Press releases

Government of Japan announces continued support to the International Trade Centre

12 March 2020
ITC News

(Geneva) – The Government of Japan has announced that it will continue its support for the International Trade Centre’s (ITC) Refugee Employment and Skills Initiative (RESI), which aims to improve the livelihoods of refugees and internally displaced persons as well as their host communities through equipping them with skills for enhanced economic opportunities.

The funding from Japan will be dedicated to supporting internally displaced persons in Somalia, and in particular women and youth, to encourage income generation and job creation among these groups.

RESI Somalia will provide training, counseling, coaching and mentorship to promote digital entrepreneurship, and will have a specific focus on online freelancing. Doing work digitally is increasingly providing an opportunity for displaced persons to connect with international markets, thus creating opportunities for strengthening self-reliance and resilience.

This project is a response to an increase in returnees to the country following more than two decades of conflict. More than 85,000 Somali refugees in Kenya returned home between December 2014 and December 2019. Ensuring market-relevant skills building for returning Somalis is crucial to job creation and strengthening market connections to make them more self-reliant.

ITC Acting Executive Director Dorothy Tembo said: ‘I am very grateful to Japan for its continued support for the RESI project. By placing its trust in the work of ITC, Japan enables ITC to continue its efforts to strengthen skills of Somali displaced persons, and connect these skills to international value chains.’

About ITC - The International Trade Centre is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. ITC assists small and medium-sized enterprises in developing and transition economies to become more competitive in global markets, thereby contributing to sustainable economic development within the frameworks of the Aid-for-Trade agenda and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

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International Trade Centre
Jarle Hetland, Media Officer
P: + 41 22 730 0145
M: + 41 79 582 9180
E: hetland [at] intracen.org (hetland[at]intracen[dot]org)