Ramallah, April 11, 2023 - The Palestinian Association for Empowerment and Local Development - REFORM held its regular general assembly meeting for the year 2023. The meeting discussed the annual financial and administrative reports, the annual budget for the year 2023, as well as accepting a number of requests to join the General Assembly. The meeting concluded its proceedings by holding elections for the Association's Board of Directors for the years 2023-2025.
Mr. Mohammed Rabah, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, started the meeting by verifying the legal quorum for the meeting and reviewing its agenda. He called on the audit company, Deloitte, to review the Legal Auditor's Report. Mr. Alaa Abu Seir then presented the auditing company opinion as of December 31, 2023, indicating that "The financial statements of REFORM show fairly, from all material aspects, the financial position of the Association as of December 31, 2022, and its financial performance and cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards."
The REFORM team also reviewed the administrative report for the year 2022. Mr. Nadim Qandeel, the Operations Officer, provided a detailed explanation of the Association's most prominent achievements in the previous year and its contributions to empowering its participants to take on leadership roles by enhancing their ability to understand power relations between different societal components and expanding spaces for dialogue between Palestinian youth and decision-makers.
Ms. Ayat Kanaan, the Fundraising and Communications Advisor, and Ms. Rana Barqan, the Development and Communications Officer, also reviewed the Association's relationships and partnerships at the local and international levels, as well as presenting its most important achievements in fundraising, communication and influence in 2022.
The meeting concluded by adopting the financial and administrative reports, approving the REFORM's budget for the year 2023. Several membership requests for the Association's General Assembly were approved. A committee was formed from members of the General Assembly who did not wish to run for the new council elections to manage the session and organise the election process. The committee, consisted of Ms. Fatima Da'na, Ms. Noor Hajjaj and Ms. Samir Qarash, organised the nomination process for council membership and announced the results.
Nine members were elected to the Board of Directors for the next two years. It was agreed upon in a special meeting of the newly elected board that Mr. Mohammed Rabah would be the Chairperson, Ms. Carmen Kishek as Vice Chairperson, Mr. Hassan Mahareeq as Treasurer, Ms. Abeer Al-Zagari as Secretary, Mr. Tareq Abu Hishah as Head of the Internal Control Committee and Ms. Georgette Sahar, Mr. Mohammed Sawafi, Ms. Dima Al-Arqan and Mr. Abdullah Qaddah as members.
The Palestinian Association for Empowerment and Local Development - REFORM was established in 2012 with the aim of empowering youth and women in marginalised communities by building their capacities and enhancing their political and social participation. REFORM also works to provide interactive and inclusive civil spaces to enhance their abilities to express their needs. REFORM contributes to solidifying the principles of civil peace and social cohesion within the framework of the rule of law and improving the public systems' responsiveness to the needs of Palestinian citizens by encouraging the participation of marginalised groups, especially young people, in public life and local development efforts in targeted communities.
For more information about the Palestinian Association for Empowerment and Local Development - REFORM, please visit our website: www.reform.ps.
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