FWEN Participant chosen as one of Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Women

Nehaya, a participant in TYO’s Fostering Women Entrepreneurs in Nablus (FWEN) project, has been chosen to participate in the Women’s Entrepreneurship Leadership (WEL) Certificate Program sponsored by Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Women project, which began this month at the American University in Cairo (AUC).

The five-week certificate program, which began in Cairo on September 18, is for a select group of women from Egypt, Jordan and the West Bank, who have nascent business plans and leadership potential. At AUC, they will develop skills in business and entrepreneurship to support their business plans and ensure their future success.

Nehaya, 25, developed through her work with FWEN a business plan for a female owned and operated restaurant that serves traditional Palestinian cuisine. In July 2010, her exceptional business plan was among the ten chosen for the second phase of the FWEN project at TYO.

“Nehaya takes time to think and analyze before she acts,” said Fatima, the project manager of FWEN. “She is one of the most willing and engaged participants in our program.

“I am excited to meet new people and learn from them,” Nehaya told TYO before she left. “I think I will meet many people who will be very helpful as I start to implement my project.” Nehaya is also very committed to acquiring new skills as a result of this program, particularly skills in finance, research and marketing.

The WEL Certificate Program, implemented by AUC and The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania was designed specifically for young, underserved women from the Middle East. This program is part of Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Women project, a global initiative that will provide 10,000 women with business and management education.

American small business expert Steven Strauss speaks to FWEN participants

On Sunday, September 19, 2010, American small business expert Steven Strauss led a business workshop at Tomorrow’s Youth Organization (TYO) in Nablus. Mr. Strauss addressed an audience of twenty-five, including the participants in TYO’s Fostering Women Entrepreneurs (FWEN) project and invited guests from Nablus’ business community. Mr. Strauss discussed entrepreneurship strategies and recommendations that resonated with the entire audience from the young female entrepreneurs just starting out to the veteran business owners looking to break into the international arena.

Exhibiting a sound understanding of the local Palestinian context and its challenges, Mr. Strauss focused on the importance of marketing, the web and social media to drive investment and business through captivating local and international supporters and clients.

“Having a small business is a lot like being alone in a dark room: You know you are there, but no one else does,” said Mr. Strauss who went on to explain how a strong marketing campaign turns on the proverbial lights. Mr. Strauss is a world-renowned expert on small business as well as a lawyer, an author and a senior business writer for USA Today’s Ask an Expert column.

“His workshop was inspiring and encouraging,” said Saher, 27, an aspiring graphic designer and FWEN participant. “We are ready to start real businesses. We have so many of the ideas and skills he mentioned like logos and marketing. Now, we know we are on the right track.”

Mr. Strauss’ two-day program in Jerusalem and the West Bank was sponsored by the US Consulate General in Jerusalem and is one of many professional development and exchange programs that encourage mutual understanding between Americans and Palestinians.  “It is a new thing to meet an American expert. They are different than experts here. It is nice to learn from them because they present a different way of thinking and a different vision,” said Aya, 22, an aspiring goat farmer and FWEN participant. “It was a great opportunity to meet him.”

In the final hour of the workshop, each FWEN participant spoke briefly about her business concept and received personalized feedback and suggestions from Mr. Strauss. “This meeting confirmed our potential,” said Hayfa, 24, a FWEN participant who aspires to start the first recycling plant in the West Bank.  Per Mr. Strauss’ suggestion look for Hayfa’s profile on LinkedIn in the coming days!

Photo of the Day: No Place for Failure

Participants of ‘Fostering Women Entrepreneurs’ gathered on TYO’s balcony overlooking Nablus on their first day of training: March 8, International Women’s Day. The slogan that they chose for the intensive training in life skills, entrepreneurship and business is ‘No Place for Failure’. This choice, as well as the young women’s enthusiastic participation in the intensive training (ending tomorrow, March 20) demonstrates their vast capacity and desire to succeed. Thanks to partnership with the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women and the Small Enterprise Center, TYO is grateful to be able to work with these incredible women, creating the next generation of women leaders for Nablus’s economy and society more broadly.

President Clinton endorses TYO’s women’s entrepreneurialism initiative

Following our fabulous experience at CGI 2009 in New York last month, we were happy to hear from the CGI folks again today! They have made available an official seal of approval for all Commitment Makers in good standing (at left). They’ll also send a certificate signed by President Clinton that we will proudly display in the entrance of our Nablus Center, next to our other commitment certificate from CGI 2007!

In the meantime, we can confidently say that our commitment is in very good standing – we’re interviewing for Project Managers on Wednesday for the women’s economic empowerment initiative that we’ve developed in cooperation with the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women. The Small Enterprise Center of Ramallah is the local technical partner, and has generously agreed to help out from the very first stages of project development and recruitment.

Another great development on this front this week was learning of the Entrepreneurial Finance Lab within Harvard’s Center for International Development from Henriette Kolb, Director of the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women. The team at Harvard is studying ways to remedy the under-utilized economic potential of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries. This group at Harvard, as well as Mrs. Blair and her Foundation, see SMEs as an essential ingredient for fighting poverty, in different ways from microfinance initiaitives or global expansion of Fortune 500 companies. Harvard’s site provides a comprehensive and lucid description of the issue, as well as innovative and compelling solutions that they are developing, including using psychometric tests to evaluate loan applications!

Come visit us in Nablus to see the CGI certificates in person, and more importantly, check out this exciting new project to promote women as innovative and potent economic engines in their community!