Women Empowerment

West Bank

Women in the West Bank face many challenges on a daily basis. They typically do not work outside the home. But as conditions continue to deteriorate and unemployment reaches 20% within the West Bank, husbands and families are realizing the benefit of having women involved in income generating programs.

Pangea has been able to work with women in the West Bank through the direction and dedication of two very special women. Nora, a Palestinian Christian and Bassima, Palestinian Muslim, are shining examples of people working together for a common good. They are determined to encourage and empower self-reliance, cohesion and cooperation among women in their communities. 

Through their affiliated organizations, International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) and Melia Art & Training Center in Jerusalem, women are given opportunities to attend health education and civil society classes, receive training and equipment for bee-keeping, animal husbandry and attend classes in traditional embroidery. 

Threads of Hope

Pangea’s first program focuses on the efforts of The Melia Art & Training Center, which Nora started in 1994. Melia generates employment for women in villages throughout the West Bank by offering training courses in embroidery and providing the necessary materials to make their items. Over 500 women have been trained and are able to make beautiful hand-crafted items, including tapestries, scarves, purses, clothing and jewelry but they lack the market to make it a sustainable business for all of those involved. The downturn in tourism to the Holy Land has created an imperative to look toward global markets for income.   

This is where Pangea comes in.  Our goal is to connect Melia with the right distribution networks and markets to allow these women to earn a reliable income over time. 

Pangea sells select items from our Marketplace and at our events, which are held several times throughout the year.  We are also working with existing distribution networks in the hope of creating more demand for their artisan skills and finished works. 

To learn more about Nora, Bassima and some of the women that are involved in this project and see the items we have for sale, please visit our Women of the World and Marketplace.      

Livestock for Livelhoods

Pangea’s Livestock for Livelihoods is a project in partnership with IOCC. Together we are in the process of creating an animal husbandry women’s cooperative in the West Bank.  The project provides 17 goats and sheep for 10 women in the northern village of Rummana.

This enables women to breed the livestock and produce home dairy products such as cheese, Labaneh and yoghurt for home consumption as well as for sale.  Women can also sell the newborn males while keeping the females for further production.  With sheep and goats, the household can improve 50% of their food security and dramatically increase their family income.  Another goal is to train the women on spinning the wool and making knit wear.