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Creating better jobs for young people in fragile states

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Opening pathways to employment

  • 14169
    Scholarships Awarded
  • 82413
    Business Skills
  • 4792
    New Businesses
  • 23840
    Jobs Created

Latest news

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Rawan Al Zaidy
story Omar Itani (22)
story Jonathan Niyongabo & Goreth Niyonkuru (35 & 30)
story Kubar Msho (20)
story Nesrin (28)
story Hamze Abu Zarifeh (24)
story Vanessa Bwitonzi (26)
story Rawan Al Zaidy (23)
story Mohammad Zakkour and Emrullah Gündüz (33)
story Claudine (30s)
story Mohamad (29)
story Aya Baroud (21)
Featured story

“We want an industry that is more fair, equitable and sustainable”

FabricAID is the largest second-hand clothing collector in the MENA region and recently received $1.6m investment. With the threads of society unravelling amid the economic crisis, this Lebanese social enterprise is proving that affordable, high-quality, sustainable fashion need not cost the Earth.

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“Before I just wanted a job, now I want my business to grow.”

Explore the stories of two entrepreneurs from SPARK’s entrepreneurship boot camp in Burundi. Jonathan founded new a copy, print and photo shop together with 14 other youngsters. While Goreth, who founded a small sewing workshop when unemployed, was able to grow her business through the boot camp. “The boot camp and coaching taught me how to plan the expansion of my business and how to acquire new clients.”

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“My CV is filled with certificates and internships”

A year and a half on from receiving SPARK’s 10,000th scholarship, Kubar Msho is now a Media graduate from the Nobel Institute in Erbil, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and has filled her resume with internships at national TV stations and media.

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“Back home, sellers are unwilling to sell to me because I am a woman.”

For any business, making connections and establishing networks are crucial to access suppliers and potential customers. This is even more important for refugee entrepreneurs, who face many additional challenges. SPARK, with financial support of the European Union, supports business owners to better access market opportunities through exposition visits. The benefits of expos are strongly felt by female entrepreneurs, as Nesrin testifies during a visit to a textile expo.

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“I wanted to help families to secure extra income”

Hamzah sells homemade ready-to-cook meals to restaurants, hotels and malls and works with a team of more than 10 refugee women who prepare the food. Hamze transformed his idea into a business in 2019 through SPARK’s Entrepreneurship Technical Support Programme (Bedaya), but COVID-19 hit the business hard.

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“Do not look for a job, look for a career.”

With an internship, youth in Burundi can have real added value in the job market and a chance to hone thier skills, whilst being paid. CREOP, SPARK's local partner, provided interns with general professional skills. Vanessa Bwitonzi, a 26-year-old nurse who interned at the maternity ward of the St-Joseph's Clinic and was subsequently offered a permanent position there, found these skills highly useful.

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“We use Ai technology to the max”

Three young Iraqis founded the country's first agritech startup. The country's ailing date palm industry is being revitalised through the company's use of Ai technology to offer a variety of palm tree care services.

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“Mohammad is like a brother from another mother.”

Meet the founders of İkiz Gen Mühendislik (Twin Gene Engineering), who are the embodiment of a successful business between host communities and refugees in Turkey. Zakkour and Gündüz established their engineering company in 2018 and benefited from SPARK’s programme to grow and expand.

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“It is such a joy to see the products of our entrepreneurs”

SPARK’s partner in Burundi, CEMAC, is founded by Claudine and Boniface. They founded a company on the streets of Bujumbura with a mission to support their fellow entrepreneurs to grow their businesses. The pair tackled societal stigma and financial woes but now work with hundreds of businessmen and women throughout the country. “It is such a joy to see the products of our entrepreneurs on shelves in grocery stores or on display at a local fair, beautifully packaged,” says Claudine.

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Featured story

“My father is a Mechanical Engineer, my Grandfather too!”

Mohamad Youssef Kinat, a Syrian mechanical engineer moved from Syria to Gaziantep in Turkey in 2013. Although faced with challenges, Mohamad continued to pursue his studies intending to follow the footsteps of his father and grandfather in the field of mechanical engineering.

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“Whichever country I am in, I should be doing something significant”

Aya fled her home of Aleppo in 2015, leaving behind her dreams of studying Architecture. With a scholarship to learn in her native Arabic tongue at the University of Gaziantep, she is on track to completing her Bachelor's degree this year.

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Our services

We provide young people with the tools they need to succeed in regions affected by conflict, climate crisis and displacement. Together with our local partners we implement six services that empower students and entrepreneurs to study, work and grow their own businesses.

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Creating better jobs for young people in fragile states.
Creating better jobs for young people in fragile states.