The House of Co-operatives that belongs to the Economic Committee in the Democratic Administration of Tabqa is working to improve the communal economy, which benefits all members of society, especially women. The communal economy solves social problems such as unemployment, and empowers women.
The House of Co-operatives in Tabqa is preparing to open two women’s co-ops in Tabqa. To understand more about the kinds of projects that the House of Co-operatives is setting up we’ve interviewed Najma Hilal, the co-chair of The House of Cooperatives. She said that the aim of these two co-operatives is to employ as many women as possible who are looking for jobs, activate their role in society, develop their skills, empower them, and allow them to achieve self-sufficiency, which will improve the women’s economy.
Najma said that the project includes two co-operatives. The first is The Women of Euphrates, which will produce wool and beads, and recycle textile and cardboard boxes. It includes five machines for sewing and embroidery. The co-operative has 18 members, both men and women. More people are able to join, and the minimum price for a share is 10,000 SYP [about £15]. The co-operative is near the cultural centre. Najma said that a lot women want to join the co-operative. The budget for the project is about 1,000,000 SYP, and it will begin operating in a month.
The second project is a knitting co-operative called Women of the Future. Its workers include fifteen women and five men who are the most skilful tailors in the region. Najma said, “The number of participants can increase, the project has 16 machines for sewing and ironing. The project budget is about 1,000,000 SYP [about £1,600], and it will start operating in a month.”
At the end of the interview, Najma said that “Women’s participation is increasing, more and more women are coming, and they are so excited about the project.”
