Denpasar, Indonesia, Feb 3, 2020. The Ukrainian Agency for Strategic Solutions ShiStrategies received the award of the International Gabriel Al-Salem Foundation for Excellence in consulting. The “Helping Hand” project, presented by the Agency, was recognized as the best in the category “Social Reform and Poverty Reduction”.

“The project proved the possibility of transforming long-term unemployed into successful entrepreneurs and productive community members. Its multiplication throughout Ukraine would make a huge step towards eliminating poverty nationwide”, said Inna Shinkarenko, managing partner at ShiStrategies Agency.

Viktoria Olskaia, President of the Gabriel Al-Salem Foundation admitted that the project has made a strong impression on the members of the international award council. “Over the past two years, the Foundation has set itself the task of helping to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and your project is very relevant to this important topic”, she said.

“Helping Hand” is a pilot project of the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine, which was implemented in 2017-2018 with the support of the World Bank. The aim of the project was to return to the labor market unemployed internally displaced persons and members of low-income families, who lived at the expense of social welfare. The implementation of the project and its communication support were handled by the ShiStrategies Agency.

The award ceremony was held on February 1, 2020 as part of the 2nd International “Consulting Without Borders” conference on Bali, Indonesia. The conference was organized by the Gabrieli Al-Salem Foundation in conjunction with the Organization for Business and Export Development (Bali).

The Foundation’s Award became the second of the largest international awards in management consulting for the ShiStrategies Agency for past six months. In October 2019, the Agency had already received the most prestigious global award in the sector – Constantinus International. ShiStrategies became the first Ukrainian company to receive this award.

The Gabriel Al-Salem Foundation is a US nonprofit organization focused on promoting sustainable economic growth in countries with economies in transition and emerging markets. The Foundation’s Award for Excellence in Consulting has been awarded to management consultants from developing countries since 2011.