VIYAN AMED

 Qamishlo- Women, who struggle under the umbrella of Kongra Star in North and East Syria, put their signature under important projects. They carry out projects to develop the economy of the region and provide employment opportunities for women. Kongra Star has made great efforts since 2015 to form the model of the communal economy in the region. NuJINHA spoke to Gulê Murad, member of the Economy Committee of Kongra Star about their projects and activities.

 ‘Social economy is formed by women’

Drawing attention to the importance of women's economic empowerment, Gulê Murad said, “Kongra Star aims to empower women in economy because social economy is formed by women. We have been carrying out economic activities under the umbrella of Kongra Star since 2015. The Economy Committee of Kongra Star has developed many important projects for women in North and East Syria since 2015. For us, cooperative projects are very important for women’s economic empowerment.”

‘We have started many cooperative projects’

Indicating that the cooperative projects make women stronger, Gulê Murad said, “We have started many cooperative projects in order to empower women in agriculture, commercial and industrial sectors. North and East Syria, especially the Cizîrê Region, is known as agricultural areas. That's why we attach great importance to this region. Agriculture is the main source of income for women in this region. In addition, we carry out projects to empower women in commercial and industrial sectors. For instance, we have opened many textile workshops, bakeries and clothing shops in the region.”

‘Women improve their society by improving themselves’

Underlining that they have carried out activities to meet the needs of people and to empower women in North and East Syria, Gulê Murad concluded her speech as follows: “Before the revolution, women were excluded from the labor force. At the beginning, we faced many difficulties in carrying out our activities for women. But we overcame all obstacles in time. The world suffers from drought. North and East Syria also suffer from drought. We aim to develop new projects to prevent drought in the region. We also plan to plant 8,000 trees this year. We will plant 4,000 trees in the Cizîrê region and 4,000 trees in the Euphrates region.”