Geneva, 1st December 2011 - UNCTAD, in cooperation with the Palestinian Shippers´ Council (PSC), has officially launched the Capacity Development Project for Facilitating Palestinian Trade. The project is funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). The launching ceremony was held in Ramallah, on 28 November, and was attended by the Palestinian Authority Deputy Minister of National Economy, representatives from CIDA, the Palestinian private sector and the media.
Activities under the project will include the provision of expert training to PSC staff, the Palestinian shipping community and trade facilitation trainers, as well as the development of tailor-made training material. Moreover, the project will develop new partnerships with national, regional and international institutions, building the PSC´s capacity to deliver legal services and the preparation of studies and guidelines on topical trade facilitation issues.
The project will empower the PSC with the required organizational, analytical, strategic planning, policy and training capacities, so as to enable it to better service and promote the Palestinian shipping community´s needs and assume greater role in supporting Palestinian trade facilitation efforts.
Addressing the launching ceremony were Mr. Abdel-Hafiz Nofal, Palestinian Deputy Minister of National Economy; Ms. Maha Abu Shusheh, Chairperson of the PSC; and Mr. Mahmoud Elkhafif, UNCTAD´s Coordinator of Assistance to the Palestinian People.
Mr. Elkhafif said that in 2008 UNCTAD completed a project establishing the Palestinian Shippers´ Council (PSC); since then, the PSC has emerged as a successful private sector organization capable of serving the complex needs of the Palestinian shipping community. He saw the new project as enhancing the capacity of the PSC and ensuring its long-term sustainability. In addition, it will help build the knowledge base of Palestinian exporters and importers and increase their awareness of the different aspects of internationally recognized best practices of trade facilitation. Ultimately, the project will strengthen Palestinian national institutional capacities for trade facilitation.
According to Ms. Maha Abu Shusheh, the project will provide Palestinian shippers with the expertise necessary to improve their business performance, as well as address the complex internal and external logistical problems of trade in the occupied Palestinian territory. The project will also contribute to strengthening the capacity of national institutions for the provision of advisory services and training to Palestinian shippers, she added. Ms. Abu Shusheh also highlighted the importance of encouraging Palestinian women´s participation in project activities. This would be a step in the process of women´s integration into the business community, so that they can assume an increasingly important role in Palestinian socio-economic development.
