REACH

Palestine is experiencing increasing unemployment and poverty figures year after year. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the poverty rate for men and women between the ages of 15 and 29 is 13.5% in the West Bank and 56.0% in the Gaza Strip. One of the main reasons for these high percentages is the lack of job opportunities for approximately 40,000 young students who graduate every year from the 20 universities in the Palestinian territory. The lack of job opportunities and travel restrictions push young graduates to seek employment in companies abroad, mainly freelancers. The REACH project aims to provide knowledge and skills to Palestinian students and young graduates that can be used in finding freelance work on an international basis, enabling them to actively contribute to local economic development. This objective will be achieved not only through direct training to Palestinian students, but also by strengthening the skills and potential of the career centers present in the Palestinian universities participating in the project. Furthermore, we will work on developing a solid network between Palestinian universities and the local and international labor market. REACH is led by the University of Gaza and involves 4 other Palestinian universities (Birzeit University, Palestine Polytechnic University, Al-Quds Open University, An-Najah National University), a local association (The Society of Women Graduates) and 4 European universities (Università degli Studi Guglielmo Marconi, University of Alicante, University of Ljubljana, Middlesex University Higher Education Corporation).