Export Development in the West Bank

Results achieved as of March 2014 include: (1) following an institutional assessment of the Palestine Trade Center (PalTrade) and the development of a capacity-building plan PalTrade changed its corporate structure added a strategic planning function improved information technology systems and created a results-based management framework that integrates gender and environment considerations; (2) PalTrade staff received training on assessing trade agreements; (3) PalTrade is integrating environment and gender issues into its assessments of trade deals and is developing indicators to help assess them; (4) PalTrade improved its ability to provide standardized trade information at its offices and online; (5) 19 selected staff (including six women) were certified as export management development advisers to carry out enterprise diagnostics as well as environmental quality management; (6) PalTrade prepared for its first trade mission to Canada; and (7) PalTrade’s gender mainstreamed strategic plan was developed and resulted in extending PalTrade’s customer services and support to include women-owned businesses and cooperatives. These have contributed to improving the ability of PalTrade to respond to the service needs of exporting businesses and to support them in export development.