Sharjah offers support to Afghani refugee women in Pakistan
pakistan — Sharjah’s Nama Women Advancement Establishment (Nama) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) will offer sustainable income to female Afghani carpet weavers in the city of Quetta in Balochistan.
Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Wife of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, Chairperson of Nama and UNHCR Eminent Advocate for Refugee Children, witnessed the signing of a partnership agreement between Nama and UNHCR during a visit to Pakistan. Sheikha Jawaher also held meetings with several entities and institutions in Islamabad and Lahore, and identified sectors that will benefit from Nama’s expertise in women’s capacity-building.
The agreement signing led by Reem BinKaram, Director of Nama, and Ruvendrini Menikdiwela, UNHCR’s representative in Pakistan, in the presence of Hamad Obaid Al Zaabi, UAE Ambassador to Pakistan.
Under the terms of the agreement, a one-year crafts project will be led by Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council (Irthi), an affiliate of Nama, in collaboration with the UNHCR to benefit 100 women — including 70 Afghani women refugees and 30 women from the host community of Quetta. They
EMPOWERMENT BEYOND BORDERS: Sheikha Jawaher speaks to a group of women during her visit to Pakistan. —
will be commissioned by Irthi to create carpets bearing motifs that reflect the richness and diversity of Emirati culture and heritage. The designs will be exclusive to Irthi.
Pakistan hosts more than 1.4 million registered Afghans who have been forced to flee their homes, of which 68 per cent are women. Among these women, around 22 percent fall in the 18– 59 years age category.
“In these numbers, Sharjah and Nama identified a pressing need for vocational training, livelihood creation and socioeconomic empowerment,” Sheikha Jawaher noted.
“At Nama Women Advancement
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Establishment, all our efforts are geared towards the creation of an equitable world for women. True human empowerment is achieved when our willingness to uplift those in need is not perceived as a choice, but practised as a way of life. This is what Pakistan has done for the past 40 years with regards to offering asylum to Afghan refugees.”
She stressed the importance of adopting a scientific and databased approach to study the needs of vulnerable communities, and accordingly develop plans that effectively address their specific needs.