A new training initiative, developed in partnership with OCP Groupe, is focused on addressing the difficult problem of youth unemployment in Morocco.  Young people in Morocco are particularly vulnerable to chronic unemployment.   One out of three youth between the ages 15 and 24 in Morocco’s urban areas is unemployed, but the highest unemployment figures are found among high school and college graduates, reaching a rate of nearly 60 per cent.  Moreover, nearly eight out of 10 youth ages 15-24 have never worked or have been out of work for a year or longer; and the longer these youth remain outside the workforce, the harder it is for them to break out of this vicious cycle.

Nada Rehan (left) from the West Bank is excited that her dreams of study in the United States are coming true.

Growing up in a refugee camp in the West Bank, Nada Rehan faced limited opportunities for higher education. The bright young Palestinian woman had excelled in her studies and stood out for her energetic leadership in youth community service activities. But “there was no way for me to go to college ... because my parents cannot afford it,” says Nada. Today, though, the high school senior is thrilled to have received an “amazing” scholarship from Mt.  Holyoke College, making her college dreams come true.

Bethlehem, March 31, 2011 — The Palestinian Faculty Development Program, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by AMIDEAST, held a launching ceremony Thursday to acknowledge the recent establishment of a Center for Teaching Excellence at Bethlehem University.

Muscat, Oman—March 28, 2011 A group of U.S. university and college presidents and vice presidents are visiting Oman this week as part of a special “Fulbright-Hays Seminars Abroad” program focusing on higher education in the United States and the Arab world.

Ramallah – March 18, 2011 – With co-sponsorship from Souktel, AMIDEAST recently provided a glimpse of what it has in store with its collaboration with Cisco to open a Cisco® Entrepreneur Institute Training Center in Ramallah, Palestine. The collaboration will bring entrepreneurship training to youth and aspiring entrepreneurs in Palestine as well as foster job creation and enable entrepreneurs to start and grow businesses in the region.

Unemployment among university graduates in Tunisia is a serious problem, and one that many believe contributed to the recent revolution there. The success of the government’s “free education for all” policy has enabled thousands of young Tunisians to receive university degrees over the past years. Unfortunately, however, many of them have graduated without acquiring key skills that employers are seeking. 

AMIDEAST will soon launch a Cisco Entrepreneur Institute in Ramallah, making the successful entrepreneurship training program available to aspiring entrepreneurs in the West Bank. High turnout for a demo workshop, co-sponsored by Souktel, underscored the strong interest in acquiring these types of skills in Palestine. AMIDEAST expects to hold the first Cisco Entrepreneur Institute workshops later this spring and has established a presence on Facebook, where it is actively sharing information of interest to prospective entrepreneurs.

A mobile library project in the West Bank is giving students new opportunities and something special to get excited about. Three mini-libraries created by AMIDEAST with funding from the Boeing Company are currently making a “reading road trip” to primary schools in the West Bank.

Women account for nearly half of Oman’s population, but make up about one percent of its top leadership. A community leadership program, implemented by AMIDEAST with funding from Shell Development Oman LLC, has sought to enable Omani women to advance their leadership potential and play a greater role in their communities.