ERBIL, KRI, Iraq (North Press) – “I started by selling some plates and utensils in a tent,” Hilwa said, narrating the details of her success story in owning a business imposed by the circumstances of being a refugee.
Since the onset of the Syrian war in 2011 and the pains of immigration, Syrian women have faced a cruel reality, which motivated them to work hard. Today, their efforts are visible in the small successful projects they manage inside the camps. One of those women is Hilwa Muhammad Suleiman.
“After a few years, I increased my merchandise, and my profits doubled, so I turned my small tent into a shop inside the Qushtapa market,” Suleiman said.
In the center of Qushtapa camp in Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan region in Iraq (KRI), there is a commercial market consisting of several shops of clothing, shoes, cosmetics, and household items that are mostly managed by Syrian women.
Suleiman owns a shop that offers household items for the refugees in the camp and is a source of income for her family.
“My husband works as a taxi driver, but his job is not stable, so we depend on the shop to provide a good life for our kids,” she said.
According to a report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in 2014, “More than 145.000 Syrian refugee families in Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan – or one in four of all households – are headed by women facing a lone fight for survival.”
A few steps away from Suleiman’s shop lies Ghazala Youssef’s store. She, too, is a Syrian refugee who opened a clothing store inside the camp a few years ago.
“We came here as refugees. We did not have a job and did not know anyone, so I decided to work to help my parents,” Youssef said.
Youssef went to private clothing shops in Erbil and met several merchants in order to buy clothes to sell in the camp.
“At first, it was exhausting because I had not worked in this profession before. After a while, I learned the basics of the work and more about the fabrics, prices, and needed amounts,” she added.
Youssef sells all kinds of clothing for children, women, and men. She earns enough money for herself and her family.
The Syrian refugee praises women who work hard to start their own businesses. “Self-reliance is better than relying on the others. I am proud of myself and all the women refugees who opened their own shops in this market,” she said.
There are about 250.000 Syrian refugees in the KRI, mainly living in the three governorates of Erbil, Duhok, and Sulaymaniyah, according to the UNHCR.
Hewler Rashid’s story is not so different. She opened a shoe store with her sister in Qushtapa market.
The sisters started with little resources and then developed their business. “We borrowed some money to buy the merchandise and slowly improved the shop,” Hewler said.
Hewler and her sister managed through their work ” to provide medical care for their chronically sick mother, not to mention covering the living expenses of the family.”
“The shop is our only source of income and all that we have. It was a simple idea that turned into a successful business,” Rashid said.