Parks of hope: How one park is helping unite an entire village
Along a picturesque road, surrounded by olive trees and bright green grass dotted with yellow and purple flowers, spring makes its way to the small West Bank village of Siris in Jenin. Narrow dirt roads lead past the village cemetery with hand-painted names on their stones to walls covered with hand-painted drawings done by the local children. Here an almost tangible sense of peace gives the village a special aura as children play in the streets and nearby rocky fields. World Vision is working to help give these children a place to play other than the streets, while also helping their families.Right now, it is still a work-in-progress, with piles of rubble, building materials, and bricks scattered, but soon it will be a park. The truly amazing thing about this type of project is that it is not something just for children, but for the entire community.
This project changed everything, because as long as I work, I can support my family. Before, I couldn’t afford a lot, and now I can buy more food for my familyThis 14-month ‘Cash for Work’ project focuses on improving the lives of about 44,000 community members in the Jenin villages of Siris and Yabad. Funded by the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (ECHO) fund and matched with World Vision and community contribution, the project aims to tackle the rising unemployment rates in Siris and Yabad through cash for work activities.
With the launch of this project, a public park will be built in Siris and the public park in Yabad will be upgraded. In these two northern West Bank villages alone, this project will create more than 5,000 working days for 155 workers, who together with their supervisors will be paid a total of US$105,354.06. The project will not only provide work for many struggling fathers in Jenin, but will also improve three school gardens for about 1,900 students and 113 teachers in Yabad.
For 45-year-old father of six, Safa Samara, employed 44 days so far, this project is not just about a job or a place for his children to play, but also hope for the future. “It helped me a lot. I was able to fix things in my home. Before, I worked odd jobs, which allowed me to work one week a month. This project changed everything, because as long as I work, I can support my family. Before, I couldn’t afford a lot, and now I can buy more food for my family”.
Safa’s 12-year-old sponsored son Ali feels the same. Smiling, he says, “I feel my father has changed. He started buying us more things, like new clothes which we hadn’t had in a long time- he is much happier.”
Excited, he continues, “When the park is ready, I will come with my friends and play. It will be great to play in a park, where there are no cars and it’s safe!”
With an unemployment rate of 21.7%, Jenin currently has the highest unemployment rate among the northern parts of the West Bank and the second highest unemployment rate in the West Bank after the governorate of Hebron. Specifically in the Northeast, West, and South areas of Jenin where World Vision works, 36% of residents are unemployed, 70% spend more than 45% of their income on food, and 11.7% live in very poor conditions.
It will be great to play in a park, where there are no cars and it’s safeThe situation is exacerbated by Israel’s military occupation, which has resulted in strangling closures, travel restrictions, and limited work permits. The Israeli separation barrier, illegal under international humanitarian law, further surrounds Jenin, cutting workers in Jenin off from their lands and former work market in Israel. Illegal Israeli settlements in Jenin, home to about 2,000 resident settlers, block residents’ access to Jenin’s water. These settlements and the separation barrier have confiscated about 63,000 dunums (approximately 15,570 acres) of land so far in Jenin alone.
In Siris, the workers proudly explain what the park will look like once complete. There will be a sitting area for families, a fountain, a cafeteria, and play areas for younger and older children.
Thirty-four-year-old Sultan Najem began as a construction worker and has now become a skilled instructor in steel work. “I have worked 33 days today!” he says proudly. “I have learned to work with steel and other metals. I’ve learned about homes and buildings. It has opened opportunities for me to work, as well as for work in the future. It not only helps the community and families and all the people, it is a great financial help and now, my son has somewhere to play where there are no rocks or snakes. It is somewhere safe.”
The great thing about this project is that people participating are leaving the project as skilled labourers, having learned new skills which will help them in future employmentAll around, the atmosphere is one of excitement and new prospects. Ramzi, a 33-year-old father employed with the project, says, “This project is good for the village. We need this, because we don’t have much. Not everyone can afford to take their children outside the village to have fun, so with this park, they have somewhere to go.” He continues, “Now, there is movement and the economic situation of Siris is a bit better. For me personally, it helped me a lot and through it, we are helping our own families and everyone in the community.”
For World Vision, this project is an exciting joint effort with the community. “This project helps the unemployed to find opportunities for work with dignity and respect, and in this way, we contribute to the solution,” says West and South Jenin Area Development Manager Ashraf Isayed.
“The great thing about this project is that people participating are leaving the project as skilled labourers, having learned new skills which will help them in future employment. World Vision was able to partner with ECHO and the community in order to create sustainable, safe, and healthy places for children to play, which is so vital, especially in communities like Siris, with high rates of violence.”
