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Green business programme beneficiaries share success stories in Irbid, Mafraq

Beneficiaries of an Employment-Intensive Investment Programme in green business in Irbid and Mafraq said their living standards “improved” by implementing environmentally friendly projects. Before receiving his first work opportunity, Ahmad’s future was uncertain, and he struggled to make ends meet and had to rely on others for support. “I learned how to take care of the land and make stone-chained walls,” explained Ahmad Bani Amer to the Jordan News Agency when asked about his work experience at a work programme by the International Labour Organisation (ILO). The work programme provided by the ILO allowed the likes of Ahmad to develop their abilities and gain experience. The project helped Ahmad gain skills that helped him become self-sufficient and allowed him to complete his university degree in mathematics. Dubbed the Green EIIP Programme, the ILO provided job opportunities for Jordanians and Syrian refugees in Irbid and Mafraq, major host communities of refugees. The 33-month programme supported projects in Mafraq and Irbid to improve infrastructure in these areas and support women entrepreneurs by providing them with the expertise to develop their small, green businesses. The programme, funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation in Jordan (AICS), aimed to improve the infrastructure in selected geographical areas in Jordan. The projects had to be “green and positively impact the environment.” The projects needed to apply climate change adaptation measures based on bio-engineering solutions, such as planting trees and constructing stone-chained walls. The Green Programme provided 511 jobs in the three target municipalities in Irbid and Mafraq, 160 of whom were women and 166 others were Syrians. “This project showed how short-term jobs can turn into long-term opportunities and how the involvement of women in the improvement of the municipalities demonstrated the importance of social diversity,” explained Frida Khan, ILO Country Coordinator. “The involvement of women in improving municipalities has demonstrated the importance of social diversity,” said Frida Khan. “With the programme’s success, we proudly provided over 15,000 green workdays, benefiting 500 men and women alike.” The 124 women who participated in the ILO-organised entrepreneurship training programme in collaboration with the Jordan River Foundation (JRF) attended five eight-day training workshops taught by ILO-provided experts specialised in administrating small green projects. Following extensive project management training, 60 female entrepreneurs were chosen based on specific criteria and awarded grants to assist them in developing their small businesses in an environmentally friendly manner. Fawziah Zawaydeh, from Mafraq, was one of the trainees who participated in the Female Entrepreneur Programme. Fawziah received JOD1500 to develop her project. Her small green agricultural project aimed to encourage residents of her arid area to grow plants like olive trees, which do not require much water to survive and could be watered once every ten days. Nada Salameh, a mother of five unemployed men, participated in the Female Entrepreneur Programme and developed her own small green business, a “Productive Kitchen,” using clay pots and pans. She hired her five unemployed sons to help her. Ghazi Mansour, a certified ILO instructor in small business administration, said, “The training for women was internationally accredited and helped grow their businesses with few errors, if any.”

Source: Jordan News Agency