ADWAR Association Finished Implementing All Activities For The Project: “The Role of Youth’s (Females and Males) in Holding Officials’ Accountable”

ADWAR Association has finished implementing all planned activities for the project ” The Role of Youth’s (Females and Males) in Holding Officials Accountable” which targeted villages and Bedouin areas located south of Hebron including: Sousia, Twana, Umm Al khair, Samo’a, Dura and Yatta. This project came in a partnership with Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). This project was accomplished in cooperation with the Local Councils, General Federation of Trade Unions of Palestine, and relevant specialized ministries (Ministry of Local Government, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Public Works and Housing, and Governance of Hebron).

This project aimed at raising the efficiency of the supervisory youth body and empowering the youth (females and males) in the domain of required mentoring tools and mechanisms they need to play their social roles effectively. It also focused on the roles of different specialized ministries and enhancing their social participation to meet the services needs built according to Gender. This project also strengthened the mechanisms for coordination and networking between youth body and different ministries to guarantee serving gender needs for habitants in the targeted areas. This besides enabling the supervisory youth body from practicing their roles in influencing decision makers in specialized ministries, through impacting on the procedures and policies being followed and their roles in upgrading the social services on the ground.

The project included various activities as the following: five training workshops, a celebration day to launch activities of the supervisory youth body, and an introductory documentary report in cooperation with TVs. The activities continued with three TV shows for dialogue with the officials. In addition, there were five meetings for the youth body to follow up with the decision makers and a final documentary report, for three minutes, also done in cooperation with TVs. The number of beneficiaries from activities reached 286 (170 women and 116 men).

At the end of implementing the planned activities, a lot of accomplishments were achieved including: the youth (females and males) have become able to practice their roles in impacting and influencing decision makers (females and males) and hold them accountable regarding their roles in serving gender needs for youth (females and males) and residents of targeted areas in general.

In terms of the accomplishments of specialized ministries: Mr. Ra’ed Al Sharabati (Director of Hebron Local Governance Directorate) a certain budget will be provided for the paving of inner roads in Bedouin communities with 200,000$. Mr. Mohammed Hassan Al Jabarin (Ministry of Local Government – Assistant Undersecretary) declared that there is a special budget for the paving of inner roads in the Bedouin communities which will begin as soon as possible. In Umm Al Khair, Hmaidah Health Center has already started working for four days/week instead of two days/week. These clinics now serve women which were suffering from a shortage in the medical services and were prevented to have their health rights in clinics and benefit from the medical services offered there. Ministry of Education declared that there will be projects in the future aiming at upgrading the educational services in these Bedouin communities.  

Mrs. Sahar Al Kawasmeh (General Director of ADWAR Association) expressed her satisfaction about the tangible results on the ground regarding the health services and roads paving. She also hopes that the Ministry of Education could establish schools for females in these Bedouin areas to reduce their schools dropouts, besides enhancing their participation in civil society.