Project profile — Women and Youth Entrepreneurs Leading Change

• West Bank Gaza (100.00%)

• Government And Civil Society, General: Democratic participation and civil society (15150) (20.00%)
• Industry: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) development (32130) (80.00%)

• Gender equality (significant objective)
• Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting) (principal objective)
• Participatory development and good governance (significant objective)
• Trade development (not targeted)
• Biodiversity (not targeted)
• Climate change mitigation (not targeted)
• Climate Change Adaptation (not targeted)
• Urban issues (not targeted)
• Desertification (not targeted)
• Children's issues (not targeted)
• Youth Issues (significant objective)
• Indigenous Issues (not targeted)
• Disability (not targeted)
• ICT as a tool for development (not targeted)

This project seeks to create an enabling entrepreneurship ecosystem for low-income women and youth in West Bank and Gaza. Inspired by the concept of Obader (Arabic for ‘I initiate’), the project aims to reduce structural and social barriers to entrepreneurship, while simultaneously working to increase business opportunities for women and youth to successfully start-up, sustain, manage and grow environmentally conscious and sustainable businesses. Project activities include: (1) designing and delivering a media campaign to raise and challenge perceptions and attitudes towards women’s economic participation, entrepreneurship, and women in non-traditional enterprises and roles; (2) conducting awareness sessions promoting entrepreneurship; (3) delivering a capacity-building package including training, exchange visits and role modelling to women entrepreneurs; and (4) holding networking and information sessions between micro-finance institutions, banks, business development centres, incubators, accelerators and youth entrepreneurs.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) reduced gender-specific barriers to entrepreneurship for women and youth, with a particular focus on handicrafts and embroidery, food processing and agribusiness and non-traditional enterprises; (2) enhanced agency and business opportunities for women entrepreneurs to successfully establish, sustain, or grow a sustainable business in embroidery and handicrafts, food processing and agribusiness, and non-traditional enterprises; and (3) enhanced agency and business opportunities for youth entrepreneurs, particularly young women, to successfully establish, sustain and/or grow a sustainable business.

Results achieved as of March 2021 include: (1) reached 58,576 individuals (of whom 31,332 are women and 27,244 men) through social change initiatives designed and implemented to raise awareness on women’s economic rights and access to resources; (2) reached 4,070,259 individuals through the media campaign supporting women’s economic rights, promoting women entrepreneurs and discussing gender-based violence; (3) supported 87% of targeted women improved their communication skills, which enabled them to establish business relations with various value chain actors to market their products; and (4) 106 beneficiaries (of whom 80 are women, 14 are young women, and 12 are young men) by the COVID-19 Emergency Response Initiative.

• Proactive disclosure