September 21, 2008

"Women in the Palestinian community play a core role in carrying social and economical responsibilities despite the difficult circumstances they face,' said Ms Reem Abboushi, General Director of the Palestinian Businesswomen's Association: Asala,  on September 20, 2008, Saturday evening during the joined Iftar Business Club activity held in Ramallah for Asala's clients and Irada's trainees. "The Palestinian woman has proven in all areas that she is a partner in building the Palestinian community,"  Ms. Abboushi continued.  She went on to recount several success stories in which Palestinian women secured their families' sustainability and viability during times of crisis.  She proudly commented that not only did these women lift their families out of poverty and offer them dignity and security, they also positively impacted the economy.   

Over 100 Palestinian women from Ramallah and its surrounding villages attended a Business Club Activity that enabled Asala's clients and Irada's trainees to exchange experiences and hope.  Irada is a project operating under Asala, sponsored by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), which provides community based peer training and counseling in management, marketing and finance, specifically designed to assist Palestinian women in establishing or developing their income generating projects. Asala has, since its implementation, been dedicated to empowering women by enabling them to successfully participate in economic activities. Ms. Abboushi encouraged Irada's trainees to use the training to start or expand their projects and made reference to several micro finance organizations that are willing to assist the women with financial services if need be.

Ibtisam Bedr, one of Irada's trainers, said that ‘training enables women to develop their projects and their skills. Palestinian women are very skilled and resourceful, these trainings offer them the tools necessary to turn their skills and resources into successful income generating projects.'   She went on to say that the Irada project is designed in a way that enables all Palestinian women to benefit as it addresses any challenges related to cost, travel, time, literacy level and so on.  The only criteria is that the women must have or be interested in having an income generating project.  She also pointed out that it doesn't matter which, if any, micro finance institution helped the woman begin or develop her project. 

Several of Asala's clients spoke to the audience about their experiences and how operating an income generating project has changed their lives socially and financially.  Asala also used the gathering as an opportunity to thank Fatma Breighiya, Sabah Elbari, Maha Akel, Elizabeth Khayo, Ibtisam Hamed, Mariam Elkilani, Amneh Odeh, and Nuha Mensi for being outstanding clients at Asala. These women received token gifts and spent some time answering questions from the attendants about how their projects began, developed and impacted their lives.