Dii internship program for Tunisian students
In 2012, eleven Master level students from Tunisia were selected to complete an internship of between six and nine months, and write their Master thesis, within one of Dii’s member companies. This internship program “Know-how for electricity from the desert” gives the students the opportunity to gain valuable practical experience in a field related to renewable energy with an international company and to use this experience for their research work.
Dii´s objective is to contribute to the development of a market for renewable energy in North Africa, the Middle East and Europe. Besides/In addition to financing and constructing power plants, these developments should include the creation of jobs as well as offering perspectives for the younger generations. This internship program, which helps enhance the qualifications of students wanting to work in the field of renewable energy, fulfils this aim. Furthermore, this program contributes to realizing the long term goal of stable value chains in the renewable energy sector in Tunisia.
The program was initiated by the Tunisian Ministry for Higher Education and Research, the German-Tunisian Chamber of Industry and Commerce and Dii. The German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi) financially supported the internship program as part of its recently concluded energy partnership with Tunisia. Furthermore, the program was supported by the German Embassy in Tunis and the German International Cooperation.
- Abdallah Souissi (Intern Bosch Rexroth), Zeineb Abdmouleh (Intern RWE), Bilel Bahloul (Intern E.ON), Rafia Boujbel (Intern Bosch Rexroth), Sami Brik (Intern Bosch Rexroth), Hamza Kamergi (Intern Lahmeyer), Zied Moalla (Intern Bosch Rexroth), Radhouan Rebei (Intern ABB) at the official launch of the internship program in June 2012 in Berlin. The other selected students for the program are Takwa Jouini (Intern Deutsche Bank), Karim Farjallah (Intern ACWA Power) und Walid Derouich (Intern Abengoa).
Zeineb´s comment about the program:
“Thanks to this internship program I have discovered Germany where I visited many cities and had new friendships with people from Tunisia, Germany and other countries. I have developed my sense of responsibility, of facing problems, solving them and being patient. All of these gains make me confident and changed my future in a better way. My plans will be to search a job or a trainee program in the field of renewable energy in Germany or in another country in the EUMENA region.”
Bilel´s comment about the program:
“I really appreciate this initiative organized by the Dii and the AHK, it was something very professional from the phase of candidate selection until the monitoring during the working period. Personally, this internship was very beneficial for my professional career and my personal development; it's another world different from that of study. There are also differences between Germany and Tunisia: new work habits, another spirit of competitiveness, etc. I really want to continue in this environment to develop my skills and to develop my knowledge in a field that I consider the key solution for the future of the Mediterranean Region. My plans are to continue in my field of study with a PHD thesis or in the professional environment.”
