USAID Celebrates Closing of Workforce Development Project to Enhance Access to Quality Technical and Vocational Education for More than 1,000 Lebanese Residents

USAID Celebrates Closing of Workforce Development Project to Enhance Access to Quality Technical and Vocational Education for More than 1,000 Lebanese Residents

NNA - On May 17, 2023, the United States Agency for International Development

(USAID), through its Community Support Program (CSP), held a closing

ceremony for its four-year workforce development project in Lebanon.

Since 2019, USAID invested $7.3 million to improve the skills of and

employment opportunities for 1,087 unemployed or underemployed residents

of vulnerable Lebanese communities.nbsp; USAID Lebanonrsquo;s Mission Director

Mary Eileen Devitt, representatives from other donor agencies, technical

and vocational education training (TVET) institution partners, and

partner businesses attended the ceremony.

In her remarks, USAID Mission Director Eileen Devitt stated, ldquo;For years,

we have invested in training and mentoring for students and young

entrepreneurs here in Lebanon.nbsp; Whether through engaging them in

municipal-community projects, or offering scholarships, or helping them

achieve their business ideas, we are constantly striving to ensure that

young Lebanese can access opportunities that can enhance their career

prospects and allow them to contribute to the development of a strong

and vibrant economy.rdquo;

During the event, participants reflected on project achievements,

witnessed student testimonials, and held a panel discussion on

recommendations for future workforce development programing in Lebanon.

These included continued stakeholder collaboration to enhance TVETrsquo;s

institutional capacity, sustained coordination to develop a national

action plan to reform the TVET sector and investing in efforts to

continue addressing the negative stigma associated with TVET education.

Through USAIDrsquo;s workforce development project,