victimes, on organise d’abord une consultation médicale. Après il y a les examens du laboratoire, suivis d’une consultation psychologique. La prise en charge juridique dépend de la volonté de la famille. On garantit donc toujours la prise en charge médicale et psycho-sociale d’une manière gratuite. Les médicaments qui ne sont pas disponibles ici sont payés par la famille. On délivre le rapport médical et la famille décide si elle veut continuer la poursuite judiciaire. Les affections les plus fréquentes sont les infections, les grossesses pour lesquelles on organise le suivi et les césariennes. Comme il n’y a que deux psychologues, il est impossible de faire le suivi à domicile. Par conséquent, les victimes reçoivent seulement de l’aide psychologique quand elles arrivent ici et ce n’est pas suffisant. Beaucoup d’entre elles ont honte de leur situation vécue et ce qui me fait mal au cœur, c’est que dans la plupart des cas, ni les victimes, ni les familles ne sont capables de payer les soins et les médicaments. Auparavant on travaillait avec des ONG, mais actuellement on ne travaille qu’avec la Coopération Technique Belge qui nous appuie au niveau du matériel et de l’organisation de la prise en charge."
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First meeting of the Work-Based Learning (WBL) thematic working group in the Gaza Strip
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 19/05/2017
The first meeting of the thematic working group in Gaza took place on the 10th of May. The thematic working group consists of two representatives from the Ministry of Labour (MoL) & the Ministry of Education (MoE), representatives from schools, VTCs and colleges and representatives from the private sector (Chamber of Commerce, PFI and PITA) and Islamic Relief Palestine (IRPAL). The meeting focused on a SWOT and stakeholders’ analysis for Work-Based Learning (WBL) in the Gaza Strip and the results of this workshop will be integrated with the results of the same workshop conducted in the West Bank. Both thematic working groups will work closely together as one national body to ensure the approval and dissemination of the strategy in both areas. Working on the WBL strategy is considered to be an essential step for ECIB (Enhancing Capacities for institution building) to integrate WBL within the TVET (Technical and Vocational Education & Training) system. In the coming months more workshops will be conducted to finalize the strategy and to have it approved by policy makers.
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Annual Sector Review (ASR)
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 19/05/2017
The Joint Financing Partners (Belgium Germany, Ireland, Finland, and Norway) have been supporting the development of the educational system in the Palestinian Territory since 2010 through the Joint Financing Arrangement, JFA.Last week was an important week for the JFA as the Annual Sector Review (ASR) of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) took place. This is an annual exercise to take stock of developments in the education sector during the previous year and to provide guidance on future strategic direction.Four days of school visits, plenary sessions and workshops were attended by representatives from the Palestinian Authority (MoEHE central level, directorates, teachers and students), civil society and Development Partners (DPs). Besides the review of sector performance in 2016, this year's ASR focused on two key topics of innovation and inclusion.
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Graduation ceremony of the Master Craft course
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 19/05/2017
This week the graduation ceremony of the Master Craft course took place in the Chamber of Commerce in Ramallah.In 2015, for the purpose of capacity building, Syntra had offered courses to consultants to train mentors for skills development with regards to Work-Based Learning. Now these consultants trained mentors with the skills needed to guide and support apprentices properly in a Work-Based Learning environment. ---------More about the Master Craft training: The role of the Master Crafts persons in the enterprises is of crucial importance. They are responsible for the transfer of knowledge and skills to the apprentices, interns, etc. through different learning means and processes; they are the ones who will make the learning experience one that is significant or not. In such a Work-based Learning set up, they are more than just teachers; they are coaches, tutors and mentors too. Therefore, they need to be properly selected and trained. The selection should be based on the knowledge, skills and attitudes (KSA) of the workers. Apprentices learn by doing! The MC should be able to create a positive learning environment for the apprentices, interns, trainees, etc. to learn to give constructive feedback, to pass on his/her technical knowledge through active learning techniques, to know how to deal with conflict and so on, in order to properly transfer the knowledge to the apprentices. In a very simplistic way, the MC needs to be able to explain the ‘why’, i.e. the reasoning behind the actions needed to achieve the tasks. Aim of the service : Develop and implement a comprehensive toolkit for a training of Master Crafts persons (Private Sector coaches of apprentices) for the SME companies in the Palestinian Territory and this for the different systems of apprenticeships, internships, traineeships, etc.”
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Strenghtening Capacities within the Health sector through the Capacity Development Pooled Fund (CDPF) - First assessment
Alexis DE HERDE | 17/05/2017
The overall vision of the Capacity Development Pooled Fund (CDPF) is to strengthen and develop capacities within the health sector in line with the Health Sector Strategic Plan and Rwanda’s Human Resources for Health (HRH) Strategic Plan. CDPF contributes to enhanced quality outcomes in the delivery of health services. By choosing the modality of a basket fund, we aim to contribute to the health Sector Wide Approach enhancing the aid effectiveness environment through enabling pooled funding for capacity development initiatives. Capacity development is understood as “the process whereby people, organisations and society as a whole unleash, strengthen, create, adapt and maintain capacity over time” with capacity being defined as “the ability of people, organisations and society as a whole to manage their affairs successfully”.CDPF is building capacity strategically by:- Ensuring a coordinated approach to HRH planning across the sector, thereby strengthening the overall servicedelivery capacity;- Increasing the quantity of HRH through increased numbers of trained and equitably distributed staff at all levels;- Increasing the quality of HRH, including improved productivity and performance of health workers;- Increasing capacity to plan, develop, regulate, and manage HRH.An alternative aid modality The CDPF aims to offer an aid modality targeted at capacity development for Development Partners that are unable to contribute to Sector Budget Support and to function as entry point for a joint, coordinated and flexible financing mechanism that supports a national health sector programme using country systems.The CDPF initially aimed to provide a long-term basket, with easy and flexible access to funds for priority activities in health sector capacity development.A flexible pooling fund instrument The CDPF focuses on approaches that identify training gaps and unmet training needs as defined in the HRH strategic plan. It targets specifically human capacities at the district level that face greater challenges than at the national level. Due to its flexibility the CDPF is also able to support other components beyond formal education and training of health professionals.The CDPF should be able to adapt to continuous changes upon assessment and deliberation of a Steering Committee of all stakeholders. The day to day management of the fund resorts under the Single Project Implementation Unit of the Ministry of Health.Lessons learnt for future initiatives With December 2017 as the cut off point for the current CDPF budget and training portfolio, it is opportune to make an inventory of the lessons learned. An independent evaluation will be commissioned this year.- The fund has not been able to secure funds beyond December 2017. Sustainability is at best doubtful. What is the value a pooling fund instrument in the current aid environment? - Reform in the health sector as well as the education sector has introduced new challenges for the management of the fund reducing transparency and possibly effectiveness and efficiency. How do we make capacity building integral and aligned to a national reform agenda? - The fund has concentrated on increasing the quality and quantity of existing health staff predominantly through extensive training programmes. This consumed most of the fund leaving little opportunities for the flexibility as intended in the original concept. In the context of sizeable and competing needs, how do we maintain a vanguard concept and retain flexibility? - Coordination between the Ministry of Health Technical Work Group for HRH (responsible for strategy) and the fund was not optimal and mutual participation was not evident. Specifically discussions on considering the absorption capacity of the current establishment and recurrent cost implications suffered. This necessitated e.g. ex-post discussions with the Ministry of Public Service and Labour for placement and absorption of thus trained cadre. Are there lessons to be learned to increase the quality of the health sector policy debate?
