This program will be provided in partnership with the British Council, online. The program will allow individuals to work on their English skills in accordance with their level. Each level is constructed and supervised by the Council. At the end of each level, upon the completion of the exam, the Council will provide the student with a certificate. Having the program online, allows the Foundation to accept a high number of students.

This program is also in partnership with the British Council, and it will allow students in need of doing the IELTS to register at our premises for the exam. It is worth noting that we are the only registration Centre in the South, therefore this Service will not only serve inhabitants of Hasbaya, but those of Marj’youn, Rashaya and Nabateyi as well. The importance of this program is that it will allow an exposure to the English language within our areas, which is an essential tool for anyone wishing to be successful in their professional lives. It also assists the inhabitants by providing them with a local registration Centre that would spare them the need and cost to seek registration in distant locations.
Being a partner of the British Council establishing a strong relationship with their Country team, will not only give the Foundation exposure and credibility, but will also allow the Foundation to be one of the preferred local partners for potential future projects given by the UK Government.

According to our research a reasonable number of people, have stated that they love to read. While there is a public library in Hasbaya, there are no book clubs, where people can get together to listen to a book explained or to have a discussion about a book. While this idea is rather strange to locals, promoted properly, being introduced as a new activity, we do believe, introducing a book club, can get people into reading, and into breaking the walls between them. Our Research Centre will provide the space and facilities. This will most certainly be an introduction to open dialogue over concepts and ideas that would bring people closer together.

As part of our partnership with the British Council, the Council has agreed to train an English Instructor chosen by EKF to become a certified IELTS English Trainer. This on one hand will allow a certain English teacher of our choice to become Council certified and on the other hand will allow the Foundation to conduct numbered preparatory Courses for IELTS before exam.

It is important to note that the major issue all young men and women face in our region is finding a job upon graduation. Although these young people are more and more likely to pursue formal education, upon graduation they often find that they are not adequately prepared for the work environment. Because skills relevant to key growth sectors of the modern economy – both technical and “soft” skills – are often not covered in traditional education systems, employers often find a “skills mismatch” between the competencies youth need to succeed in the workplace and those they actually possess. (It is true that there is a global employment problem, however those with the best skills are still finding jobs.)
The skills mismatch has continued to grow with globalization and as many countries transition to a more service-oriented economy. Employers are finding that regardless of their level of education, most new hires lack communication and client-relations skills; organizational and prioritization skills such as time-management; and Current LSY Programs flexibility and adaptability. Entry-level employees in many emerging markets may be technically overqualified, but lack teamwork and interpersonal skills, making collaboration with colleagues and problem-solving between team members difficult.

Life skills programs targeting youth in low- and middle-income countries have been shown to:

• Improve economic outcomes for youth: Life skills programs have been shown to increase the earning potential of young people. In addition, they position youth to obtain jobs of better quality and formality, measured by written contracts and employer-paid insurance. When young people are provided interventions that include non-academic supports in social-cognitive skills, learning outcomes improve as do completion/graduation rates.

• Change personal behaviour and social attitudes of youth: Life skills programs allow youth to create a life plan and equip them with the skills to take steps toward achieving their goals. They also help young people to better understand healthy personal behaviours, thus decreasing outcomes such as, drug and alcohol use, and interpersonal violence. As a result, they help to increase young people’s sense of self-esteem and expectations for their future and the future of their children.

Education plays a vital role in shaping tomorrows’ leaders.
Acquiring new skills through education is necessary to be productive members of a civilized society. Only through knowledge and experience can we actively achieve and meet challenges that we face in life, and produce changes which are productive for attaining business innovations, political and economic objectives.

Our world is constantly changing and it requires a society that is well versed in understanding the problems deriving from economic, government, religion and culture differences.

To quote a phrase from Gottfried Wilhelm Leibnitz, "Make me the master of education, and I will undertake to change the world." If we are to change the world, we need to continue to acquire the education necessary to increase knowledge; to make a difference in the world by putting into motion what we have learned.

Recognizing the importance of Education, and to enable those students who meet the criteria but are unable financially to pay for their university costs, The El-Khalil Foundation has established a Scholarship Fund of $500, 000 for students from the Hasbaya District and as such have partnered with:
1. The American University of Beirut (AUB)
2. Lebanese American University (LAU)
3. Universite` Saint-Joseph (USJ)
4. Lebanese University (LU)

Conditions and details for applying to the fund at the Universities listed above will be available from the Universities and the Foundation Office at Dar Hasbaya

It was noted that most of the youth in the district do not feel happy going to school. This might be due to the fact that children do not see that schools represents them anymore. Improving the quality of education is therefore an essential Programme that would make schools as a result, joyful again.
While the end beneficiaries of this programme are the youth in schools, these trainings will target schools and teachers alike.

