Svensk partner: Ale kommun

Ale and Ghanzi, Botswana and Budesti, Moldova

Project: Dropouts and problematic school absenteeism

The idea of the project arose as the result of 3-party collaboration among Ale Kommun from Sweden, Ghanzi district from Botswana and Budesti community from Moldova.

The goal of the project varies from partner to partner. For Ale Kommun the project is ultimately contributing to good mental and physical health of students, low risk for drug abuse, crime and social exclusion. For Ghanzi and Budesti the project contributes to equal and independent society.

The purpose of the project is to ensure sufficient organizational capacity (of the local educational and governing institutions) to lower number of dropouts and decrease problematic absenteeism.

Project outputs are mostly common for partners. Among them are efficient cooperation among involved organisations, reduced bullying, ealy good support, efficient cooperation between parents and school, secure and conducive atmosphere at schools and hostels, teachers trained in how to increase attendance rates, improved access to school for children from remote areas, improved endowment of schools, increased interest in formal education and decreased number of teenage pregnancies.

Project activities envisage elaboration of community strategies and actions plans on prevention of drop out and problematic absenteeism, bullying and teenage pregnancies, improving efforts for early and good support, creating systems for absenteeism and bullying control and follow up, undertaking training program (on dropouts, bullying and study motivation) for teachers, administrative leaders, learners, farmers, parents and hostel staff, improving atmosphere, security and dotation at schools, interest clubs and hostels, student and parents surveys, meetings with parents, additional activities for students at risk of dropout, promotion of interest in formal education.

The project is planned for 2018-2020.

Citizen Dialogue Ale – Ghanzi

The projects overall objectives is a well-functioning democracy in Ghanzi with an efficient local authority which enjoys a high degree of legitimacy among citizens. This is an essential requirement for community development in remote area dweller settlements (RADs) in Ghanzi district. Citizens in eleven RADs will have good living conditions, improved self-esteem and can support themselves. In order to get there a significant improvement of literacy, education level and employment possibilities are needed. A smooth dialogue between the local authorities and citizens creates favourable preconditions for a successful implementation of poverty eradication projects and empowerment projects in remote area settlements.

The projects objective is that a well-functioning citizen dialogue is established. A well-functioning and efficient dialogue mainly between the local authority and the remote area dwellers in the district – Citizen dialogue demands commitment and agreed principles for dialogue.

YEE – Young Entrepreneurs in new Europe

Young Entrepreneurs in New Europe, YEE, is a project form that successfully has been evaluated and improved in the municipality of Ale during a nine years period. Due to a mixture of participants with different nationalities, a uniquely creative and entrepreneurial environment is created, which contributes to a positive and dynamic process development within the group participants. Together with other educational sites, such as Ale, Kaufungen, Bertinoro, St Petersburg and Raahe, a network is crated which contributes to the local development.

The project participants are strengthened in their entrepreneurial thinking together with their creativity. The particular learning process developed in the education, contributes to openness to a different way of thinking. This concept is crucial when trying to develop new techniques and solutions to stimulate future entrepreneurship. Through the particular group dynamic – with participants from five different countries – cultural meetings create possibilities to establish new contacts, enhance language skills and strengthen the participants’ self-confidence. All in all, the education creates good conditions for creativity and entrepreneurial thinking, together with a useful future network.

A positive outcome when implementing the project is that it leads to an education of local actors. This encourages a continuous work with entrepreneurship and creative thinking, which hopefully leads to a sustainable development of entrepreneurship and strengthen development and progress on the local level.

YEE2 – Young Entrepreneurs in new Europe

Young Entrepreneurs in New Europe, YEE, is a project form that successfully has been evaluated and improved in the municipality of Ale during a eleven years period. Due to a mixture of participants with different nationalities, a uniquely creative and entrepreneurial environment is created, which contributes to a positive and dynamic process development within the group participants. Together with other educational sites, such as Ale, Kaufungen, Bertinoro, St Petersburg and Gdansk and Cumana, a network is crated which contributes to the local development.

Young Entrepreneurs in Africa YEE3

The project with its unique concept has been carried out successfully the last 13 years in Ale municipality. At two occasions, in 2010 and 2012 it has also been carried out in Budesti municipality in Moldova. Both projects in Moldova were funded by the ICLD.

YEE training course is about attitudes. The main objective in YEE is to strengthen young people’s confidence and to teach them to think in new ways.

They shall improve their ability to think entrepreneurial and to develop creativity. By means of the special process in this education the participants will learn different techniques for development. They will learn to think creatively and outside the box and they will be stimulated towards future entrepreneurship. During the YEE training, education is mixed with teambuilding activities which also are entrepreneurial. They will create energy which is needed during long project days.