برنامج سفراء الشركات

"Palestine Corporate Ambassadors Program - May 2009"

The Palestinian Businesswomen’s Forum (BWF) successfully hosted its second Corporate Ambassadors Program as a two-day program from May 4 to 5th in Ramallah, as a component of its membership with the Middle East and North Africa Businesswomen’s Network (MENA BWN) with the support of the US State Department Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) and Vital Voices Global Partnership.

The purpose of this program is to bring executives and business professionals together for business exchange aimed at business growth and global networking. This year’s program featured three dynamic Corporate Ambassadors: Susan Solovic, President and CEO of the Small Business Television Network; Patty DeDominic, President of DeDominic and Associates and former President of NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners); and a very active speaker in the Vital Voices community, Mary Schnack, President of Communication Bridges. These executive women traveled to Palestine to train, empower, and inspire Palestinian leading businesswomen and men in Advocacy as a Gateway of Opportunity aimed at highlighting the role of advocacy and how it can encourage public policy changes that allow women entrepreneurs a more active role in developing the Palestinian economy. These women would be accompanied during each session with a Palestinian counterpart to apply each topic to the local context.

The program was launched with a study tour led by Doa Wadi, BWF Executive Director and Dalia Othman, BWF Hub Manager for the Corporate Ambassadors on May 4th of seven businesses in Ramallah run by Palestinian women from different areas of the private sector. Among the businesswomen met were Shuaa Marrar, owner of Riyada for Consulting and Training, who began the tour with a background of her business, challenges she faced when starting, and inspirations that affected her decision; and Lubnah Katbeh, Managing Partner of Equity Legal Group who hosted a visit to her law offices with a background of the current laws that apply to Palestinian women, among other aspects of law. BWF Chairwoman, Manal Zraiq hosted a lunch for the Corporate Ambassadors at one of her five owned companies, Massar Co., giving a background of challenges she faced and risks she took in her path to success.

BWF Board members and staff invited Corporate Ambassadors, Palestinian counterparts, moderators, and Dimiana Farag, Vital Voices Global Partnership MENA Regional Program Manager to a networking dinner. Corporate Ambassadors were given the opportunity to mingle with Palestinian experts and moderators in each area of advocacy to better develop their sessions for the following day.

Attracting over 120 businesswomen and men, the Corporate Ambassadors event opened on May 5th with Manal Zraiq, BWF Chairwoman stressing the significance of the role of women in economy and the need to support businesswomen. Following her remarks, was her Excellency Khoulod Daibis, Palestinian Minster of Women’s Affairs, who commended the efforts of women leaders, addressed the need for governmental support of businesswomen, including vocational training for women, and thanked the US government for its support of such significant players in the Palestinian economy. Consul General Jacob Walles of the US Consulate in Jerusalem stressed the role of Palestinian women in the economic, social, and political aspects of society. Dr. Samir Hazbun of the Palestinian Private Sector Coordinating Council explained the Council’s important role in providing support to the private sector and commended the Palestinian businesswomen for their contributions to the economy. Dimiana Farag, Vital Voices Global Partnership MENA Program Manager encouraged participants to engage in each session and take advantage of the networking opportunities at the event and through resources offered through the MENA Businesswomen’s Network.

The first session of the day, Introduction to Advocacy, began with Mary Schnack and her Palestinian counterpart Tareq Touqan, Managing Partner of Legal Equity Group, and moderator Fatmeh Botmeh, Director of Training and Technical Assistance Department, General Directorate of Advocacy Media and Communication, Ministry of Women’s Affairs. Ms. Schnack defined advocacy and provided tools by which to effectively advocate on behalf of women entrepreneurs. Mr. Touqan applied Ms. Schnack’s experience to the Palestinian context with tools to advocate. He explained how the methods defined may apply locally despite the political and economic restraints that may exist. Discussion was animated with numerous questions and women seeking more to understand the potential of their role in advocating.

Building an Effective Media Campaign followed with Susan Solovic and her counterpart, Wafa’ Amer, former Senior Correspondent for Reuters News Agency and moderator, Imad Al-Asfar the General Director of Programs for Palestine TV. The purpose of the session was for participants to learn how to implement an effective advocacy media campaign. Ms. Solovic explained the tools needed to run a media campaign from the planning of a campaign to its completion from her experience building her online television network. Ms. Amer complimented Ms. Solovic’s words and added her experience in Palestine.

Patty DeDominic and her counterpart, Suhair Farraj the Executive Manager of TAM (Women, Media, and Development) organization, an moderator Amani Salah the Humanitarian Affairs Analyst for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Jerusalem gave the third session of the event Advocacy: A Case Study. Ms. DeDominic began with an emotional testimony of her journey as a woman having lived through many of the struggles American women faced years ago. She told the story of when advocacy was just a thought and how she successfully led advocacy initiatives to support the rights of businesswomen, eventually putting her in the position as President of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO). Ms. Farraj empowered the businesswomen to speak out and advocate for support from the government and local governorates, despite the political and economic obstacles that Palestinians face.

Between each session, participants utilized the coffee breaks with one-on-one follow-up questions posed to the Corporate Ambassadors and networked among each other. The businesswomen and men were inspired by these strong willed executives and were eager to conclude the event with an interactive working session. Mary Schnack facilitated the working session where participants determined specific goals as a result of the event, including developing a database of businesswomen in Palestine, creating a unified message with which to advocate, agree upon an advocacy media strategy that would promote the needs of businesswomen, and compose a plan to implement advocacy campaign. Media coverage was excellent, news outlets including all local newspapers, Wafa, Al-Quds, Al-Watan TV news agencies covered the event. Palestine TV later invited Manal Zraiq, BWF Chairwoman, and Amal Masri, BWF Board member to speak on “Good Morning Palestine” regarding the Corporate Ambassadors event. The BWF has reported numerous calls and a spark in interest by businesswomen in becoming members.