Middle East and North Africa:
Project Funding
• Regions: Africa | Asia-Pacific | Europe | Middle East & North Africa | Latin America & Caribbean
Regional Youth Funding in the Middle East and North Africa
- International Organizations with Region-Specific Operational Programs
- Regional Organizations with Operational Programs
- Organizations Providing Funding for Youth Projects
AMERICA-MIDEAST EDUCATIONAL AND TRAINING SERVICES, INC. (AMIDEAST)
AMIDEAST is a private, nonprofit organization that strengthens mutual understanding and cooperation between Americans and the people of the Middle East and North Africa. Every year, AMIDEAST provides English language and professional skills training, educational advising, and testing services to hundreds of thousands of students and professionals in the Middle East and North Africa; supports numerous institutional development projects in the region; and administers educational exchange programs. Founded in 1951, AMIDEAST is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with a network of field offices in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, West Bank/Gaza, and Yemen.
Educational advising and information services: AMIDEAST’s advising and educational information centers throughout the Middle East and North Africa provide access to resources on U.S. study, information on the U.S. college and university application process, and support services for all those considering U.S. educational opportunities.
English language training: AMIDEAST offers English language training in locations throughout the Middle East and North Africa. Classes are taught by professionally trained teachers using communicative teaching methods. Students learn practical everyday English that they can use in real-life situations such as at work or school. AMIDEAST’s small classes, customized instruction, and comprehensive learning resources help students improve their English language skills quickly and effectively. Central to AMIDEAST’s approach to language teaching and teacher training is the integration of critical thinking and technology skills inside and outside the classroom.
Institutional development: AMIDEAST partners with NGOs, government agencies, and international development donors to design and implement institutional development programs throughout the Middle East and North Africa.
Professional training: AMIDEAST provides comprehensive training for business professionals, students, and executives in the Middle East and North Africa. Our professional training and development programs provide individuals with the skills they need to succeed in today’s global marketplace. Our training is relevant, targeted, and designed to develop competency in a range of basic business skills and advanced management techniques. AMIDEAST creates and maintains links between organizations in the U.S. and those in the Arab world; these links give clients access to a range of professional opportunities and American business resources.
Scholarship and exchange program administration: These programs contribute to individual success and provide a forum for positive cross-cultural interaction. In the long term, they hold the potential to improve economic development, cross-cultural understanding, and even foreign policy.
The latest financial information can be accessed at http://www.amideast.org/about/annual-highlights.
ANNA LINDH FOUNDATION
The Anna Lindh Foundation is an organization shared and resourced by over 40 Euro-Mediterranean countries to bring people together as a way to promote dialogue between cultures and respect for diversity. To fulfill this objective, the foundation leads regional initiatives in the Euro-Med space and supports local activities carried out by organizations based across civil society that advocate for better understanding among people, religions, and beliefs, and champion human rights and democracy. The foundation is a central member of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, and a facilitator of the participation of civil society in the Union for the Mediterranean. It works also as a center for information and dissemination of this initiative, and as an observatory of intercultural dialogue in the region. The foundation coordinates a Euro-Mediterranean network that gathers hundreds of social and institutional bodies that share the values of the foundation and work to make dialogue, peace, and prosperity possible in the region.
One way in which the Anna Lindh Foundation fulfills its mission is by providing grants to civil society organizations through an annual call for proposals to select the best initiatives for intercultural dialogue. The Anna Lindh Foundation works in six main program areas: education and youth; culture and arts; cities and migration; religion and spirituality; peace and coexistence; media activities. The call is focused on thematic issues in line with each year’s priorities. A directory of projects supported in the past is available at http://www.euromedalex.org/case-studies.
THE KING ABDULLAH II AWARD FOR YOUTH INNOVATION AND ACHIEVEMENT (KAAYIA)
The KAAYIA invites young Arabs to showcase their success stories and the positive impact they have had on their communities. Through establishing micro-enterprises, promoting the peaceful resolution of conflicts, fostering intercultural dialogue, and creatively using technology to boost employment and educational opportunities, young leaders in the region are making a difference and inspiring their peers to follow their lead. The KAAYIA, under the management of the King Abdullah II Fund for Development, seeks to reward these distinguished young leaders throughout the region by providing them with much needed support and recognition. The KAAYIA will enable these outstanding leaders to continue their good work, demonstrate what is possible to their peers, and in turn allow the concept of active citizenship to flourish and become an inherent part of the Arab youth culture.
