Finding a job looms large for most young adults in Jordan and youth with disabilities face additional challenges in the job market. USAID’s YouthPower activity trains youth as facilitators so they can help themselves and other youth gain the knowledge and leadership skills they need to succeed. The training, designed to be fully inclusive of persons with disabilities, equips youth with networking, perceptual learning, community and asset mapping skills.
According to 28 year-old Syrian Qaisar Al Hariri, who has mobility and visual impairments, “Not only did I overcome my fear of public speaking and build confidence to speak in groups, I also enjoyed socializing with the group who attended this training which covered disability awareness and etiquette topics. I wish there was more emphasis on these topics in schools and universities as they play a key role in social inclusion.”
Another participant, Amer Thuneibat, a 27 year-old with mobility impairment and a postgraduate in Special Education said, “If it was up to me, I would make this course a mandatory subject in Special Education degrees across all universities in Jordan, as social inclusion was achieved on the ground in not only in theory.”
Less than a week after finishing the training, Qaisar and Amer were facilitators in a Transfer Knowledge session for 15 youths with disabilities. One of them, Haneen Al Karmi, 24 year old with mobility disability and a 2020 graduate of Philosophy and Psychology from the University of Jordan said, "I was so happy to attend a training where several trainers were people with disabilities. It made me feel welcome, and also proved to the group that people with disabilities can be successful and can play an active role in the community."
Haneen appreciated that the training was carefully planned to improve social inclusion, for example with short breaks at the beginning of the training course and longer breaks towards the end, which gave the participants an opportunity to socialize and build real relationships.
Qaisar and Amer explained that they have gained valuable training, facilitation and public speaking skills, which opens up new employment opportunities for them, whereas Haneen said that as a result of the successful inclusion, she is now in the process of connecting one of the participants to a friend of hers to provide social media services for her friend’s business.
Since 2017, USAID has supported more than 584 youth-led initiatives through YouthPower in 60 communities in Jordan which has enabled more than 17,961 youth to realize their full potential and pursue their dreams. As the YouthPower activity comes to an end, USAID continues to empower youth to act as engaged citizens and productive members of society, to advocate for themselves, and to shape services to better prepare them to enter higher education, vocational training, and the workforce.
USAID/Jordan