Within the framework of the 11^th Call for Project Proposals of COMCEC Project Funding, the COMCEC Coordination Office (CCO) has completed the evaluation process and announced the Final List of successful projects that will receive COMCEC Project Funding. Three projects prepared and submitted by SESRIC under three different cooperation areas of COMCEC Strategy were found eligible to be funded in the 2024 implementation period, namely:

1. Promoting Food Security in OIC Member Countries through Sustainable Agricultural Inputs
2. Empowering Youth through Enhancing Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET): A Pathway to Employment and Success
3. Strengthening the Capacities of African Tourism Boards through Sustainable Human Resource Management Practices

These projects were designed in collaboration with relevant national institutions in the Member Countries with a view to strengthening the human resources and institutional capacities in the cooperation areas of agriculture, poverty alleviation, and tourism, respectively, in the OIC Member Countries.

In the Cooperation area of Agriculture, the project titled “Promoting Food Security in OIC Member Countries through Sustainable Agricultural Inputs” will be implemented in partnership with the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of the Republic of Türkiye. This project will be conducted for the benefit of 15 OIC Member Countries. The Project, which consists of an online training course and an on-site workshop, aims to develop food security in OIC Member Countries by promoting the utilisation of sustainable agricultural inputs, such as improved seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides, to help smallholders achieve sustainable growth towards ensuring food security and mitigating rural poverty.

In the cooperation area of Poverty Alleviation, the project titled “Empowering Youth through Enhancing Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET): A Pathway to Employment and Success” will be implemented in partnership with the Vocational Education and Training Division under the Ministry of Education of Malaysia and the Ministry of National Education of the Republic of Türkiye for the benefit of relevant departments of the Ministries and national institutions in charge of vocational education and programmes in 15 OIC Member Countries. The Project, which consists of an online training course and an on-site workshop, aims at improving TVET strategies in order to increase youth employment in the OIC countries.

In the Cooperation area of Tourism, the Project titled “Strengthening the Capacities of African Tourism Boards through Sustainable Human Resource Management Practices” will be implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture of Malaysia and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Türkiye. The Project, which consists of an online training course and an on-site workshop, aims to strengthen the capacities of African Tourism Board members from 15 OIC African countries through sustainable human resource management practices to contribute to the development of a resilient, competitive, and sustainable tourism sector in Africa.

The COMCEC Coordination Office (CCO) introduced in 2013 the COMCEC Project Funding (CPF), a financing mechanism that funds projects submitted by the Member Countries and relevant OIC Institutions to realise the strategic objectives and outcomes of the COMCEC Strategy. The funding is provided in the form of a grant through the Development and Investment Bank of Türkiye, which is one of the main bodies in the COMCEC Project Funding scheme. Since the initiation of the CPF, SESRIC has implemented thirteen projects under various cooperation areas and in accordance with sectoral themes determined by the CCO. For more details about SESRIC projects funded by the COMCEC, please visit: https://www.sesric.org/tcd-activities-projects-funded.php