In Gaza and Lebanon, thousands of women are now first responders when it to comes to feeding, caring and comforting, all while dealing with their own trauma from deaths, injury, starvation and displacement. Yet too often the way humanitarian agencies operate actually adds to their workload, says Hadeel Rizq-Qazzaz.
My experience in Yemen shows progress is possible on water, sanitation and livelihoods – but all of this could be undone if violence returns
Nine years since the conflict in Yemen began, Oxfam Water and Sanitation Lead Fayad Al-Derwish reflects on positive changes he has seen in his two years in the job, calls for urgent action to meet the needs of displaced people returning to devastated homes, and shares his worries for the future if conflict re-ignites.
Why a “humanitarian pause” or “humanitarian corridors” are simply not the answer in Gaza
Why are Oxfam and other humanitarian organisations not welcoming calls for corridors, pauses and so-called “safe zones” to address the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza? Richard Stanforth and Magnus Corfixen explain – and set out why a ceasefire is the only credible solution.
Four ways women can help to end the Middle East’s water crisis
We know women have to be at the heart of designing and delivering the response to the region’s water problems, says Oxfam MENA’s Sally Abi Khalil. She sets out four principles for a fresh, feminist approach to managing water.
This is what a feminist economic future looks like
Rima Majed on six priorities for campaigners fighting for economic justice for women in the Middle East and North Africa
Using technology to enhance youth employment in the Middle East and North Africa
Challenges in context According to an Oxfam report, half a billion people could be pushed into poverty by COVID-19. The International Labour Organisation (ILO), warned that the crisis is expected to wipe out 6.7% of working hours globally in the second quarter of 2020. The situation has directly hit the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region. Export, travel, transportation …
We need new policies to deal with Coronavirus in the Middle East and North Africa
Coronavirus has crippled all aspects of normalcy in people’s lives and the economies in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), despite the region being relatively spared larger outbreaks as seen in other parts of the world. But the deficits in basic services and social protection shortfalls, or decent and dignified work, means we must be braced for things to …
I am not from Gaza
As part of our Influencing Series we will soon be sharing a number of blogs on the power of narratives and stories. Here we share a first hand experience from Laila Barhoum (Oxfam’s Policy Officer in Gaza), who asks ‘who’s telling our story?’ Laila Barhoum’s job is to advocate on humanitarian issues with and on behalf of the women, men …
6 lessons on building resilience for displaced people in the Middle East and North Africa
Jude Powell and Shekhar Anand share the lessons learnt from Oxfam in the Middle East and North Africa on building the resilience for displaced people in the region. By the end of 2017 over 68 million men, women and children had been forcibly displaced from their homes through conflict, violence and persecution. The protracted armed conflicts in the Middle East …
Now is the time for women’s rights in the Middle East
The realization of women’s rights and gender justice in the Middle East and North Africa is inseparably entwined with conflict resolution and peace building efforts explains Farah Kobaissy. “No matter where you are, everyone says that now is not the time to talk about these issues. There is no such thing as women’s rights. We are in times of war, …