“Ashghaluna” center: Building on traditions to economically empower women

The Daily Star newspaper published an article about “Ashghaluna”, a self-sustaining social enterprise that builds on the traditional roles of women, and transforms them into vehicles for empowerment.  The institution which seeks to help widows, many of whom had never worked before, to gain the necessary skills to provide for their children, is a part of Social Welfare Institutions in Lebanon. It had a modest start with only five women working in a small apartment in 1986, but recently expanded into a full-fledged center which includes a workshop staffed with 39 women and a kitchen/restaurant which employs 11 women. Women working in the center have child-friendly working hours extending from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., 5 days per week. The center is located just off Spears Street in Beirut. It provides a variety of products that range between fabrics and food products along with other handcrafted items. The center is open to customers daily from 9 am to 4 pm, while the restaurant hosts an open buffet lunch for USD 25 person with platters of traditional Lebanese food every Friday. It is to be noted that working women are provided with health insurance and a salary, and are paid school fees for their children.

Source: The Daily Star 18 August 2014