Improving the self-subsistence for women headed Households and the resilience of children in the midst of conflict
Stories for Agriculture: April & May /2021
Every day families have stories but the stories from Syria are different.
- Adlah El İsmail
Adlah as 64 years old, and I live in the village of Northern Ora. She is from a poor family and the only breadwinner for her family.
Adlah says, “My life has started to improve since I was accepted as one of the beneficiaries of this project. I have good experience in the field of agriculture, but this is the first time that I work in greenhouse. So I set my goal from the beginning that my greenhouse would be one of the best in the village. I attended all the trainings given to us by the agricultural specialists, and I follow all the technical instructions that I get through field visits and the WhatsApp group for agricultural guidance. I try not to leave my house unless absolutely necessary, as I always like to work inside my greenhouse. I feel so excited about this work. I follow the growth of the seedlings continuously, and every day my joy increases with the increase in the growth of the seedlings and the increase in the number of tomato fruits.”
Adlah adds: “I was one of the first women in the village who started picking the tomato crop. The first day I picked was 10 kg of tomato, which I decided to distribute them to my neighbors, especially the poor among them. I was so happy when my neighbors shared my great joy and eating my first crop. I will allocate a part of my crop for distribution to my needy neighbors and the rest I will sell to be an income for my family. I never imagined that I would have a job in my home. This work is our only source of income now and I will be able to buy our basic needs of oil, firewood, bread and medicine. I will do my best to keep this greenhouse constantly full of fruiting plants.”
- Diba Almansor
Diba says: “My name is Diba, I am 60 years old, the breadwinner of my elderly husband and my sick daughter. My families is 7 members. I live in the village of Kafruhin and I am one of the beneficiaries of greenhouses services. I received a greenhouse with full agriculture input. Finally my dream is a real, I have my own beautiful project inside my home and next to my family. I’m very pleased with the continuous follow-up of the agronomists, as they provided me with sufficient experience to produce vegetables inside greenhouses. We used to plant vegetables on open farms before the war, but did not provide us with good production and large plants such as greenhouses now. Through my own project of greenhouse, I will have good income so, I can buy medicines for my elderly husband, my disabled daughter, and some our basic needs by selling the tomatoes to the sellers in the market. The tomatoes, I pick up are beautiful, red and retain its quality for a long time, so sellers are waiting impatiently for me to sell them my fresh crop. I hope from my heart that all women can benefit from projects similar to this project, which preserves the dignity of women and keeps them always close to their children and family”.
- Fatima Al-Daham:
Fatima from the village of Kafruhin. She has 44 years old.
Fatima Says: “My husband is disabled and I’m the breadwinner of my family. I have been working in the agriculture fields for a long time and I grew up in the fields. I had to work in far places for low wages to support my family. She added “When I heard for the first time that there was an organization that would provide an agricultural project for the women breadwinner of the family, my heart beat hard and I went to the registration centre and applied to benefit from this project. The days passed and thanks God I was one of the beneficiaries and my happiness increased when I learned that the agricultural service is a greenhouse next to my house and near my family . Thank you for providing me with an opportunity that most women dream of in my country that has been exhausted by war, conditions of displacement, bitterness of poverty and scarcity of job opportunities.. I am confident that better is coming and that our future will be more beautiful. I trust in God!”.
- Fikret Alramdan:
Fikret, 45 years old, from the village of Kafruhin.
She says: “I am the breadwinner for my family of 3 persons, a child and two daughters, Fatima and Doaa, who have a physical disability caused by a disease called “the crystal body”. I suffered a lot in the past because of my daughter’s illness because they could not walk or be exposed to light since birth, and this constituted a heavy burden on me because I had to work in the fields outside the village for long periods of time to make a living and at the same time I had to take care of my two disabled children.. Years passed and I was patient with my situation until I heard with this project for women who breadwinner of family.. Hope was born in my heart again, and I actually became one of the beneficiaries of the greenhouse project. I started earning money by selling tomatoes and I was able to send my daughter to continue her education and my life changed for the better and I hope that in the future I will be able to build new greenhouses next to my house because my experience in this field has developed wonderfully”.
- Warda Hajj Ismail:
Warda, 48 years old lives in the village of Kafruhin.
She says: “I am responsible for my family, which consists of my elderly mother and my nephews. My brother unjustly detained in Syrian government prisons since many years, without knowing the reason for his arrest. Ghazal and Hussein are the children of my detained brother. They have no guilt in depriving them of their father. That is why I dedicated my life to taking care of them to compensate for the absence of their father”.
She added “I worked in the village farms as a worker and after completing years of working in a harsh conditions outside the house, today I have my own agricultural project, which is the greenhouse that was provided to me by this important project. With my own project inside my home, I no longer have to leave the house for long time, and I can earn money by selling tomatoes next to my house. I see the joy of Ghazal and Hussein every day, and they help me in my work in our beautiful greenhouse.. This success that I achieved cannot be expressed.. Really, I am grateful to those who are supporting us”.