KAAYIA invites young leaders who are currently leading development efforts in the Arab world that bring to life the notion of active citizenship. Applicants need to demonstrate significant contribution to the local community through their project; their project’s potential for increased impact; and how they could be role models for other young people. KAAYIA will provide each of the award winners with a US$50,000 grant, which will be allocated for two purposes:
The Project Grant: A portion of the US$50,000 will be provided as a two-year grant to support a specific venture or project defined by the awardees. These funds will support the scaling up of their project in the Arab region and help these existing successful initiatives to increase their impact.
Education and Training: A portion of this grant enables the award winners to pursue educational or training opportunities to meet their specific learning needs as young leaders and to increase the impact of their projects. These funds provide support to the award winners to pursue opportunities to enhance their skills and leadership abilities.
The King Abdullah II Fund for Development (KAFD) acknowledges and recognizes the winners and their work by celebrating and publicizing their achievements through the following activities:
Recognition: Winners were recognized at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East, 2009.
Publications: KAFD developed a publication to highlight the achievements of the winners and support their future endeavors.
Media Outreach: KAFD works with various regional and global media to highlight the stories of the award winners.
MIDDLE EAST YOUTH INITIATIVE
http://www.shababinclusion.org
The Middle East Youth Initiative was created to promote the economic and social inclusion of young people in the Middle East. It was launched by the Wolfensohn Center for Development at the Brookings Institution and the Dubai School of Government in July 2006. By creating an international alliance of academics, policymakers, youth leaders, and leading thinkers from the private sector and civil society, it aims to develop and promote a progressive agenda of youth inclusion. The initiative attempts to bridge the divide between thinkers and practitioners, and uses research as a foundation for effective policy and programs. The initiative has three complementary pillars: research and policy, advocacy and networking, and practical action.
The initiative’s central theme, youth inclusion, is the provision of opportunities that enable youth to fully participate in society and become adults. These opportunities include receiving quality education, decent employment, affordable housing, and the power to shape their communities. In order to address these challenges, the Middle East Youth Initiative promotes youth inclusion through an integrated approach that cuts across five sectors: education, employment, marriage, housing and credit, and civic participation.
SAID FOUNDATION
The Said Foundation aims, through its Karim Rida Said Fund, to bring positive and lasting change to the lives of children and young people in the Middle East. The foundation’s work is nonsectarian and nonpolitical. In 2007–8, the foundation disposed of a budget of US$4 million for programs. Its work is organized in three areas:
Further Education: This program contributes to the development of the Middle East through the education of young people for whom such opportunities would not otherwise be available. Over the years, more than 500 young people have benefited from scholarships including archaeologists, environmentalists, geneticists, linguists, musicians, nurses, water engineers, and university professors.
Child Development: The Child Development Program makes grants to education, health, disability, and risk reduction projects implemented through partner organizations in Syria, Palestine, Jordan, and Lebanon. In Syria, the Damascus office oversees the implementation of several disability projects across the country.
Arab Culture: The foundation aims is to build a better understanding and appreciation of Arab culture in the UK. This program hopes to persuade adults and young people to break down barriers and build mutual respect.
SAVE THE CHILDREN SWEDEN—MIDDLE EAST REGION
Save the Children Sweden was established in 1919 as an independent rights-based NGO with no religious or political affiliations. It is focused on developing child-friendly societies by supporting governments and civil society in actions that bring lasting improvements for children living under difficult circumstances. Save the Children Sweden works with children to achieve change through participation on matters affecting them, and promotes the responsibilities and duties of parents, guardians, and authorities in improving the living conditions of children.
Save the Children Sweden has been working in the Middle East and North Africa region since 1963 and runs projects across the region through offices in Lebanon, Palestine, and Yemen. In cooperation with local partners, it provides quality education and protection for children under all settings, including emergencies, and works to strengthen the capacities of civil society organizations that are advocate for child rights issues.
Programming in the Middle East and North Africa is organized in five main areas: education, protection, civil society for child rights, emergencies, and capacity building. Detailed information about individual program areas and projects is available at http://www.scsmena.org.