As a result of recent?global?developments,?particularly?in?Africa?and the Middle East,?¡ªan?international development?non-governmental organization that links youth with employment and economic opportunities¡ªhas?maximized?its?efforts?to safeguard?youth?against extremist ideologies?through?economic?and social?empowerment.??has also decided to?increasingly?contribute?to?programmes?that?focus on?conflict, extremism and?poverty.?
was formally announced?by Her Highness?Sheikha?Moza?Bint?Nasser?at ?At ,?Her Highness?stated?that?¡°by investing in our youth, we are investing in the security of our nations, and only secure and confident nations can build alliances based on mutual respect and common objectives¡?We have talked enough, now we have to?take action¡±.?At the?time,?former?51³Ô¹Ï?Secretary-General?Ban Ki-Moon?announced his full support?for?the?initiative.?
Ten?years?later,??has?contributed?to?connecting?over?1.3 ?million?young?men and women?with?economic opportunities. In March 2019,?Silatech¡¯s?founder and?Chair of,?Her?Highness?Sheikha?Moza?Bint?Nasser,?set?an?ambitious goal?for the organization¡ªto?create?5? million jobs?for youth by 2022. Eventually, this new target will require expansion to new areas to reach more youth and?forge?new partnerships, as?the?organization¡¯s?operating model is based on working with and through?partners.?
has?a?vast?network?of?more?than?300?partners,?ranging?from?government?to?the?private sector, and non-governmental, international?and?bilateral organizations. Such partnerships include many?51³Ô¹Ï funds, agencies and?programmes,?such as ,?,?the?n the Near East,?,?the?,?the?51³Ô¹Ï?Democracy Fund and?the?51³Ô¹Ï?Office of Counter-Terrorism. Soon?we will?also?enter into?partnerships?with??and?,?among?others.?
Through its?programmes?in 17 countries,??contributes to?the?achievement?of a number?of the?51³Ô¹Ï?Sustainable Development Goals?(SDGs),?including:?
Goal 1: End poverty in all its forms everywhere.?Silatech?supports microenterprises by focusing on the most vulnerable groups among?youth through the provision of loans, loan guarantees?and?training,?and by?facilitating employment opportunities and bridging the gap between academic and work life through several?programmes?aligned?with the needs?of?youth.?
Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.?¡¯s?programmes?target?male and female?youth?without?discrimination,?in?addition?to?tailoring?some?projects?to empower women in?particular.?
Goal?8:?Promote?sustained,?inclusive?and?sustainable?economic?growth,?full and productive?employment?and?decent?work for all.??consistently?implements?new and innovative tools and?programmes?to empower youth through?career guidance and vocational training?for?direct?employment.?The ?also works to support income-generating activities by collaborating with financial and microenterprise institutions. Its enterprise development?programme?includes?the provision of?loan guarantees,?as well as?training entrepreneurs?and?building?their capabilities?through?initiatives?developed in collaboration with international?partners.?
Goal 17:?Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development:??works through?international,?regional?and?local?partners, ranging?from the private sector, donor organizations, governments, civil society and?academia?to?develop?comprehensive?programmes?aimed at?the?economic empowerment of youth.?These?programmes?are implemented?at the local level?to sustain performance, transfer expertise and develop competencies.?The??has?also?adopted?some of the priorities of?Youth2030: The 51³Ô¹Ï Strategy on Youth,?namely:?
FIRST PRIORITY:?Engagement, Participation and Advocacy¡ªAmplify youth voices for the promotion of a peaceful, just and sustainable world.?
THIRD PRIORITY:?Economic Empowerment through Decent Work¡ª?Support young people¡¯s?greater access to decent work and productive employment.?
FIFTH PRIORITY:?Peace and Resilience Building¡ªSupport young people as catalysts for Peace and Security?and?Humanitarian Action.??
