March 28, 2024
News
While more than half of Iraq’s population is under 25 years old, these young people suffer from high unemployment due to the country’s instability. In Iraq, Caritas Czech Republic therefore actively promotes youth employability and entrepreneurship. We have also supported 24-year-old Hanaa to expand her print and graphic design business.
Hanaa created her first designs on her mobile phone
Regardless of whether you are celebrating your graduation, preparing invitations for your wedding, or just need a stack of visually appealing business cards for your shop, Hanaa from Bashiqa, a town in Northern Iraq, has got you covered. The business profile of the 24-year-old on Instagram shows a vast array of postcards, stickers, and souvenirs for any occasion. “Wonderful work, cheers!” says a comment on souvenirs at the birth of a baby girl. “You truly are a designer,” notes a follower on a post featuring graduation postcards. “May God strengthen you and grant you success, my dear,” says another supporter.
Hanaa first heard of Caritas Czech Republic in 2021, when she applied and completed our training on digital marketing. There, she also learned how to create designs through an app on her mobile phone, a skill that she kept developing on her own in 2022. She, however, was still struggling to find a job.
About a year later, Hanaa heard of another project carried out by Caritas Czech Republic in the area. This time, she was admitted to a training course, in which she specifically improved her skills in using design software tools. After completing this training, Hanaa applied for a business grant, which she used to invest in a laptop and printer.
Hanaa can now work more efficiently
Thanks to the computer, Hanaa notes that she can now work more efficiently. She can also print her designs from the comfort of her own home, unlike before, when she had to print them out at the copy shop. “The business has become more profitable,” Hanaa says, pointing to the fact that she does not have to pay for the printout service.
“I have spent one year in this business,” she writes in an Instagram post, addressing her followers. “I’m the administrator, I’m the salesperson, I’m doing marketing sometimes, I’m the designer, I prepare the orders, I’m the photographer, I respond to messages. Thank you for every time you write me nice messages and support me more and more.”
Caritas Czech Republic in Iraq
In Iraq, Caritas Czech Republic has shifted its focus from providing immediate humanitarian aid to aiding the country’s developmental journey. We target areas once controlled by the self-proclaimed Islamic State, supporting displaced people and host communities to re-establish their lives and homes.
Partnering up with UNDP for the project “Job Training for Youth in Bashiqa, Nineveh” and UNICEF for “Promoting Youth Employability, Entrepreneurship and Engagement in Local Economic Recovery and Development in Duhok and Nineveh”, we have offered business skills training and provided grants to young people like Hanaa to open their businesses or expand their entrepreneurship ideas.
We can help the people of Iraq thanks to our donors and your contributions. Thank you for supporting our work.
