May 2006

Empowering Youth

EDC offers aid, opportunity in West Bank/Gaza

When the organizers of EDC’s youth empowerment initiative in West Bank/Gaza want sound advice, they turn to the experts: teenagers and young adults.

“We are open; we don’t give orders,” says Hisham Jabi, who directs the Ruwwad project, a USAID-funded initiative based in Ramallah on the West Bank. “Young people are surprised to be asked, ‘what do you think?’ In our culture, that is almost too good to be true.” Youth have keen insights into development needs and are drawn to roles and ideas that allow them to create the future, says Jabi.

Led by EDC’s Global Learning Group (under its EQUIP3 program), this five-year, multi-million-dollar USAID initiative involves Palestinian youth and youth-serving organizations in both humanitarian assistance and the planning and implementation of programs that affect their daily lives. Project activities are guided by findings of in-depth surveys and focus groups conducted with youth and adults last summer. Staff hope they can harness the energy and hope of young people to help build a safe and just Palestinian society, says Jabi.

When USAID launched Ruwwad this fall, mission director Jim Bever invited young people ages 16-24 to join in an open discussion session, answered their questions, asked for advice, and listened to their stories. “I am still amazed by the fact that young people were invited to participate in all of the planning and partnership development activities,” says one 16-year-old participant.

Ruwwad (which translates from Arabic to “pioneer”) was initially designed to address education and civic participation, but is now emphasizing humanitarian aid. The West Bank and Gaza, long wracked by political strife, have been thrown into increased anxiety and crisis following the January election, says Jabi. EDC is working closely with USAID to determine how Ruwwad can best make a youth-focused contribution in the West Bank and Gaza, he adds.

Ideally, Ruwwad’s adult-youth partnership can revitalize youths’ sense of belonging and participation in society, he says. “Youth empowerment” in this region of the world can sound dangerous to some, but to Jabi and his colleagues it holds the prospect of tapping into undeveloped potential. Many Palestinian youth feel little sense of belonging and are often drawn into antisocial or violent cliques, he says. “There is a high risk of negative involvement” if programs like Ruwwad do not offer alternatives, he says. “The disengaged youth of today could be the burden of tomorrow. Our youth are very bright and they are also very idle. There has been no positive mechanism to engage them in their communities. But I believe that youth can be the energy that provides humanitarian assistance as we rebuild.”

Activities got underway last fall with the leadership of the Ruwwad Youth Forum (RYF). This group has convened and trained 350 young leaders, helped them establish a community center, and offered social activities. Youth participants built partnerships and internships that enhance youth skills and engagement in their villages. The Ruwwad program planned and conducted four kick-off events: Sharek, a youth anti-smoking campaign; a youth sports festival for female and male athletes at the East Jerusalem YMCA; Youth a-Live! Empowering Youth Through Media, a media training program for young people; and the Civic Forum Institute, which promoted youth involvement in the recent elections.

To guide program activities, Ruwwad staff refer often to their youth survey from 2005. In focus groups and interviews, says Jabi, youth identified their specific needs: practical training that would lead to real work experience, support for talents and creative initiatives, and support for girls’ personal development. Adults echoed some of those concerns, saying that youth need help with job seeking, technical and personal development, and relief from psychosocial issues.

Humanitarian needs are always changing, says Jabi, and lack of information is a profound obstacle to development. RYF leaders are now beginning to link together in an informal Internet community, and youth leaders provide information about community needs. Jabi’s office can provide support and training to take action. For example, young people are currently planning an activity to conduct a bird flu campaign among rural farmers who are raising chickens without taking the necessary precautions.

Ruwwad employs a full-time youth participation specialist to manage the work of these young leaders, who take responsibility for local committees that continually monitor local needs throughout the West Bank, which is about the size of Delaware on the border with Jordan. Currently, the RYF is conducting a campaign to clean a spring in Ramallah that supplies drinking water to a large segment of the population. “Young people are involved in cleaning and purifying the water,” says Jabi. “It is vital for them to feel this kind of ownership of a community problem. The impact of an activity like that can be life-changing. It gives young people a sense of belonging to a community.” Youth were trained in water purification techniques and are provided with buses to the job, meals, hats, and tools.

In the coming months, Ruwwad will develop additional ways to provide youth with training and experience that will give them an advantage in the job market.

“This is the first time I know of that the launch of a new program intended to benefit youth actually had youth fully involved and always present. It is a good sign for the future success of this project,” says a teenage participant.

Learn more about EQUIP3 at http://www.equip123.net/equip3/index_new.html

For more information, see EQ Review: Educational Quality in the Developing World. January 2006, Vol. 4, No. 1, available in PDF format at http://www.equip123.net/EQ_Review/4_1.pdf

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