RUWOMED Project

Supporting and connecting rural women’s traditional know how in the Mediterranean through the promotion of fair trade products

Project in brief

Women’s participation in employment is low in Lebanon and in the Palestinian territories, with women holding less than a quarter of total jobs. The conflict situations have further deteriorated the opportunities of women for engaging in sustainable economic ventures, especially in rural areas. Under the circumstances outlined above, cooperative and micro-entrepreneurial activities in traditional sectors (agro-food, artisanal handicraft) can contribute to poverty alleviation and to women’s economic and social empowerment. RUWOMED aims to improve income generating opportunities by setting up and strengthening existing SMEs and women cooperatives to become efficient, viable and sustainable economic entities and ensure a decent source of income for their households.

Specific objective

To develop and strengthen viable economic activities among Palestinian and Lebanese women through a capacity building programme, input support and the promotion of products locally and internationally.

Target groups

Marginalised Palestinian and Lebanese women
Rural women’s cooperatives

Expected results

185 new and existing economic activities run by women strengthened through trainings and input support in topics related to use of ICT, management, accounting, marketing, packaging and design.
Quality of 75 tons of products manufactured by women entrepreneurs improved in line with European standards.
Public exposure for women’s products increased to boost their access to local and international markets.