• The importance of Child Protection in Schools
• Identifying Children with minor mental disabilities
• Learning how to refer Children to psychologists if there is a need
• Learning how to deal with hyper active children
• Including Children in class decision making
• Introducing interactive learning into classrooms as a means to help Children see classrooms as fun rather than boring
• Stress on the importance of Education as a means to success in life
• Helping Children express themselves openly

One of the major concerns which we all know is employment. Beside the many reasons we already mentioned there is another major reason that is poorly noticed, and that is the fields of study that our Youth choose for their Higher Education. It is well noted that Youth seek fields based on parental pressure or social expectations or poorly made decisions considered under stress and lack of options caused by the lack of knowledge in the many fields available for Higher Studies. There are many emerging fields which our Youth are not aware of or would not understand even if told about. To assist Youth in their choices we will be inviting each month a new Local University to explain to the Youth their programs, their available fields, financial assistance options, dorms options and other important details. We will also help the Youth from the District to participate in the open days of the universities, by providing dates, on campus entrance and transportation. The programme will be completed with the assistance and involvement of all the schools in the District.

Active Citizens is a social leadership training programme that promotes intercultural dialogue and community-led social development.

Through the programme, we bring together people with different beliefs and perspectives to learn from and share with each other. High school students are trained indirectly by their teachers, in the skills and knowledge needed to affect social change in their communities. The programme therefore addresses high school teachers, enabling them to become facilitators for the Programme in their schools.

In the presence of His Excellency Mr. Anwar El Khalil and at the invitation of the President of our Foundation, Mr. Farid El Khalil, we launched on Saturday 10 February 2018 the Bayt Moonet Hasbaya project after we completed the training of 25 women from Hasbaya on organic food processing

The Economic Empowerment Program, while similar in some aspects with the previously explained Development Program, it is actually quite different. This Program is intended to reduce the gap between men and women, in terms of human rights and economical value. Making Women understand their value and potential, will lead eventually into enhancing the economic status of the society, by expressing the importance of Women’s participation in the advancement of their communities. Part of the problem Women face is the fact that their work, any work they do paid or unpaid goes unrecognized. The program is based on understanding women’s multiple, vital and yet invisible roles and economic contributions. Along with promoting and making their work, voice and leadership, visible and present.

• Know that they are of an economical value whether their work is paid or not
• Understand that every work they do, plays a role on a social and economic scale
• Exercise participatory governance and leadership
• Actively participate in advocacy for rights and in policy dialogue
• Generate and disseminate knowledge and learning
• Learn how to use resources
• Learn purchasing and marketing skills
• Learn skills that would allow them to produce handmade items and products.

While this Program might assist in bringing financial empowerment to women, it is mainly aimed at making women realize that even their least action is of great value and has a huge impact on the different aspects of life. This program will be achieved through capacity buildings trainings, policy dialogue and advocacy. Where women were able to produce handmade items & goods intended for sale, market access might also be included.

Professor McClelland of Harvard has made a very interesting experiment back in the 1960’s which proved that people’s burst for energy and creativity is caused by the need to achieve and not by the need for money. Going back to Hasbaya, it is obvious that women have a real need to achieve in a society that according to them has deprived them from their basic rights to be heard and to contribute economically or be economically independent.
However, many women do indeed have such a freedom, and have established various small scale enterprises and shops.
Many Women are also active in societies and NGO’S. What most do complain about and need is to enhance the skills related to their abilities to work and succeed. Due to the poor education, and the decreasing employment rates, Empowering Women into seeing new opportunities and acting properly upon them remains our best opinion.

• Develop and strengthen the entrepreneurial quality (the need to achieve)
•  Analyze environmental set up relating to small business
• Acquire the necessary managerial skills required
• Let the entrepreneur herself set or reset objectives for her enterprise and strive for their realization
• Enable Women to take decisions
•  Enable Women to communicate clearly and effectively
• Know the sources of help and support available for starting a small scale industry

While this Programme originally is to assist Women in starting a business, all Women can benefit from it regardless of their vision or goal. It will bring higher potential to Women in dealing with situations in life, more effectively and critically, introducing creative problem solving. This Programme will be achieved through capacity building trainings.