Although?Silatech?currently?focuses?most of?its operations in Africa and the Middle East,?where?the?youth unemployment?rate?is more?than double the?global?average,?it?is also actively taking?steps?to expand?its activities?to other regions,?supporting?a?broader?segment of youth.?
Entrepreneurial Project Management Training Workshops by Silatech
?provides assistance to?youth?through?its?three core?programme?areas:?,?,?and . The supports youth?job?placement?by developing mechanisms that link job-seekers to employment?opportunities;?teaching?youth?how to successfully transform?awareness, skills and experience?into employment;?and working with employers to enhance youth hiring practices.??links employers and young job-seekers through innovative technological platforms and?services,?and?provides them with access to career guidance and training services such as the Ta3mal and??initiatives.?
Through the ?programme,??helps young entrepreneurs?establish and sustain successful enterprises?by?providing them with access to finance, training, mentorship?and?new markets. To reach the largest number of?youth,?encourages?financial?institutions?to?lend?to?youth?so that they can?start?businesses?through combining technical support and various types of innovative financing instruments. The?organization?also?helps?financial?institutions?design?loan?products,?market?their?services, provide credit officers with focused training?programmes, and implement best practices to benefit both youth and the?institutions.?
¡¯²õ?³Ù³ó¾±°ù»å?²õ³Ü±è±è´Ç°ù³Ù¾±²Ô²µ?±è°ù´Ç²µ°ù²¹³¾³¾±ð,?,?covers?a number of areas, including?youth research and advocacy;?entrepreneurship?and development;?advancing?youth issues?in?the international arena and?with?policymakers;?and conducting research that?may?inform policy and programming by??and its partners.?
The three?programme?areas?are?integrated?to support several projects in the?countries?of operation?through a?dynamic?network of?national?teams?and partners.?
The ?is also?focused?on reducing poverty, which?is manifested in?its?targeting?of?vulnerable young men and women mainly in countries experiencing conflict?and?in post-conflict situations, and/or?fragile?States.?In this context,??has decided to?increase?its?contributions?to?specific?programmes?designed?to?deal?with?the?threats?and?impacts?of?conflict,?extremism and terrorism. Examples of such projects?include?
;?and?,?which?is aimed?at?building?the?capacity?of?Somali?youth,?teaching?them proper fishing practices?using the latest technological solutions to?help them?become well-versed in the industry.?
Although??programmes?are available to?young?women and men,?some of its initiatives?specifically target?women, such as the economic empowerment of women in urban, peri-urban and rural areas in . This pilot?programme, implemented in cooperation with ,?has empowered over 1,000 women with disabilities, survivors of?gender-based violence,?and women living in refugee and?internally displaced persons?camps.??has?also?partnered with to implement the women¡¯s?empowerment?programme, aiming in its second phase to train 5,000 young women?in food processing and packaging,?thus?providing?them with productive employment opportunities.?
In addition to economic empowerment,??works to?advance?social empowerment,?impacting?the communities?in which?it operates.?The organization?believes in the importance of youth civic engagement and?the?policymaking process, as they are the driving forces?for development.?
In addition to economic empowerment,??works to?advance?social empowerment,?impacting?the communities?in which?it operates.?The organization?believes in the importance of youth civic engagement and?the?policymaking process, as they are the driving forces?for development.?Within this context,??has?partnered with the?51³Ô¹Ï?Democracy Fund, Tamkeen for Development and Zitouna?Tamkeen?in?Tunisia?to implement the?Entrepreneurship and Inclusion of Youth Program,?which?supports?the economic and social?empowerment?of?youth?by?helping?them to build their confidence and?increase their?participation?in the democratic?process.?
is?keen?to?provide?appropriate?means?and?solutions?that?will?safeguard youth against radicalization?and?violent?extremism, in addition to protecting?young people?from illegal migration,?increasing?youth engagement in social responsibility, and mitigating?the negative?effects?of?conflict?and?war?through?reintegration,?rehabilitation?and?the?empowerment of youth?in?society.?
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