INJAZ
| Founded | 1999 |
|---|---|
| Focus | Youth, Education, Employment, Entrepreneurship |
| Location | |
Employees | 90+ |
| Website | injaz.org.jo |
INJAZ (Arabic: إنجاز) is a youth-centered non-profit organization established in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in 1999. Over, 1.9 million youths have benefited from participating in INJAZ activities since its inception.
This non-profit organization focuses on developing skills of the youth in four main thematic areas:
1. Financial Education
2. Life Skills
3. Business and Entrepreneurship
4. Employment
These four fundamental skills are developed through a variety of demand-driven programs, which are delivered to youth in schools, universities, community colleges, and various social institutions.
This organization implements programs across Jordan, in twelve governorates, by working with partners from the private and public sectors.
History
Sponsored by Queen Rania,[1] INJAZ was established in 1999 as a project under the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded organization Save the Children. In the early stages the project encountered opposition, notably in Ma'an; it was re-launched in 2001 by Soraya Salti as an independent non-profit.[2] Its activities reached over 100,000 school students in Jordan during the 2010–11 academic year.[3]
Over the past 17 years, it has established itself as a leading solution provider, linking the public, private, and civil society sectors.
It has developed its own programs in consultation with local and regional experts. It has collaborated with international development organizations to bring new, high-impact programs to Jordan and adapt them to local sensibilities.
INJAZ has a broad network of domestic and international partners. It has also developed solid strategic partnerships with key ministries, including the Ministry of Education (MOE), the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MOPIC), the Ministry of Social Development (MOSD), the King Abdullah II Fund for Development (KAFD), the Vocational Training Center (VTC), and the Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ).
Its aim is to meet a perceived need for vocational training, providing young people with entrepreneurship skills and enhancing their employability.[4][5] The program has been funded in part by the business sector,[6] and involves volunteers from private business in delivering the training.[7]
Mission
"Inspire and prepare youth to become productive members of their society and accelerate the development of the national economy."
INJAZ provides youth with skills and resources to enter the workforce by filling the gap between the national educational system and the needs of the job market.
In Jordan, the unemployment rate among the youth is staggeringly high. One of the major reasons behind the worrying unemployment rate is that Jordan has an underdeveloped entrepreneurial culture.
However, young Jordanians were more likely than their regional counterparts to have a favorable view of entrepreneurship. This suggests that it is not a lack of interest that keeps Jordanians from becoming entrepreneurs, but other factors, such as the perceived legal, financial, and bureaucratic challenges, as well as the lack of educational resources necessary to prepare for such a career.
"Inspire and prepare youth to become productive members of their society and accelerate the development of the national economy."
INJAZ provides youth with skills and resources to enter the workforce by filling the gap between the national educational system and the needs of the job market.
Programs
INJAZ’s portfolio of programs addresses the wide range of needs of young Jordanians. The programs complement the education and training provided by traditional educational institutions. These programs are designed to develop their vital soft and hard skills. They also help build entrepreneurial skills necessary to be strong candidates and entrepreneurs in a competitive job market.
INJAZ reaches over 130,000 youth a year with its programs. It implements over 44 programs throughout Jordan's 12 governorates, in close collaboration with 3000 schools, 41 universities/colleges, and 50 youth centers.
Volunteerism
INJAZ has a platform to set up volunteer services in a more coordinated, systematic, and efficient manner. It offers effective means to engage volunteers in building their society and to spread a culture of volunteerism in Jordan.
INJAZ already succeeded in institutionalizing volunteerism within the corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs, which have been already adopted by many of its over-300 private and public sector partners.
INJAZ removes typical logistical and/or bureaucratic barriers to enable members of the private sector to work directly with the youth. This model has been developed in consultation with partners, which includes government officials and institutions, the private sector, educators, volunteers and students.
Organization
INJAZ is headquartered in Amman, Jordan with field offices in Irbid, Zarqa, Karak, Wadi Musa, Tafilah and Aqaba.
References
- ↑ Soraya Altorki (2015). A Companion to the Anthropology of the Middle East. Wiley. p. 398. ISBN 978-1-118-47567-6.
- ↑ P. Andrews; F. Wood (8 December 2013). Uberpreneurs: How to Create Innovative Global Businesses and Transform Human Societies. Springer. pp. 150–151. ISBN 978-1-137-37615-2.
- ↑ Youth and Skills: Putting Education to Work. UNESCO. 2012. p. 246. ISBN 978-92-3-104240-9.
- ↑ Report on trade mission to Tunisia, Jordan, Oman, and Egypt. DIANE Publishing. 2005. p. 17. ISBN 978-1-4289-5005-4.
- ↑ Navtej Dhillon; Tarik Yousef (2011). Generation in Waiting: The Unfulfilled Promise of Young People in the Middle East. Brookings Institution Press. p. 160. ISBN 978-0-8157-0472-0.
- ↑ Christopher M. Schroeder (2013). Startup Rising: The Entrepreneurial Revolution Remaking the Middle East. St. Martin's Press. p. 122. ISBN 978-1-137-35671-0.
- ↑ World Bank (2004). Gender and Development in the Middle East and North Africa: Women in the Public Sphere. World Bank Publications. p. 40. ISBN 978-0-8213-5676-0.