The Business and Technology Incubator (BTI) at the Deanship of Community Service and Continuing Education at the Islamic University of Gaza (IUG) received a delegation from the Belgian Development Agency (BTC) as part of the Business Start-Ups & Incubators Support Project (BSIS),which is funded by the European Union and implemented by the Belgian Development Agency.  

The BTI delegation consisted of Dr. Adel Awadallah, President of the Islamic University, Dr. Nazmi Al Masri, Vice President of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Saeed Al Ghura, Dean of Community and Continuing Service, Dr. Waseem Al Habil, Deputy Dean, Engineer Basil Qandeel, the representative of the BSIS project in Gaza, and the incubator's staff. The BTC delegation consisted of Mr. Dirk Deprez, Representative of the Belgian Development Agency in the Palestinian Territory, Mr. Raed Rajab, Technical Expert of the Agency, and Ms. Haneen Abu Nahla from the BTC office in Gaza.  

Dr. Awadallah welcomed the visiting delegation and expressed the Islamic University's pride in the visit and the distinguished strategic partnership between the IUG and the Belgian Development Agency. He expressed his hope to continue cooperation in matters that support youth, graduates and the entrepreneurial environment. Specifically, prioritizing and paying special attention to entrepreneurship and the support of entrepreneurial projects that will support and empower young people of both gender and provide sustainable employment opportunities for graduates and Palestinian youth in different sectors; thus, contributing to the local economy. Professor Awadallah stressed in his speech the strong relationship between the Palestinian private sector and the IUG which is considered an integral part of the national economy.  

During the visit, new facilities for the BTI were inaugurated that are funded by the BSIS project: a common/discussion room, training rooms, and a meeting room. The delegation then listened to a detailed explanation of the progress of the BSIS project, the most important activities carried out, the challenges encountered and how they were overcome. The delegation attended the meeting with the Islamic Relief to discuss the progress of funding that targets the start-ups included in the BSIS project. This was done in the presence of the B&S representative from Belgium, a key partner in the implementation of the project, and Mr. Raed Rajab.  

Mr. Deprez also praised the progress of the BSIS project in accordance with the specific plans and timeline, as well as the outstanding performance of the BTI which reflects high professionalism and he expressed his hope in achieving all the objectives of the BSIS project to develop the capacity of business incubators.

The delegation of the Belgian Development Agency spent three days on incubator field visits inclusive of meets with ten operating start-ups along with other meetings centered around business related institutions. The project itself extends for a period of two years aiming to support the leading entrepreneurs of start-ups in areas such as technical, logistical, and business operations from the six business incubators in different governorates.