Kabul, Afghanistan, October 25, 2005
– The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group has signed a memorandum of understanding with Kabul University to implement a business skills training program in Afghanistan. The program will be implemented by IFC’s Private Enterprise Partnership for the Middle East and North Africa (PEP-MENA).
This activity will strongly support the establishment of Kabul University’s planned School of Management by equipping upcoming professors with excellent teaching methodology and up-to-date knowledge of business practice. Such in-house expertise and experience will enable the School to maintain and expand its business instruction long after this program ends,” said Dr. Ashraf Ghani, President of Kabul University.
Our cooperation with Kabul University comes at an opportune moment. Reconstruction and development efforts currently taking place in Afghanistan offer huge potential for growth and employment. This project aims to empower more Afghans to exploit this potential,” said Jesper Kjaer, general manager of PEP-MENA.
The program will include the following components:
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On-the-job training of trainers for four Kabul University instructors.
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Four three-week-long training courses on business management and business planning for 120 students and other participants from the Afghan private and public sectors.
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Capacity upgrading for Kabul University to enable the university to sustain the training program beyond the lifetime of the project.
The training materials will be translated into the Dari and Pashtu languages in order to make them accessible to the widest possible audience.
PEP-MENA is IFC’s technical assistance facility that supports private sector development in the Middle East and North Africa. PEP-MENA focuses on improving the business enabling and regulatory environment in the region; strengthening the financial sector; promoting the growth of small and medium enterprises and their support services, such as business organizations and consulting firms; helping restructure and privatize state-owned enterprises; and developing viable private sector and public-private partnership projects, especially in infrastructure.
The mission of IFC (
www.ifc.org
) is to promote sustainable private sector investment in developing countries, helping to reduce poverty and improve people’s lives. IFC finances private sector investments in the developing world, mobilizes capital in the international financial markets, helps clients improve social and environmental sustainability, and provides technical assistance and advice to governments and businesses. From its founding in 1956 through FY05, IFC has committed more than $49 billion of its own funds and arranged $24 billion in syndications for 3,319 companies in 140 developing countries. IFC’s worldwide committed portfolio as of FY05 was $19.3 billion for its own account and $5.3 billion held for participants in loan syndications.
