Challenging Malnutrition When Widespread Hunger Prevails in Yemen
One-year-old Mohammed and his family live in the Qa’atabah district of Yemen, near constant conflict that has killed and injured civilians and impeded access to essential goods and services for the past seven years. When volunteers from the Yemen Emergency Food Assistance (YEFA) III program first met Mohammed, he was 14 months old and suffering…
Read MoreDisaster Planning Pays Off in Northwest Syria
By Adile Sahin Originally from Hama, Asem has been displaced several times, like most Syrians, to escape the war at home. First forced to flee in 2012, he was displaced to the Idleb countryside, where he opened a hygiene materials shop. However, the village was later bombed by an air strike, during which Asem suffered…
Read MoreUsing the New Digital Savings Group Hub to Eliminate Paper, Inspire Savings
Digitization can feel overwhelming — and even risky when considering inherent equity and access issues. Yet, with the right resources, organizations can go paper-free, or at least reduce that paper output, and save money in the process. We chatted with Paulina Rudnicka, Senior Technical Advisor for Gender Integration at Global Communities, about the launch of…
Read MoreThe Vitas Lab: Building Brighter Futures Through Financial Innovation
By Rohit Kulkarni and Lizzie Hickman Low- and middle-income countries were hit hard by COVID-19, as revenue streams dried up and government enforced lockdowns shuttered workplaces. Cracks in Lebanon’s financial system started in 2019 but were exacerbated by the pandemic. As a result, the Lebanese economy has undergone one of the worst peacetime collapses in…
Read MoreFinding a Safe Space in Syria: Hamida’s Story
For more than half of her life, Hamida has been exposed to the trauma, violence and instability of war. The 20-year-old, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, is one of 14.6 million people currently in need of humanitarian assistance due to the ongoing crisis in Syria. Recognizing that women and girls often…
Read MoreReflecting on USAID YouthPower Jordan’s Long-Lasting Impact
By: Carrie Hessler-Radelet, President of Global Communities We at Global Communities believe that today’s youth should not have to wait to become leaders, because they already have a vision of the world in which they want to live. With access to the right tools, training and networks, youth can build an enabling environment and simultaneously…
Read MoreSolar-Powered Pumping System Brings Clean Water to Community in Yemen
Yemen’s ongoing conflict had pushed the community of Al-Mahfad to undertake extreme measures to deal with water shortage. Residents were given access to water only once every four days, and water pumps were limited to operating only six hours per day. Not surprisingly, the burden of collecting water fell on women and children. “I used…
Read MoreReflections on Programming Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has continued to impact communities beyond what many thought would be a few weeks of quarantine. As we recognize the second anniversary of the pandemic, we reflect on Global Communities’ country teams that are hard at work to help mitigate the impacts of the pandemic on their communities. We were able to…
Read MoreSupporting Displaced Livestock Breeders in Northwest Syria
Due to ongoing conflict and drought, the livestock assets of Syrians are eroding, further increasing the risk of food insecurity for people like Samira. The 30-year-old widow was displaced from her home in southern Idlib and currently lives in the Armanaz sub-district with her four children. While the family was able to bring livestock with…
Read MoreMentorship Program Offers a Helping Hand for Young Syrians
While the conflict in Syria has lasted more than a decade, protection risks remain high across the country and have been heightened by the coronavirus pandemic. With funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (USAID/BHA), Global Communities is currently implementing Response Operations for the Syria Emergency III (ROSE III) program…
Read MoreProgramming in Syria has Great Impact on Food Insecurity
A more than ten-year-long crisis in Syria has affected the country’s entire population. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians have been killed and millions have been displaced, fleeing to avoid the fighting. Displaced families make up two-thirds of the population of Northwest Syria. According to the 2020 Humanitarian Needs Overview, more than 9 million people are food insecure across…
Read MoreBank of Palestine Launches “Palestine in the Heart” Campaign in Support of Humanitarian Relief Efforts in Gaza & West Bank
This article was originally published on the Palestine News Network. Ramallah/PNN Bank of Palestine Group launched “Palestine in the Heart” campaign to raise donations locally and globally in support of humanitarian relief and recovery efforts in Gaza, West Bank, and East Jerusalem. Proceeds from the campaign will go to support relief and humanitarian assistance by…
Read MoreYouth with Disability Transformed into an Enabler
A young male uses his personal story to inspire other youth to engage In the city of Shoonah Janoobiyah, to the west of the capital, resides Issa Abu Dhefalla, 22. He faced a life-changing dilemma at a very young age, when he had to choose between taking care of his sick mother or preparing for…
Read MoreA Facebook Post Changes Female Youth’s Life
A lifechanging Facebook post enables female youth to empower women to become financially independent Rama Rababah, 24 year, resides in Zarqa, northeast of the Capital. With a Bachelor’s degree in Counseling and Mental Health from the Hashemite University, Rama’s first encounter with volunteerism took place during her first field semester in college. Following her volunteering…
Read MoreEstablishing Sustainable Access to Safe Water Through Rehabilitation of Water Reservoir
Since 2009, Global Communities has implemented several WASH projects in response to the protracted crisis in Yemen. Global Communities WASH projects included rehabilitation of public water supply infrastructure, 29 rural community water points, four water points, and two water reservoirs serving 317,408 people in need in addition to rehabilitation of sanitation facilities in five schools…
Read MoreEmpowering Access to Water with Solar Power in Yemen
A solution was shining down on the community of Jayshan Abyan, Jayshan — As a general rule, you can survive without water for about three days. In the sun-washed community of Jayshan, this is precisely how long 6,500 people had to wait to get water: once every three days. Surprisingly, there is plenty of water…
Read MoreLocal Authorities Rapidly Respond to the Safety of Mothers and Newborn Health in Taiz
The war in Yemen has presented a formidable challenge to health care facilities and maternal health services during the conflict, putting thousands of mothers’ lives at risk. The escalating violence and economic hardships prevented many mothers from getting the care they needed; healthcare services plummeted and deteriorated. Hospitals were no longer able to provide and…
Read MoreYouth Publisher on Track to Professional Success
A talented youth discovers his true capacity and welcomes new opportunities Abdullah Natour, 25, resides in Ras Alin. He earned Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the University of Jerash, and though an architect by education, deep down he always wanted to be a visual storyteller, combining his love for design with his passion for telling…
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