Ramallah, 30 March 2022:   Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) is a powerful tool to increase skills and employability, especially for youth facing barriers to accessing decent work. According to the Palestinian Centre for Bureau and Statistics in 2020, half of youth aged between 18-29 were neither in employment, nor education or training. UNESCO has been working alongside partners in Palestine to address this issue and enhance youth access to employment via the joint UNESCO-Enabel project, TVET4Future: “Increasing TVET Competencies for Youth in the Palestinian Labour Market”.  As part of the TVET4FUTURE project, a Consultation Meeting for the “Policy analysis, Needs Assessment and Project Document to develop the Palestinian Labour Market Information System” took place at the Ministry of Labour. The Minister of Labour, Dr. Nasri Abu Jaish, Head of Office and UNESCO Representative, Ms. Noha Bawazir, and Enabel’s Project Manager, Ms. Shari Ghyselen, all attended the consultation meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to present the scope of the assignment, identify expectations and an action plan, and consult on an agreed approach.   The outcomes of this meeting will help to strengthen the capacities of the Ministry of Labour and other relevant national stakeholders to formulate policies which harmonize the supply and demand of the workforce, reduce the unemployment rate, and grow the labour market. It will also contribute to the provision of reliable labour market information to policy makers, as the project will prioritise efficient data collection, and maintain electronic statistics to support planning, as well as monitoring & evaluation. Stakeholders, including employers, job seekers and the business community, will have enhanced access to reliable and specific information that will meet their needs.  

Ramallah, 17 March 2022, UNESCO Ramallah signed today a Letter of Intent with the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research to demonstrates  its support and commitment to working with the Ministry. The Letter of Intent spells out the framework of cooperation between UNESCO Ramallah  and the Ministry of Higher Education in the joint implementation of the National Higher Education Strategy for years 2022-2023.  Ms. Noha Bawazir, Head of Office and UNESCO Representative to Palestine, pointed out that “Through this arrangement, UNESCO will be supporting different priority areas of the Ministry, mainly, Education Policy, TVET, Quality Assurance and Scientific Research including capacity building within UNESCO’s existing programmes.” She also mentioned that for years, UNESCO Ramallah and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific research have worked together to ensure quality, equal and inclusive education to all.   In addition, Ms. Bawazir confirmed that “UNESCO will also, support the promotion of Technical Vocational Education and Training as an important pathway for youth in Palestine in parallel to the higher education academic track in order to contribute to the reduction of the high unemployment rate among youth.”   Both H.E Dr. Mahmoud Abu Mweis and Ms. Bawazir indicated that the clauses of the Letter of Intent are in line with the Ministry’s and UNESCO’s vision and strategic objectives, especially in terms of supporting technical vocational education, assessing the needs of the labor market, promoting scientific research, in addition to  supporting the development of the new higher education strategic plan.    Finally, H.E Dr. Abu Mweis thanked UNESCO for its constant and generous support to Higher Education in Palestine and expressed his  great pleasure for signing  this Letter of Intent, as an important step towards fostering future cooperation."  The signing ceremony was attended by the  Deputy Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Dr. Basri Saleh, several Heads of Units, and representatives from UNESCO Office.   

To celebrate International Women’s Day 2022 (IWD), UNESCO Ramallah produced three videos, each one featuring a different Palestinian woman working in their own way to mitigate the effects of climate change. International Women’s Day is an opportunity each year to celebrate the achievements of women and progress made towards gender equality, while drawing attention to the challenges which remain.     This year’s theme - Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow - recognizes the critical contribution of women and girls around the world, who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and response, to build a more sustainable future for all. In line with this year’s theme, UNESCO’s videos are part of a communication campaign that aims to promote positive examples of women working on environmental protection.   With each video, UNESCO is inviting the viewer to take a look behind the scenes at a day in the life of these environmental champions to showcase the vital role that women play in building a sustainable future. Too often women are excluded from the decision-making table, despite their involvement and significant achievements in the environmental sector. It is now time to acknowledge women’s successes and unite to mitigate the effects of climate change.   Advancing gender equality in the context of the climate crisis and disaster risk reduction is one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century. It cannot be achieved without the meaningful participation of women and girls. Each effort in fighting climate change counts.  We see it with Rana H. Idais, a Water and Environmental Specialist from Gaza, who teaches her students every day about the effects of climate change on the environment in Palestine and beyond, as well as the importance of learning from accurate sources of information.  We see it too with Abeer Butmeh from Nablus, Water and Environmental Engineer and Coordinator of PENGON Friends of the Earth Palestine, who says: “Palestinian women are leaders in climate justice. Our ambitions and capabilities need to be supported to enable us to build a sustainable future.”  Finally, we see it from the perspective of Ruba Anabtawi, Environmental Editor and Reporter based in Jerusalem who highlights that “The media has an important role to play in raising awareness of environmental issues. In the media, we try to humanise environmental issues and make them relevant to people’s lives.”    All of these are examples of women who, despite many challenges, are still tirelessly working to ensure everyone can enjoy a society that respects its own environment and does not destroy it. Women play a vital role in society and all of us must support the leadership role of women and girls in Palestine! With their power, they can lead to real long-lasting change for all. 

UNESCO Ramallah has contributed several articles to This Week in Palestine (TWiP), the only English-language magazine that publishes variety themes on Palestinian interests every month. TWiP has been in regular circulation since 1998.  On Communication & Information:  Media, Disinformation, and Freedom of Expression  Promoting Media and Information Literacy for All  Community Radio Media in Palestine  On Culture: Living Heritage      

Education Cannot Wait: multi-year resilience programme (MYRP) in the State of Palestine   A working example of the Humanitarian- Development- Peace Nexus in action for the education sector.  To lean more: click here 

Ramallah, March 9 - Within the framework of the project "Developing Digital skills and Education for Sustainable Development through Distance Learning in Palestine", funded by Japan, UNESCO Ramallah and the Ministry of Education held the last closing session to celebrate the achievement of 10 TV staff from the Educational TV Channel, Ministry of Education. These staff completed a series of training courses on TV Engineering, Strategic Media Planning, Adobe After Effect, and 2D and 3D amination. These training courses were conducted from October 2021 through March 2022. The training equipped TV staff with technical and practical skills to develop quality educational lessons to be broadcasted on the Educational TV channel and uploaded on the educational platform. In addition, the training participants acquired skills for operating and managing the channel.    Within the framework of the same project, UNESCO trained around 120 educational supervisors and teachers on the development and recording of educational lessons to be broadcasted on the Palestinian Educational TV channel. Additionally, UNESCO is currently supporting the development of the Palestinian Educational TV channel to ensure quality and inclusive distance learning for all.    Murad Nassar, Educational TV Channel’s Manager said: “I am very happy with the comprehensive approach used in implementing this project, in which soft and hard components were included for the development of the Educational TV channel. These training courses are very important and are considered the first milestones towards the development of the Educational TV channel".