shareQ is a Lebanese non-profit that designs initiatives to help underserved communities access employment opportunities and humanitarian support in the country. The organization created two social enterprises that each use an innovative approach to sustain activities. The first, ProAbled, developed an online employment platform that supports persons with disabilities in Lebanon by connecting employers with candidates trained in professional skills. They also designed programs to educate interested actors in inclusion. Recruitment services are provided free of charge, while training programs offer discounts. ProAbled helps recruit staff for shareQ’s second social enterprise - M Social Catering. The venture prepares food for people in need and distributes it through a network of partner NGOs, as well as generates revenue from its line of catering services. shareQ collaborates with and provides services to local and international NGOs and funding partners, universities, and Lebanese public institutions to implement its projects.

COVID-19 Response

shareQ provides pandemic relief through M Social Catering. The organization extended its meals delivery program to COVID-19 patients in confinement.

Theory of Change

Advancing the personal growth and employability of people with disabilities and financial challenges, as well as educating employers and other involved actors in inclusion, shifts societal perceptions, increases integration, and helps create opportunities for disabled persons.

Activities

M Social Catering collaborates with local, national, and international partners to support its food distribution programs. It developed “Meals for Lebanon,” an initiative in which women, persons with disabilities, and people suffering financial hardship prepare vacuum-sealed and hot meals that are distributed to underserved communities and people in distress, like those affected by the Beirut blast, through NGOs across Lebanon. The initiative offers catering for corporate events and uses the generated revenue to support its food distribution initiatives. ProAbled has two complementary departments: ProAbled.com and ProAbled Academy. Both are managed by a team of experts in their fields of entrepreneurship, IT, online tools, work psychology, occupational therapy, architecture, HR, recruitment, and more. ProAbled.com’s online employment platform enables companies to search, connect with, and recruit candidates with physical and sensorial disabilities and those with financial challenges. ProAbled Academy provides training and employment support to build the capacities of persons with disabilities through work readiness, soft skills and entrepreneurship training, and career guidance; workshops and training on inclusion in the workplace to HR teams in companies and universities; and consultancy on building and office accessibility to companies who are interested in developing more inclusive professional environments.

Results

Since shareQ was established in 2012, its initiatives have helped thousands of people across Lebanon. M Catering Services have provided over 220,000 meals as of 2021 thanks to a network of 20 partner NGOs. ProAbled has trained over 100 companies and 1,000 candidates, 600 of which have already been employed. In 2020 alone, ProAbled provided skills training to 129 persons with disabilities and 71 vulnerable young people and women, while coaching 226 managers and HR staff across 74 companies on inclusion in the workplace. shareQ is looking into scaling up its operations to other countries.