The Democracy and Workers’ Rights Center and the National Coalition for Advocating for Women’s Right to Decent Work “Min Haqqi” discuss the challenging situation of working women in the Jericho and Jordan Valley Governorate and perspectives for protection
Jericho: After the war started, women’s economic sufferings have doubled, unemployment rates among them increased, and many of their projects were shut down, leading to difficult economic conditions for them and their families. Therefore, the Democracy and Workers’ Rights Center held a meeting on Tuesday May 13th in the Jericho and Jordan Valley governorate, with the participation of the Governor of Jericho and the Jordan Valley, Dr. Hussein Hamaileh, women workers, and representatives from the Ministry of Labor, the Employment Fund, and civil society institutions.
The meeting discussed the situation of working women in times of crises under the title: “Challenges and Perspectives for Protection,” in partnership with the National Coalition “Min Haqqi” (“My Right”) as part of the “Partners for Equity, Partners for Change” project, supported by the European Union.
The meeting resulted in several recommendations, most notably the establishment of a vocational training center for women in the governorate, supporting small women-led projects, providing job opportunities for women in the private sector, facilitating their access to funding for their small businesses, publishing employment, training, and funding announcements on social media platforms to reach the largest number of women, in addition to organizing informational meetings with women’s associations, and the need to hold meetings with factory and business owners to urge them to employ women in their workplaces.
Carine Metz, Programs Coordinator at the Democracy and Workers’ Rights Center, said during the meeting that the Center works on advocacy and networking to unify efforts in support of women’s economic rights, and that this meeting aims to promote decent job opportunities and income for women and persons with disabilities, and to enhance the local economy to benefit Palestinian families.
For his part, the Governor of Jericho and the Jordan Valley, Dr. Hussein Hamaileh, expressed his commitment to follow up on all the issues raised by women, help them obtain small projects, and raise their recommendations to the Council of Ministers to act upon them. Regarding the employment of women in settlements, Hamaileh stated that work in settlements is legally rejected as the settlements are illegal, but the needs of the citizens are great and the situation is difficult, with a financial blockade imposed on the Palestinian people. Therefore, efforts are being made to provide citizens’ basic needs.
Muyasser Waqad, Executive Director of the Ain Sultan Camp Women’s Association, stated that the “Min Haqqi” Coalition aims to promote equality in economic and social rights for women, especially women with disabilities, as women do not receive their full labor rights and are not paid high wages. She pointed out that many women were dismissed from work after the war started, their projects were closed, and they lost their labor rights. She added: “We have many needs, and if even some of them were met, the economic reality for women would be better.”
Mohammed Qabaha, Director of the Labor Directorate in the Jericho and Jordan Valley Governorate, explained that the Ministry has several projects to support and economically empower women, including the “Bader” project, which targets women working in Israel or in Israeli settlements, who were affected after the war started. The project offers zero-interest loans for small businesses, in addition to other projects aimed at enhancing women’s vocational skills. He pointed out that the Labor Directorate has inspectors, who monitor the implementation of the labor law in workplaces, and legal action has been taken against some employers through warnings, notices, or closure of their establishments.
He noted that women working in settlements are exposed to injustice and exploitation by brokers, particularly due to long working hours that exceed 10 hours per day.
Ihab Zaghl, representative of the Employment Fund, said that the Fund publishes announcements about employment and financing projects on social media to reach more women, and also assists women in registration and data entry when applying for projects. The Fund also provides vocational training programs for women.
Adly Hanayseh, Project Coordinator at the Ma’an Development Center, emphasized the need to launch investment projects to employ women in the Jericho and Jordan Valley region. He pointed out that the “Ma’an” Center implements projects related to women’s economic empowerment and recently provided 25 grants for women-led projects worth $10,000 each, in addition to supporting three agricultural projects for women, who had been previously working in Israeli settlements.
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