OPEC fund humanitarian aid to marginalized women in Palestine – OPEC Fund press release/Non-UN document

OPEC FUND EXTENDS HUMANITARIAN AID
TO MARGINALIZED WOMEN IN PALESTINE

79/2002

July 31, 2002

Vienna, Austria

The OPEC Fund for International Development today approved a humanitarian grant of US$150,000 to provide assistance to marginalized women in Palestine. Spearheaded by the non-profit NGO, CARE West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBG), and co-financed by the European Union, the project aims to promote food security and self-sufficiency in female-headed households in the Jenin area of the West Bank. A total of 375 poor families will benefit from the initiative.

Recent months have witnessed a severe escalation of violence and use of military force against Palestinians, resulting in intense human suffering. Women are particularly vulnerable, with the loss of male family members exposing them to greatly increased social responsibility, a situation compounded by soaring unemployment and poverty.

Active in the Territories since 1948, WBG's mission is to promote dignity, social justice and self-sufficiency among minority groups in Palestinian society. In the Jenin governorate, circumstances are exceptionally grave and economic activity severely constrained. Farmers are unable to market their products, compelling households to find alternative sources of food.

The WBG project seeks to address this problem by providing women in 10 rural communities with the means to meet the needs of their families. Beneficiaries will receive sheep, goats, animal housing, seeds, tools and a water tank, along with training in animal husbandry, gardening, and food processing and preservation. This will enable them to engage in small-scale farming, become self sufficient in food, and eventually sell excess produce for profit.

The OPEC Fund grant will directly finance the above requirements for 75 women in the villages of Sielataldaher, Alshuhada and Fahmeh.