During March 2023, four 8-day training workshops were held in the governorates of Taiz, Lahj, and Hadhramaut, including Mukalla and Seiyun in Hadhramaut. The four workshops aimed at raising the knowledge of four local economic development ambassadors teams with the total of 45 member 29 Male and 16 female, building their capacities, equipping them with knowledge of local economic development and its indicators to understand the difficulties facing the local economy and the tools necessary for its analysis and evaluation, developing strategies based on partnership between the local authority, the private sector and civil society, and identifying the concept of partnership between the local authority and the private sector and how to develop, implement and review local economic development strategies.
These training workshops comes within the framework of the project to strengthen institutional and economic resilience in Yemen – SIERY, funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) through Studies & Economic Media Center and in coordination with the Ministry of Local Administration.
Taiz governorate
On March 4, 2023 , 12 members (9 male and 3 female) of the Local Economic Development Ambassadors team in Taiz city have received intensive training on the important aspects of economic development at the local level. The team consists of representatives of local authorities. the private sector and civil society organizations.
The training workshop combined the theoretical and practical aspects at the same time. The trainees worked on applying the tools and knowledge they acquired, in addition to field trips to the executive offices.
The training workshop was welcomed by the local authority, as the Undersecretary of Taiz Governorate for Financial and Administrative Affairs, Khaled Abdul Jalil, welcomed the formation of LED ambassadors team in the governorate and the training of its members, stressing the support of the local authority for the team.
While answering the team’s questions during the session, Abdul Jalil said: “We believe in the importance of partnership to strengthen development in the governorate, and we count on the local economic development ambassadors team to play a leading role in serving local development. Just as we supported the formation of the team, we affirm our full support for the team in its upcoming tasks.”
During the training workshop, the members discussed some issues of the economic situation in the governorate, where they listened to the difficulties faced by the private sector through a discussion session with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry represented by its director and his deputy, in addition to knowing the obstacles that impede the return of a number of government institutions and bodies to their work, as well as the role that must be played by the security and military services to reduce any threats to the private sector and thus affect development in the province.
Yasser Al-Maqtari, a representative of the private sector in Taiz, says: “These were rich and integrated training days in terms of topics, starting with concepts of local development, analysis of the local economy, strategic planning, and ending with partnership between sectors.” Al-Maqtari adds: “As representatives of the private sector, we consider forming a team as a first step on the correct way, and we will work with our partners on the government side and civil society organizations to create a strong and effective local economy.”
Hadramout governorate -the coast and the valley
In conjunction with the conclusion of the training workshop in Taiz, a similar workshop was held in the city of Mukalla in Hadhramaut governorate, eastern Yemen. The workshop aimed to qualify the local economic development ambassadors team in Hadramout, in which 11 trainees(8 male and 3 female) representing local authorities, the private sector and civil society organizations participated.
At the end of the training workshop, the participants expressed its importance, in addition to the partnership between the three sectors, the local authorities, the private sector, and civil society organizations, as this partnership is a strength factor for the local economic development ambassadors team to play an influential role in the economic development process in the governorate.
Hani Salem Bawazir, a representative of civil society organizations in Hadramout-cost, expressed his happiness at being a member of the team, and added: “This team is highly relied upon to bring about local development in the governorate, and the initial training workshop through which we learned knowledge, concepts, and tools for planning and economic evaluation, as well as the workshop is an opportunity in which the participants exchange their various experiences to serve this field.
On the other hand, Nour Salem, representative of the Office of Commerce and Industry, believes that the workshop meant a lot to them in terms of partnership and networking between the public and private sectors. She added, “We’ve got acquainted with planning tools, setting strategic plans, monitoring and evaluating projects, and a lot of knowledge related to our work.”
In Seiyun, a 8-day training workshop was held on March 14, which aimed at qualifying 11 participants (9 male and 2 female) from LED ambassadors team in the valley and desert of Hadramout, who are representing the local authority, the private sector and civil society organizations.
“A big add,” this is how the trainees described the workshop, including Mohamed Karama, a representative of the Finance Office and a member of the Local Economic Development Ambassadors team, who said, “The workshop gave me a lot of information and tools about placing plans and matrices on which projects are based, and studying projects in the local authority and directing it towards achieving economic development, as well as the importance of selecting appropriate projects for each region by involving society groups in setting priorities.
The workshop was welcomed by the government through Eng. Hisham Al-Saeedi, Assistant Undersecretary of Hadramout Governorate for Valley and Desert Directorates Affairs, who stressed during his speech to the participants at the conclusion of the workshop the importance of partnership between the local authority, the private sector and civil society, by developing strategies between the three sectors to contribute to policy-making and decision-making according to Correct foundations, expressing the local authority’s support for the team’s tasks during the coming period.
In Lahj
Another 8-day training workshop was held in Lahj governorate on March 14, aimed at qualifying the LED ambassadors team in the governorate, targeting 11 participants (3 male and 8 female )representing the local authority, the private sector and civil society organizations.
It was 8 days full of new knowledge gained by the participants.
“It was a workshop rich in knowledge and tools. We got acquainted with economic development and how to analyze the local economic situation. We also learned how to prepare budgets according to the local authority law, and how to partner between the public and private sectors,” Shim Abdullah, representative of the Finance Office in Hajj, said.
“ We benefited a lot form the because its important topics on economic development, strategic planning, analysis of the economic situation, development planning, making project matrix, and the importance of community accountability,” said Huda Al-Saqqaf, a representative of the private sector in the governorate,
Future plan
A collaborative mix between the public and private sectors, which establishes a long-term partnership in drawing up economic policies at the local level in all the targeted governorates, which is confirmed by the CEO of Studies & Economic Media Center, Mohammed Ismail, by saying: “The aim of the training workshops is to qualify local economic development ambassadors team in the target governorates, who are representatives of the public and private sectors and civil society organizations. These teams will support the efforts of local authorities in the governorates.
As these training workshops are a base for a future actions , Ismail said, “Local economic development is achievable if there is a joint action between local authorities, the private sector and civil society organizations. The concerted efforts between these three components will work to find innovative solutions for the challenges facing local communities, which is what we seek through this project and through the LED ambassadors.”
It is planned that the “Local Economic Development Ambassadors team will work during the next phase on a study to analyze the reality of the local economy, the business environment and the productive sectors in the targeted governorates, and come up with priority matrices. A public discussions will be held about these matrices with local actors, including the local authority, the private sector, civil society organizations and economic experts so as to produce a final draft that will be shared with local authorities for adoption and sharing with international organizations to set intervention priorities according to current needs.
These training workshops come within the “Local Economic Development” component that aims to build the economic capacity of local authorities to improve the economic future and quality of life for all, within a process through which public, private and non-governmental sector partners work together to create better conditions for economic growth and job creation.
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