DOT Lebanon ReachUp! Interns and Lebanon Program Staff

The ReachUp! Training of Trainers session (TOT) for the first group of Interns was held in Beirut from November 6-21, 2008.  The TOT involved Interns from the four regions of: Nabatieh (Nabatieh Governorate), Said (South Lebanon Governorate), Metn (Mount Lebanon Governorate), and Tripoli (North Lebanon Governorate).  The TOT was a great success on both professional and social levels.

Not only were the Interns able to improve upon their IT, business and livelihood skills, they also developed a social network by learning how to communicate with each another and other DOT Interns, Intern Alumni and trainers from around the world through the DOT website.  An open gallery was also held to present the Interns' organizations and introduce the wide variety of NGOs involved with the program. 

The TOT Intern graduation was held on November 21st with representatives from NGO and municipality local partners and program staff in attendance. During the graduation ceremony, the Interns made very personal and emotional speeches about their experience during the TOT. After the ceremony, goodbyes were heartfelt and emotional, a sign of the training's success.
 

Embarking in Local Communities

During the TOT training, Interns and their affiliated organizations began to mobilize their communities and recruit participants from different walks of life, with a special focus on gender equality and youth.  The process involved handing out flyers, placing banners in the streets, word of mouth, phone calls, radio announcements, and other forms of advertisement to ensure all communities were informed of and motivated to be part of ReachUp! 

The first program launch event recently took place in the Sabtieh - Metn region with local partner the Lebanese Syriac Club.  ReachUp! Intern Rasha Husni and Intern Support Manager Rhéa Azouri presented the project launch in the presence of representatives of the Lebanese government and more than 150 people from the community. 

In photo: Rasha Husni (Intern and administrative team member), Rhea Azouri (Intern Support Manager), Julia Charbot (Intern), and Katia Bicandy (Intern)

 
The ReachUp! beneficiary training is now under way!