Lebanon: Women to Women Program

The Women to Women program is solely funded by individual donations from the Australian community. The program is carried out in Burj el Barajneh refugee camp in Lebanon with Palestinian refugee women.

Hiba with a client in her salon.

The funds from this project allow Palestinian refugee women to further their education and gain employable skills, ultimately providing them with an opportunity to earn an income to support themselves and their families.

The Women's Humanitarian Organisation (WHO) implementing the program selects recipients on the basis of the following criteria:

• The extent to which they and their family suffer financial need
• The likely impact of the scholarship - i.e. will it help the recipient complete her studies and find work?

Throughout this past financial year the annual contribution for this program from regular donors has increased to approximately $3,000, which includes regular monthly donations and lump sum payments. Support for this program makes a significant contribution towards the enormous needs in the camp to improve the lives of women and their families.

A selection committee is established by WHO from other camp organisations and publicises the scholarship through its extensive networks.

In this past financial year Women to Women have partly supported the fees for four young women to study hairdressing. Their names are:

• Hanin Bairakjy
• Yussra Ali Hassan
• Asmaa Ibrahim
• Hind Jamil Al Ali

Other women to receive support are Noura Salhani, who is a second year Social Science student at university and Nada Hussein who is studying nursing. Noura received help in funding her transportation costs and Nada received support for her fees.

While on an APHEDA monitoring trip to Burj el-Barajneh refugee camp in Lebanon during November 2004, the Middle East Project Officer met with Hiba Khalil, one of three women supported in hairdressing in the previous year but not reported last year. Hiba is 16 years of age and here is her story:

Hiba was trained in hairdressing in 2003 through support from Women to Women. This training fulfilled a life long dream for Hiba. Since graduating WHO put her in contact with a French NGO that provide loans for starting your own business. Hiba received $1,500 US to start her own hairdressing salon in a room provided by her grandmother. As part of the conditions of the loan Hiba was required to repay 10% of her loan. In her salon Hiba charges 3,000 lira (or $2 AUD) for a cut, 5,000 lira for foils for short hair or 10,000 lira for long hair. In a week she estimates that she earns approximately 55,000 lira ($33 AUD). Together with her father, who works casually as a taxi driver, they support the family consisting of 7 children and both parents.

You can support this work in the Middle East by becoming a donor today.

© Union Aid Abroad - APHEDA 2003.
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Last Modified: Wednesday, 04-Apr-2007 10:17:12 EST
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