Today on February 17, 2020, Erbil Polytechnic University has arranged a conference in collaboration with SPARK organization under the title “Jobs and Perspectives/Improving Prospects For Refugees and Vulnerable Host Communities” which is Project funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and implemented by Stitching SPARK. The overall aim of the project is to create a pathway to quality employment for displaced students, with specific attention to women as a target group.
The project will provide full scholarships to the student beneficiaries. It will assist two universities, the University of Mosul and Erbil Polytechnic University, with capacity building, curriculum development, and Training of Trainers. Trough high-quality courses in areas that are particularly in demand in today’s labor market in the region, as well as personalized guidance and support, the project will equip the beneficiaries for high-quality employment and a better future for themselves, their families and their community.
At the beginning of the conference, His Excellency Asst. Prof. Dr. Kawa Sherwani presented a statement. He said, “Good morning ladies and gentlemen, it is my great pleasure to welcome Dr. Govand Sherwani, the representative of Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the delegation of Musol University and officials of SPARK organization. Welcome to the launch of the project ‘Jobs and Prospespectives: Improving Prospects for Refugees and Vulnerable Communities’ funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs implemented in collaboration with SPARK and the University of Mosel. We are delighted to have received the fund for this project. The overall aim of the project is to create a pathway to enhance the employability of the displaced and vulnerable students with specific attention to women as a target group and vulnerable host community.”
Throughout his speech, Dr. Sherwani shed light on the plan of the project and said, “The project also assists us with capacity building, curriculum development, and training for trainers (TOTs). This project provides a high-quality course in the areas of English language, marketing, and Autocad. These modules are particularly in high demand due to growing labor needs. The project provides a better future for these groups of students, their families, and the community. This project coincides with the Ministry of Higher Education’s initiative to work towards implementing the Bologna Process in all universities in the region to provide qualifications in parallel with European standards. This project also gives the university accreditation that will be able to increase the opportunity of students’ mobility with various international universities. The Bologna Process also enhance the higher education standards in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The project is another step towards the university’s strive for internationalization and accreditation.
His Excellency also expressed his gratitude towards the Dutch Ministry and SPARK international organization. It said, “We are, at Erbil Polytechnic University, are grateful to the Dutch Ministry for providing this well-needed fund to address the local market. This project will undoubtedly enhance staff capacity building and skills and will contribute to their personal development. Likewise, students are the main beneficiaries of this project, where they will receive world-class training with excellent equipment to provide a great platform not just to learn theoretically but also practice their skills in the industry. We are also grateful for SPARK for including our university in this project, and this is the latest of the ongoing projects that we have had collaboratively with SPARK since 2011. We have just signed a new memorandum of understanding for the next four years. We are hoping we will have a productive next four years, and we are expecting a great challenge with a rewarding outcome.”
Then, Dr. Govand Sherwani, the Representative of Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research delivered a speech in which he mentioned the positive great role of EPU in enhancing national and international relations with such international organizations and universities. He also said that the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research always supports any project which serves the higher education sector, universities, and students. Finally, he expressed his warm appreciation towards SPARK for they constantly supported the Kurdistan Region universities.
it is important to be mentioned that the first training session in the framework of the J&P project, focusing on “The Bologna Process and Curriculum Development” will be held on 18 February 2020 at Erbil Polytechnic University. The target group for this training session is selected staff members of the University of Musol and EPU.
