Inauguration of three employability and social entrepreneurship centers as part of the Safir project

The Competencies and Entrepreneurship Center (EC2) of Saint Joseph University of Beirut is pleased to inaugurate three employability and social entrepreneurship centers, in the three regional campuses of the USJ

At USJ's Competencies and Entrepreneurship Center (EC2), the semester is off to a great start. As part of the SAFIR program launched by the “Agence universitaire de la francophonie – AUF”, three employability centers were inaugurated in the regional campuses of USJ from the EC2 Center on the South Lebanon Campus. SAFIR, a program financed by the European Union, is in line with the United Nations' sustainable development objectives and aims at supporting young project holders by promoting dialogue between youth and public authorities.

On Tuesday, January 10 2023 in Bramieh, the rector of USJ, Prof. Salim Daccache s.j.; the regional director of AUF in the Middle East, Mr. Jean-Noël Baléo; the president of Berytech, Mr. Maroun Chammas; the Vice-Rector for International Relations, Mrs. Carla Edde; the Director of the Competencies and Entrepreneurship Center, Mrs. Ursula El Hage; the Director of CLN (Campus du Liban-Nord), Mrs. Fadia Alam Gemayel; the director of the Zahle and Bekaa Campus, Mrs. Maya Kharrat Sarkis and the director of the South Lebanon Campus, Mrs. Dina Sidani, inaugurated the employability and social entrepreneurship centers within the regional campuses, both online and in-person, expressing the same interest in young students, future entrepreneurs.

It is with the speech of Mrs. Ursula el Hage that the ceremony opens. "This is only the beginning" she said, “the objective being to give the opportunity to all USJ students to learn about entrepreneurship and to encourage them to realize their projects. The Safir project was successfully carried out at USJ with the unconditional support of Mrs. Carla Edde.

This was followed by warm speeches from the directors of the regional campuses.

"We are happy to be together to celebrate the culmination of this project, which is only the beginning," said Ms. Gemayel, the director of CLN, replying to Ms. el Hage. “Many ambitious promises were made, including the realization of innovative student projects and the establishment of links with various regional markets in order to retain graduates locally. These graduates can play an important role in the development of their region's economy and consequently contribute to the economic revival of Lebanon, which is currently experiencing a crisis.”

For the director of CZB, the particularly dark times Lebanon is experiencing are causing students to question themselves: "why succeed?" or "what to dream about?"... To these questions, Ms. Sarkis argues that entrepreneurship would be "the most reassuring." Being "self-made" would be a "liberation," especially when it is thought of according to "sustainable principles."

In the same spirit, Mrs. Sidani, director of the CLS, insists more on the objectives of this project and on the benefits that these centers will bring to young students. "Lebanon needs these young people, their ideas and their cooperation in business" she says, “the employability and social entrepreneurship centers aim to "stimulate the creativity of young people" and "promote the incubation of ideas." It is also and above all "an opportunity to establish collaborations with regional companies."

"These will have the opportunity to benefit from creative, enriching and low-cost coaching from students in various activities and projects, allowing them to benefit from a first professional experience and a proactive approach to the labor market, while remaining in the service of the community," Sidani hopes.

Following these interventions, three students shared their joy of accessing the employability and social entrepreneurship centers from their campuses, and their recognition and gratitude towards the EC2 Center, the AUF SAFIR program and Berytech.

Joëlle Lahoud, a USJ student pursuing a master's degree in management at CZB, spoke about her experience in the Competencies and Entrepreneurship Center:

 “It really was an unforgettable experience," she says. The support the coaches offered was "indispensable", so much so that "the ideas presented were very innovative", she adds, before thanking USJ and AUF, whose SAFIR program allowed the inauguration of an employability and social entrepreneurship center at CZB. For the young student, this project represents "a huge change in the entrepreneurial culture that EC² seeks to disseminate among USJ students and young graduates."

Before concluding the inauguration, the speeches of Prof. Salim Daccache s.j., rector of USJ, of Mr. Maroun Chammas, president and executive director of Berytech as well as that of Mr. Jean-Noël Baléo, regional director of the AUF in the Middle East, allowed to end this ceremony on a solemn tone.

Prof. Daccache considers that it is first important to have employability centers on regional campuses in order to "promote enterprise culture outside of Greater Beirut" and to ensure economic development in all Lebanese regions. These centers are also a way to "give young people an opportunity to realize their beautiful ideas", he adds.

Mr. Maroun Chammas then spoke on behalf of Berytech and recalled that the objective of the incubator, initiated by the USJ, is to "give students the chance and opportunity to engage in entrepreneurship", which justifies Berytech's contribution to this project.

Finally, the Regional Director of the AUF in the Middle East, Mr. Jean-Noël Baléo, took the floor. His particularly touching speech testifies to the important support that the AUF brings to Lebanon. "I feel at home, I love all of Lebanon and particularly USJ" declared Mr. Baleo from the start, letting his emotions speak. He ends his speech with a burst of hope. This project has been finalized and concretized since the AUF believes in the "decentralization" of the economy and in the youth-driven entrepreneurship.

The ceremony ends with the hope of welcoming future businessmen in the employability and social entrepreneurship centers of the USJ.