Regional social initiative Silatech and Palestine for a New Beginning (PNB) has launched a new interactive map designed to help enable more effective interaction between entrepreneurs, support organisations and policy makers.

 

The ecosystem map presents the relationship among more than 100 various entrepreneurship-related organisations and entities involved in finance, education, government, media, the private sector, donor institutions and civil society, said a statement.

 

The interactive map will provide a short description of each organization and link to its website, as well as information about where each organisation operates and, where appropriate, which economic sectors it targets, it said.

 

Palestine suffers from the highest unemployment rate in the Mashreq region, at 23 per cent. Palestine's youth unemployment rate has topped 38 per cent, higher than the Arab world's average of 30 per cent.

 

Zahi Khouri, PNB chairman, said: “When PNB decided to begin working in entrepreneurship, we discovered a very busy space, yet still very few successes. 

 

""We decided to work on this map in order for us to better understand the ecosystem, learn and decide where we could play a strong role (as representatives of the private sector and civil society).”

 

Describing PNB’s role in promoting entrepreneurship in Palestine, Khouri said: “We have focused our efforts on showcasing Palestine’s successes through the Celebration of Innovation, and on bringing the different players together through Global Entrepreneurship Week. 

 

""The members of our board also launched the Ibtikar Fund, which closes a critical funding gap between seed and VC investment. We hope that this map helps organizations developing new support programs understand where gaps remain.” 

 

Rula Shunnar, Silatech country representative for Palestine and Jordan, emphasised that “a lack of clear and accurate information often hampers entrepreneurs from getting the support they need; we believe this map will provide a useful tool to help strengthen the entrepreneurship ecosystem, and look forward to working with our partners at PNB to continue supporting the Palestinian people, and especially Palestinian youth, in the future.” 

 

Holding that helping new businesses to start and grow is essential for creating desperately needed jobs, Silatech works with more than 100 partners throughout the Arab world to provide entrepreneurship and employment opportunities for young people, said the statement.

 

In Palestine, Silatech partners with a variety of organisations to support Palestinian youth in areas such as access to microfinance, employability resources and job openings through Ta3mal.ps, career guidance, civic engagement and leadership training, it added. - TradeArabia News Service