Amani honey and Bajash crafts…successful Yemeni projects supported by the Qatari “Silatech” | Economy

The young Yemeni woman, Amani Abdel-Wasi, is the best example of the ability of determination to turn passion into a fruitful business project. Motivated by her love for nature and her desire to enrich her community, Amani established a beekeeping project in Sana’a Governorate, which contributed to improving her life and the lives of others around her.

Before joining the “Your Future” project implemented by the Qatari Silatech Foundation, Amani faced many challenges in managing the financial aspects of her project, and was struggling to obtain the necessary resources to expand it, but, through the intensive training she received through the Foundation, she acquired skills in managing financial matters. It enabled her to make informed financial decisions and manage her resources efficiently.

Silatech, an international non-profit social development institution in Qatar, works to connect young people wherever they are with the jobs and resources needed to establish and develop their projects by providing broad and innovative solutions in the field of employment by working with local, regional and international partners.

Thanks to an electronic loan she obtained through the “Your Future” project, Amani was able to expand her bee farm, which led to increased honey production and improved product quality. Amani not only acquired skills in project management, but also opened new horizons to expand her market and increase her income.

Inspiring women

Today, Amani’s honey is not only a source of income for her family but also a symbol of hope and empowerment in her community; Her accomplishments have inspired other women in the region to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams, creating a positive ripple effect and encouraging more female ventures in the neighborhood.

Like Amani, Abdul Rahman Bajash transformed from an ordinary employee into an ambitious entrepreneur, overcoming the financial difficulties he faced since his childhood. Abdul Rahman worked in the field of handicrafts, but his financial circumstances prevented him from realizing his dream of expanding the scope of his business. However, He did not lose hope and continued to search for opportunities to achieve his dream of becoming a source of multiple income.

The big transformation in Abdul Rahman’s life came when he learned about the opportunities offered by Silatech Foundation in partnership with Al Amal Microfinance Bank, through the electronic financing program for youth. Abdul Rahman was able to obtain the financial support necessary to expand his activity in the suburbs of the capital, Sana’a, so he invested this financing in Enhancing its online business capabilities, which increased customer flow and demand for its services.

Big transformation

Thanks to training and funding from Silatech, Abdul Rahman’s project went from a modest idea to a successful business that he now runs efficiently. This has increased the demand for his services to the point that he began hiring workers to help him keep up with the increasing demand.

Today, Abdul Rahman is not only a successful businessman, but also an inspiration to the youth in his community, showing how the right support and persistence can turn simple dreams into reality.

Your Future Program aims to directly increase social, economic and financial inclusion, enhance livelihoods and build the resilience of vulnerable Yemeni young entrepreneurs through a targeted business accelerator program, by providing digital financial and non-financial services to enable young people to develop their small projects in Yemen.

The program will continue for 3 years in Yemen, with the participation of approximately 42 thousand young men and women, and the total budget specified for the program during the three years is 3 million US dollars.

Program Goals

Your Future Program aims to:

• Connecting 41,600 Yemeni young men and women to employment opportunities and self-employment through entrepreneurship.
• Promoting the concept of digital financial inclusion.
• Increase awareness and knowledge of electronic financial services.
• Increasing financial inclusion by improving target groups’ access to lending and electronic money services.
• Strengthening targeted youth projects by adding the “Utility Bill Payment” service to its main activity.
• Building the capabilities of young Yemeni entrepreneurs and enhancing their entrepreneurial skills.

Silatech Foundation, Education for Employment Foundation and Al Amal Microfinance Bank are participating in the project. It relies on two main components, the first of which is: providing digital financial services in the form of soft, good loans for existing and emerging projects for young Yemeni entrepreneurs, and non-financial services through an interactive online training platform. As well as providing non-financial services related to business acceleration, advanced entrepreneurship capacity building, financial and administrative guidance and training.

The Yemeni Foreign Minister signs a memorandum of understanding with Qatar aimed at supporting economic empowerment and addressing youth unemployment in our country through the “Your Future” project and the “Supporting Youth Entrepreneurship and Financial Inclusion” project, which provide job opportunities for more than 98,385 Yemeni young men and women through the Qatari Silatech Foundation.#Yemen_News pic.twitter.com/VaHl3SqlPs

– Yemen News (@yemnews_) June 9, 2024

Support leadership

Your Future Program is not the only Qatari project targeting youth in Yemen. Rather, there is a project “Supporting Youth Entrepreneurship and Financial Inclusion,” which will last 4 years with the participation of approximately 58,000 young men and women with a budget of $12 million, with the participation of Silatech Foundation, the European Union, and the Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND). And Al Amal Microfinance Bank.

This project aims to improve the economic empowerment of young men and women in Yemen by creating conducive conditions to empower youth economically and ensure their financial inclusion by establishing a grant fund to finance youth-led projects, and providing capacity building services.

The project methodology includes in-kind grants and training; To ensure support for the sustainability and expansion of the businesses of former beneficiaries who are still struggling with their businesses, and given the operational cash flow requirements of youth-owned companies and projects, specifically startups, in-kind and cash grants will be provided to meet their essential needs for their success.

Silatech is cooperating with its partners, the European Union, the Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND), and Al Amal Microfinance Bank to implement the project through 3 main components:

• Providing a grant model for young entrepreneurs.
• Providing an interest-free microloan model for young entrepreneurs.
• Providing capacity building services for young entrepreneurs.

The targeted sectors of the project include all micro-projects related to the commercial, service, and industrial production sectors, solar energy, agriculture, livestock sectors, and the digital sector. The project also aims to support women-owned companies to enhance their role in society and to support their families economically.