Through the Deprived Families Economic Empowerment Program (DEEP) project which is funded by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) through the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the Palestine Information and Communications Technology Incubator (PICTI) succeeded in providing job opportunities to 57 beneficiaries who are characterized and recent graduates with information and communications technology (ICT) university degrees and come from a background economically deprived families.

PICTI received more than 300 applications from the entire geographic area in the West Bank and Gaza with the vast majority characterized as cases from non-employed recent ICT graduates in West Bank and Gaza. PICTI also conducted field visits and has visited the applicants whom passed and were accepted according to the UNDP criteria during March 2008 in order to interview these applicants to survey their living conditions and examine the family needs for it to generate income.

PICTI also engaged in series of workshops to promote the program with the private sector and was successful in receiving more than 30 requests from local companies in the West Bank and Gaza that expressed interest in hiring fresh ICT graduates. PICTI contributes some of it strengths is that is very close to the private sector with excellent relationship with company owners whom themselves are seasoned entrepreneurs.

Out of the total 78 beneficiaries, 57 recent ICT graduates were directly placed in more than 30 local companies in West Bank and Gaza, out of which 17 are now employed in technology companies in Gaza. This employment generation program comes as part of a relief intervention effort with designed intervention to provide job opportunities to deprived families capitalizing on the availability of a recent graduate as a member of this economically deprived family and thus such resource was assisted with value added training and matchmaking services by PICTI to place him/her a job in the private sector.

It is worth noting that providing employment service in Gaza was a managed challenge due to the fact that PICTI does not have physical representation in the Gaza Strip but rather PICTI relied on its strong relationship with the technology business community there through its partner the Palestine Information Technology Association of Companies (PITA) and their office in Gaza.

PICTI also succeeded in incubating 21 recent graduates out of the total 78 beneficiaries in forming and establishing six micro-enterprises in different geographical locations including Jenin, Nablus, Tulkarem, Ramallah, Hebron and Jerusalem.

According to Mr. Hasan Omar, the Project Manager for the program, it all started when “PICTI provided the first series of services to a pool of 100 candidates in a comprehensive training seminar whereby PICTI lectures, case studies and training material covered topics on personal skills development, leadership and management skills, business development, technology marketing and technology entrepreneurship skills. The training was a good opportunity for PICTI to learn more about the trainees, their skills, and interests as a preference either to opt for employment or to establish their own businesses.”

By the end of the five days comprehensive training, participants were divided into two groups: those who are looking for jobs and interested in the employment generation program, and those who are willing to establish their own businesses through the micro-enterprises model.

With regards to the candidates opting for employment generation program, PICTI has subsequently provided the recent graduates as job seekers with value added matching process service with the local technology companies. Dozens of interviews took place at the organized employment day at PICTI premises resulting in placing 36 beneficiaries signing their new career jobs contracts for a period of one year. In addition to the training conducted by PICTI, the first month of the contract requested the hiring companies to provide the newly hired recent graduates with on-job training on technical aspects related to companies’ business processes. According to Mr. Hasan Omar, he advised that “it was necessary to mitigate the risk of these recent graduated not having any industry related experience by financially compensating the companies that were willing to hire these recent graduates in return for their training level of effort. This was a brilliant PICTI intervention that the UNDP program has approved for us in order to kick start the professional careers for this pool of beneficiaries. Now, all of them are working in quality jobs in web development, ICT marketing, graphic design, communication, technical support and other fields in the ICT”.

Ms. Hana Beida advised that as part of its role, “PICTI is also following up and monitoring their performance through risk reporting, site visits, and frequent meetings to make sure that they are in the right way in their career and to assist them in adapting to their new environment through mentoring.”

On a similar note, six micro-enterprises (ME) were established for 21 beneficiaries. PICTI assisted the ME in renting premises for them in Jenin, Tulkarm, Nablus, Ramallah, Jerusalem, and Hebron. PICTI assisted them in registering their businesses at their local municipalities and providing them with procurement service for the furniture, hardware, and equipments needed. PICTI is also providing them with a package of business services including legal issues and contracting, financial assistance and marketing. The mentoring and coaching will be an ongoing process for two years to assist them in developing their business and marketing plans as well as running and managing of their businesses.

On the marketing side, and to make sure that they will succeed and sustain by generating income and revenue, PICTI utilizes its advisors’ experience and local network to open new business opportunities for the ME and increase their market share. As a successful example, a business agreement was signed between each ME and an existing company named GlobalCom Company for the purpose for the ME to provide VoIP service in their local communities in cooperation with the business processes of GlobalCom. This business model presents a win-win model for the vast majority of the existing technology companies predominantly based in Ramallah and for the ME located in different geographic areas in the West Bank simply because it is more economical for a company like GlobalCom to rely on representation in different geographic areas due to movement and transportation impediments in the West Bank as a result of the so many Israeli military roadblocks and the high cost of travel. Furthermore, Mr. Kameel Qattan, CEO of GlobalCom has also expressed his “openness for GlobalCom to be part of innovative and dynamic business model that is based on building partnerships and complimentary roles in the value chain in the ICT sector in lieu of the predominantly monopolistic attitudes”. Mr. Hasan Omar said that “PICTI is witnessing some breakthrough with some of the ME in generating sales for VOIP services in their communities and advised that some of the talent existing at the ME include multi-media and graphic design; but he also encourages other technology companies based in Ramallah to sign business contracts with these ME in other technology related business areas such as Internet broadband and other value added services, personal computer sales and maintenance as well as mobile handset logistical operations.” He also concluded that “PICTI is happy to see this pilot project with IDB and UNDP become a success due to the result in providing new job opportunities to recent graduates. He advised that it brings him personal satisfaction to see each beneficiary building his or her professional careers and entrepreneurial activities.”