He continues, “With this project, we are doing something great that is truly helping communities, families, and their children.”
This is one step towards the goal in Jenin and across the occupied Palestinian territories to help children experience fullness of life with dignity, justice, peace and hope. The area where the park will later stand represents hope–not only for the children of Siris and Yabad, but for their parents and the entire community.
-Ends-
This project changed everything, because as long as I work, I can support my family. Before, I couldn’t afford a lot, and now I can buy more food for my familyThis 14-month ‘Cash for Work’ project focuses on improving the lives of about 44,000 community members in the Jenin villages of Siris and Yabad. Funded by the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (ECHO) fund and matched with World Vision and community contribution, the project aims to tackle the rising unemployment rates in Siris and Yabad through cash for work activities.
With the launch of this project, a public park will be built in Siris and the public park in Yabad will be upgraded. In these two northern West Bank villages alone, this project will create more than 5,000 working days for 155 workers, who together with their supervisors will be paid a total of US$105,354.06. The project will not only provide work for many struggling fathers in Jenin, but will also improve three school gardens for about 1,900 students and 113 teachers in Yabad.
For 45-year-old father of six, Safa Samara, employed 44 days so far, this project is not just about a job or a place for his children to play, but also hope for the future. “It helped me a lot. I was able to fix things in my home. Before, I worked odd jobs, which allowed me to work one week a month. This project changed everything, because as long as I work, I can support my family. Before, I couldn’t afford a lot, and now I can buy more food for my family”.
Safa’s 12-year-old sponsored son Ali feels the same. Smiling, he says, “I feel my father has changed. He started buying us more things, like new clothes which we hadn’t had in a long time- he is much happier.”
Excited, he continues, “When the park is ready, I will come with my friends and play. It will be great to play in a park, where there are no cars and it’s safe!”
With an unemployment rate of 21.7%, Jenin currently has the highest unemployment rate among the northern parts of the West Bank and the second highest unemployment rate in the West Bank after the governorate of Hebron. Specifically in the Northeast, West, and South areas of Jenin where World Vision works, 36% of residents are unemployed, 70% spend more than 45% of their income on food, and 11.7% live in very poor conditions.
It will be great to play in a park, where there are no cars and it’s safeThe situation is exacerbated by Israel’s military occupation, which has resulted in strangling closures, travel restrictions, and limited work permits. The Israeli separation barrier, illegal under international humanitarian law, further surrounds Jenin, cutting workers in Jenin off from their lands and former work market in Israel. Illegal Israeli settlements in Jenin, home to about 2,000 resident settlers, block residents’ access to Jenin’s water. These settlements and the separation barrier have confiscated about 63,000 dunums (approximately 15,570 acres) of land so far in Jenin alone.
In Siris, the workers proudly explain what the park will look like once complete. There will be a sitting area for families, a fountain, a cafeteria, and play areas for younger and older children.
Thirty-four-year-old Sultan Najem began as a construction worker and has now become a skilled instructor in steel work. “I have worked 33 days today!” he says proudly. “I have learned to work with steel and other metals. I’ve learned about homes and buildings. It has opened opportunities for me to work, as well as for work in the future. It not only helps the community and families and all the people, it is a great financial help and now, my son has somewhere to play where there are no rocks or snakes. It is somewhere safe.”
The great thing about this project is that people participating are leaving the project as skilled labourers, having learned new skills which will help them in future employmentAll around, the atmosphere is one of excitement and new prospects. Ramzi, a 33-year-old father employed with the project, says, “This project is good for the village. We need this, because we don’t have much. Not everyone can afford to take their children outside the village to have fun, so with this park, they have somewhere to go.” He continues, “Now, there is movement and the economic situation of Siris is a bit better. For me personally, it helped me a lot and through it, we are helping our own families and everyone in the community.”
For World Vision, this project is an exciting joint effort with the community. “This project helps the unemployed to find opportunities for work with dignity and respect, and in this way, we contribute to the solution,” says West and South Jenin Area Development Manager Ashraf Isayed.
“The great thing about this project is that people participating are leaving the project as skilled labourers, having learned new skills which will help them in future employment. World Vision was able to partner with ECHO and the community in order to create sustainable, safe, and healthy places for children to play, which is so vital, especially in communities like Siris, with high rates of violence.”
He continues, “With this project, we are doing something great that is truly helping communities, families, and their children.”
This is one step towards the goal in Jenin and across the occupied Palestinian territories to help children experience fullness of life with dignity, justice, peace and hope. The area where the park will later stand represents hope–not only for the children of Siris and Yabad, but for their parents and the entire community.
-Ends-
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