Economic Growth

Driving trade, technology, agriculture, business, and financial services to create jobs, reduce poverty, and enhance food security.

Workforce Development and Youth

The global financial crisis of 2007 left in its wake a population of frustrated and discouraged young people pushed out of traditional economic, political, and social pathways. Without access to steady jobs due to the economic downturn, on top of limited access to quality and relevant educational opportunities, youth around the world including in the Middle East, Central America, and North Africa reacted in powerful and noticeable ways.

DAI has responded to the call to action on youth employment. For more than 45 years, DAI has integrated the needs of the next generation into its programs by putting young people at the forefront of our initiatives. Leveraging private sector, foreign governments, and donor investment in areas such as agriculture, health, governance, and technology, DAI programs strive to create strong economic, social, and political systems so that young people can navigate their local communities and environments to empower themselves professionally, economically, and personally. DAI achieves this through programs in workforce development and entrepreneurship, education, health, leadership, and life skills.

Our Experts


Rashad Bibars is a senior development leader with more than 18 years of experience in designing and managing complex economic growth and private sector programs in Afghanistan, Jordan, and the Middle East in areas related to micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) and workforce development.

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Craig Davis has more than 20 years of experience in international development, education and training, research and publication, technical assistance, and capacity building.

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Caterina Valero is an international development professional with more than 30 years of experience in program management and implementation in Latin America and the Caribbean.

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Our Projects


El Salvador—Skills for Employment Project (Proyecto Habilidades para el Empleo)

Our assistance enhances local Salvadoran partners’ ability to improve human capital and strengthen job training and placement outcomes for vulnerable populations and for likely migrants.

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Regional—Youth Resilience, Inclusion & Empowerment

The Youth Resilience, Inclusion & Empowerment in the Caribbean Activity—in Grenada, Guyana, and Saint Lucia—supports young people to build more safe, prosperous, and resilient societies.

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Egypt—Business Egypt

Business Egypt is building a robust ecosystem of market-led institutions—incubators, accelerators, business service providers, financial institutions, youth and women’s networks, business associations, public-private forums, one-stop shops—working in harmony to create long-term jobs and a more-resilient private sector.

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Palestine—Small and Medium Enterprise Assistance for Recovery and Transition (SMART)

The Small and Medium Enterprise Assistance for Recovery and Transition project helps Palestinian SMEs and startups rapidly recover from shocks and put them on a path to revitalization, creating job opportunities for a growing—and young—population.

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Honduras—Creando Mi Futuro Aquí (Creando)

The Creando Mi Futuro Aquí (Creating My Future Here) Activity in Honduras works to increase the employment of young people at risk of irregular migration to the United States by increasing their educational and income-generating opportunities.

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Ethiopia—BRIDGES

DAI provides capacity-building services, such as support in financial management, to ensure that First Consult is operating with compliant, effective processes conducive to good management on the BRIDGES programme in Ethiopia.

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Palestine—Technology for Youth and Jobs Project (TechStart)

TechStart builds the capacity of Palestinian firms, strengthens demand from international buyers and investors, and stimulates the absorption of high-tech knowledge in the ecosystem.

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Nigeria—Youth-Powered Ecosystem to Advance Urban Adolescent Health

The Youth-Powered Ecosystem to Advance Urban Adolescent Health and Well-Being program empowered young Nigerians to think about their futures differently and access the skills, social capital, and resources needed to realize their aspirations.

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Ukraine—USAID Economic Resilience Activity (ERA)

The USAID Economic Resilience Activity works to strengthen the economy of eastern Ukraine in the response to recent regional instability.

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DAI History: 40 Years of Excellence

DAI was founded in 1970 by three graduates of Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government intent on providing a more dynamic and effective brand of development assistance. See how DAI is turning this American success story, into a global one.

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