Private Enterprise

• • The first shipment of organic fertilizer will enter the West Bank next week. The Trade Facilitation Program (TFP), implemented by Chemonics, organized meetings between local traders, farmers, and the responsible Israeli Security Agent to ensure that agreement could be reached on the entry of the fertilizer. Israeli security has prevented the import of chemical fertilizers into the West Bank for several years. The lack of fertilizer poses a significant constraint to Palestinian agriculture and results in lower agricultural productivity.
  
  • The Palestinian Monetary Authority has formed an Internal Compliance Department to coordinate anti-money laundering reporting to the Financial Follow-Up Unit. As a result, the PMA will be able to ensure that suspicious financial transactions are tracked across the entire financial sector, including real estate and capital markets transactions. The Modernizing Financial Institutions project, implemented by Louis Berger, assisted in forming the Department and will begin training the new staff in early June.
  

Water resources and infrastructure

• The Tulkarem Western Entrance Road Project was inaugurated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 14 attended by the Palestinian Prime Minister, USAID WB/G Mission Director, Minister of Public Works and Housing, and the Tulkarem Governor. This was done under the Infrastructure Needs Project, implemented by MWH. The 3.7 km road is a vital commercial route between the northern part of the West Bank and Israel and handles a large percentage of all commercial traffic in and out of the West Bank.  Based on the first quarter of 2009, commercial traffic is expected to be over 83,000 trucks for the year, more than three times the level in 2007. The project will also improve the movement of Palestinians from one community to the other and ultimately improve living conditions. 

DEMOCRACY AND GOVERNANCE

• The Palestinian Central Elections Commission (CEC) team completed a study visit to Northern Ireland May 4-8 with the assistance of the Technical Assistance to the Central Elections Commission of the Palestinian Authority project, implemented by IFES. A team of Commissioners traveled to Belfast to learn how to support electoral processes that will lead towards a democratic and peaceful resolution to longstanding conflict. USAID and its partner IFES recognize the special example Northern Ireland represents to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as further suggested by President Obama's designation of Special Envoy Mitchell. This particular study tour focused on how the CEC could proactively bring political parties together and advocate for modifications in the electoral legal framework.
  
  
• USAID’s Rule of Law Program recently completed renovating and upgrading a new computer lab at Al Quds University that is allowing more than 700 law students to complete research over the internet and conduct course work. The Rule of Law, Justice and Enforcement Program, implemented by DPK Consulting, renovated the site and provided 24 computers, a server, furniture, printers, and air conditioning. The lab is also being used as a classroom to teach the first Legal Information Technology course offered by the university.