The Union of Agricultural Work Committees | NDC

The Union of Agricultural Work Committees

Mariam applied to the Al Zbeidat Agricultural Committee to become a beneficiary of their project and was subsequently selected. Despite the family having to borrow the initial contribution amount for the new agricultural project, Mariam was hopeful that the initiative would yield results and save family members the indignity of working in settlements. Mariam and her children have cultivated a whole dunum (1000 m2) of greenhouse land and planted it with melon crops. When asked about the yield/output from these crops, she said:  “Based on our calculations, if the price per kilogram remains 4 shekels…then this season’s revenues will be 10,000 shekels.”  From this season’s crop alone, Mariam expects to cover the costs of seedlings and pay back her initial loan for the project contribution amount. The family’s melon field has now become a sustainable initiative able to fund day-to-day living costs and, in addition to other income, slowly lift the family from grinding poverty. Furthermore, the UAWC’s initiative is providing single women with the resources to generate income independently. This is a hugely significant success in the Jordan Valley. However, Mariam is not relying on the melon harvest alone. A cucumber crop is planned for the gap between the melon season and she is dedicated to working day and night to ensure she does not have to return to the settlement for employment. UAWC’s projects place the future success of any agricultural endeavour in the hands of beneficiaries – success is of their own making and participants are given ownership of their economic futures. In the face of social isolation and political oppression in the Jordan Valley, this is a priceless gift. 
Mariam Abed Hasan Zbeidat : “Thanks to God and to you UAWC, this project has taken place and is working. God willing, we won’t need settlement work anymore.” Mariam Abed Hasan Zbeidat is a fifty one year old mother of three and lives in Al Zbeidat village. Following her divorce she became solely responsible for taking care of her family. This strenuous task is made harder by the social conditions of the Jordan Valley within which Al Zbeidat village is located. This is an extremely isolated region of the West Bank and continues to suffer from land appropriation by the Israeli authorities and a total lack of social services. The Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC) was founded in 1986 in response the economic and social fragility suffered by farmers following an increase in the occupation of land and diversion of water sources. UAWC provide a technical response to agricultural deficiencies and a socio-economic response to poverty.