Digitalize Your Business (DYB) for Female Entrepreneurs program in Jordan
10 March 2024
Under the patronage of H.E. Minister of Labor, Nadia Alrawabdeh, represented by the Ministry’s Secretary General, Farouk Alhadidi, the International Labour Organization celebrated, in partnership with the Jordan River Foundation, along with representatives from government bodies and civil society organizations, the graduation of 156 Jordanian and Syrian women who benefited from the “Digitalize Your Business (DYB) for Female Entrepreneurs" program. The DYB program was a component of the project "Formalizing Access to the Legal Labor Market for Refugees and Host Communities in Jordan," funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM).
The program is part of the International Labour Organization’s efforts to increase women’s economic participation in Jordan by supporting the entrepreneurship of Jordanian and Syrian women. The project underwent several stages during which DYB toolkits were developed to establish entrepreneurial business projects, particularly for women. These guides were approved and developed through the International Labor Organization and localized to the Jordanian environment. Approximately 422 women received training in entrepreneurship.
20 specialized trainers from local partners, representing government bodies and civil society organizations, were trained. Subsequently, 182 Jordanian and Syrian women entrepreneurs underwent training to implement project digitization in their businesses. The training was supervised by the specialized trainers team. Financial support was provided, and 156 participants graduated from these training sessions to expand and digitize their projects. The selection process involved competitive conditions and a technical committee composed of the Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, the Ministry of Labor, the Jordan River Foundation, and the International Labour Organization.
ILO Chief Technical Adviser in Jordan, Mr. Qais Al-Qatamin, stated that this initiative is not just about boosting businesses. It's about empowering women and youth with the skills to navigate the challenges of a rapidly changing economic landscape. He stressed the organization’s belief that digital entrepreneurship is capable of changing the economic reality for the better. This training, applied for the second time in the Middle East, is unique.
The Political Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Jordan, Mr. Paul Baldwin, also expressed great pride in celebrating the graduates of the DYB for Female Entrepreneurs program, highlighting the program’s impact on Jordanian and refugee women. The United States has provided more than $2.6 billion in humanitarian assistance to support refugees and host communities since the start of the Syria crisis. He thanked the Jordanian government and people for their generosity in welcoming refugees and highlighted that as Jordan and the United States celebrate 75 years of partnership, programs such as the DYB demonstrate the positive impact of U.S.-Jordanian collaboration.
Director of the Training, Consultation, and Programs Department, Dr. Mohammad Hourani, pointed out the pivotal role of the project in achieving the goals of the community empowerment program of the Jordan River Foundation, which provides its services to all different segments of local communities. He stressed the need to address the problem of the low economic participation of women in Jordan, which is ranked among the lowest in the world, through the solidarity of civil society organization and the public and private sectors to confront this challenge.
The ceremony also included the graduation of the 20 specialized trainers and the distribution of financial grants to graduates of the program. The innovative program aims to train and support Jordanian and Syrian women to digitize their businesses, enabling them to expand the scope of their work and enhance their access to local markets. It also seeks to renew the entrepreneurship scene in Jordan, empowering individuals to achieve success by developing and expanding their businesses.