The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) is working on a “Regional Initiative for Promoting Small-Scale Renewable Energy Applications in Rural Areas of the Arab Region (REGEND)”, which is funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). REGEND aims to improve the livelihood, economic benefits, social inclusion and gender equality of Arab rural communities particularly marginalized groups, by addressing energy access, water scarcity, climate change vulnerability, and other natural resources challenges in three targeted countries, Jordan, Lebanon and Tunisia.
 
In this context, ESCWA is organizing a capacity-building workshop of rural women on entrepreneurship in the agricultural sector, in partnership with the General Commission for Regional Development (CGDR) and the National Agency for Energy Conservation (ANME) in Tunisia, to build/enhance the knowledge and the practical capacities of a group of rural women in the region of Chorbane (Governorate of Mahdia, Republic of Tunisia) in the field of entrepreneurship in the agricultural sector by raising their awareness/knowledge in creating their agricultural projects that generate income, and in financing agricultural investments by taking advantages of grants, privileges, and funding provided by the State, agricultural development banks, and micro-finance institutions, and other financing mechanisms designated for the development of the agricultural sector. The workshop also aims to provide the participants with the necessary skills to create innovative agricultural projects according to the sustainable development approach – especially with regard to the Water-Energy-Food Nexus –, prepare their business plans, finance and manage them, by adopting modern methods of training that integrate theoretical (through presentations) and practical (through analysis of case studies) dimensions together.
 
The theoretical and practical knowledge and skills acquired will enable the trainees to develop their income-generating activities in the agricultural sector according to the sustainable development approach – especially with regard to the Water-Energy-Food Nexus – and, therefore, improve their financial incomes.