The East Jerusalem YMCA was established in 1949 in a tent at Aqabat Jaber Refugee Camp, near Jericho and operates with all sectors of our Palestinian Society without discrimination.  The East Jerusalem YMCA operates a variety of programs and functions related directly to the needs of Palestinian society in Jerusalem, Ramallah, Aqabat Jaber refugee camp, Beit Sahour, Gaza, Nablus, Hebron, Jenin, and Tulkarem.

The Programs of the East Jerusalem YMCA include a Vocational Training Center, which commenced its training in 1952 and provides vocational training so that people may become productive elements in their society and support themselves and their families; sports, cultural, social and recreational activities including youth and work camps, leadership training, youth exchange programs, international conferences and other activities that aim at developing and enriching the spirit, mind and body of youth; and a rehabilitation program, launched in 1989 to focus on the injuries and physical disabilities of the violence victims in order to achieve the goal of full integration of the physically disabled into their own community

It also has an Extension Services Unit to stimulate long term self-sustaining jobs and micro-enterprise development in the vocational industrial sector of the West Bank and Gaza; a Women’s Training Program (WTP) to improve the socio-economic status and involvement of women in the Palestinian society, through strengthening their decision-making capabilities and economic productivity both inside and outside their homes; and an Advocacy Desk to advocate for peace with justice, tolerance, equality and respect for the rights and dignity of human beings based on first-hand experiences and adequate information.

The East Jerusalem YMCA Rehabilitation Program at the Beit Sahour YMCA was launched in May 1989. It aims at serving the physically challenged and traumatized and helping them to cope with new conditions, to adjust in all aspects with the social environment and, consequently, to reintegrate into their own communities. The Program also provides choice concerning their future so that they become more accepted by their community and more able to play a productive socio-economic role in the society as a whole. However, what is most significant about the Rehabilitation Program is that it is an experience built on the desperate need of society. A main principle of the Program is empowerment in the sense that the Program does not make decisions on behalf of the physically challenged; instead, the physically challenged him/herself is the decision maker, and the Program is there to provide guidance and direction through qualified specialists. Another basic principle is focusing on abilities and not disabilities, as well as mobilizing and utilizing the community resources in order to increase the effectiveness of the Rehabilitation process. The Program also focuses on self determination for the beneficiaries and always tries to maintain cooperation with the other rehabilitation organizations, surely away from competition and duplication of services.

  Link to East Jerusalem YMCA

The YMCA of East Jerusalem and the YWCA of Palestine have created the Joint Advocacy Initiative, whose work can be found at  www.jai-pal.org.