The Yemen Micro-Project (YMP) is The Canadian International Learning Foundation’s (CanILF) first project in the Middle East.  The YMP’s goal is to help to connect local partners in Yemen with educational and information technology expertise in Canada through collaborative initiatives.  Canada Bridges, an organization that has extensive experience in offering business education in Yemen, has agreed to help CanILF choose suitable partners and establish relationships with the Government of Yemen.

The YMP will be a two-phase initiative.  The first phase of the project will connect students in Sana’a and Hadhramout, Yemen, with online English courses donated by Intuto Canada through CanILF.  During phase two, CanILF will provide the support needed to boost the information technology capacity of selected Yemeni youth organizations in those cities, providing better accessibility to educational programs from Canada and opportunities for learning.

The YMP project is currently in its first phase.  A high-level description is provided below:

Click the diagram for a full-size view.

Over the next 12 to 24 months, CanILF will work with Yemeni educational and youth organization partners to deliver English and business-related courses remotely from Canada, with CanILF providing information technology and project management expertise.  By current estimates, the YMP will have a budget of between $15,000 to $20,000 USD and will provide each local organization with equipment for a computer lab of 10 to 20 workstations.

The CanILF team is researching funding opportunities for the YMP and welcomes any donations that could be used to provide local partners with computers, networking infrastructure, electrical equipment, and office furniture that could be used to build the Yemeni computer labs.

CanILF will also provide students in Yemen with access to its world-wide programs, such as the Peer to Peer Education Program (P2PEd).  The Peer to Peer Education Program connects professionals in areas of the world affected by war, illness and poverty to established professionals in other countries via the internet.  Peers will have the opportunity to learn about each other and their countries while engaging in professional development discussions.

To learn more about this project or to suggest a potential donor organization, please contact CanILF directly at staff@canilf.org.