democracy and governance

• Chief Justice and High Court Offices Renovated:  USAID’s Justice and Enforcement Rule of Law Program, implemented by DPK Consulting, completed renovations on the Chief Justice’s new offices as well as the High Court and Cassation Court.  

• Strategic Planning Training for Ministry of Local Government and West Bank Communities:  USAID’s Local Democratic Reform (LDR) program, implemented by Cooperative Housing Foundation (CHF), conducted strategic planning training for 81 Ministry of Local Government officials.  The skills acquired by the trainees will enable them to conduct strategic planning for their departments, which will contribute to a larger Ministry-wide plan still to be developed.  Additionally, LDR completed ten strategic planning workshops with nine local government units across the West Bank.  Approximately 250 local government officials participated, supporting their efforts to prepare strategic development frameworks for their communities. 

• Advocacy Training for Birzeit Municipality:  USAID’s Local Democratic Reform (LDR) program, implemented by Cooperative Housing Foundation (CHF), held a two-day advocacy training workshop with staff from Birzeit Municipality and local council members.  Birzeit Municipality is developing a campaign to encourage citizens to pay overdue water fees.

water resources and infrastructure

• New Water Network Constructed in Mount Jerzim:  Under the Emergency Water and Sanitation and Other Infrastructure (EWAS II) Program, implemented by ANERA, USAID constructed a new water network to supply drinking water to the residents of Mount Jerzim in the Nablus Governorate.  Approximately 850 people will now have access to clean, reliable, and chlorinated water supply.  Additionally, the project created 800 person days of employment.
  
  Rainwater Drainage Network in Tubas:  USAID constructed 1.4 Km of rainwater drainage pipes in Tubas in the northern West Bank under its EWAS II program, implemented by ANERA.  The project will improve the rainwater drainage system and enable preventing flooding and disruptions of normal life along the main road of Tubas town.  The project created 900 person days of employment.

ECONOMIC GROWTH

• Training on Consumer Protection and Financial Literacy:  Thirty-seven bankers, insurance company representatives, regulators, and donors attended a conference on consumer protection and financial literacy, based on a report prepared for USAID by the Development Innovations Group

• Feasibility Study for $5 Million Date Farm Investment:  USAID agreed with Cairo Amman Bank to conduct a feasibility study for a proposed Manasra Date Farm.  The investment, to be partially funded by a $5 million loan from Cairo Amman Bank, would build the privately-owned date farm to international standards. 

• Briefing for Mitchell Team on “Trusted Trader” Status for West Bank Producers:  USAID briefed the Mitchell team on plans for a pilot program for 13 large companies from Hebron to be allowed to move their goods door-to-door to destinations in Israel.  At present, these producers have to transfer merchandise from Palestinian trucks to Israeli trucks at the crossing points.  This process is expensive, time consuming and potentially damaging to high valued products.  “Trusted Traders” is a topic followed closely within the Inter-Agency Policy Coordination (IPC) framework.
  
  
• New Al-Rafah Microfinance Bank Branch Opened in South Hebron:  With USAID financing, Al Rafah Microfinance Bank opened a new branch in Dura, near Hebron, to service the financial services needs of rural residents of the southern West Bank.

HEALTH AND HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE

• Quality Control Training for Ministry of Health Food Inspectors:  USAID’s A2Z Micronutrient Project trained 77 food inspectors from the PA Ministry of Health’s Department of Environmental Health on how to implement the PA’s quality control and inspections guidelines of flour fortification and salt iodization in the West Bank.
  
  
• First Responder Training for Ambulance Drivers:  Thirty-six Ministry of Health ambulance drivers from Ramallah and Hebron were trained to be first responders to assist doctors and nurses in critical care at the scenes of accidents and emergencies.  Prior to the training, Ministry of Health ambulance drivers did not have the clinical skills needed to provide immediate medical services in response to medical emergencies.  The training was given through the Palestinian Health Sector Reform and Development Project, implemented by Chemonics International.

EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT

• Conference Addresses Basic Education Improvement:  USAID’s Model Schools Network (MSN) program, implemented by AMIDEAST, held a first of its kind conference for teachers and principals.  200 education professionals participating in the MSN program and 40 Ministry of Education staff attended the conference.  Minister of Education Lamis Al-Alami opened the conference by thanking USAID and AMIDEAST for their efforts in basic education.