RANIA ABDULLAH

Yemen- Maawaz is a traditional Yemeni kind of wrap-around-one-piece fabric, measuring about a meter and covering the body from the hips to the ankles or slightly higher. The traditional Maawaz production industry was mostly dominated by men. However, the number of women weaving Maawaz has increased in the country.

Sanaa Al-Asbahi looked for a job for a long time to earn a living for herself and her family after graduating from university. However, she could not find a job so she decided to attend a course organized by the Yemeni Women's Union in Ash Shamayatayn, a district of Yemen’s Taiz governorate, to learn how to weave Maawaz.

“I was unemployed and had no source of income,” Sanaa Al-Asbahi told NuJINHA. “I attended the course and now I have a source of income.”

Sanaa Al-Asbahi heard from a friend that the Yemeni Women’s Union was organizing various courses for women. “When I saw that there was a course in Maawaz weaving, I thought that I could learn this art to earn a living.”

Every morning, Sanaa Al-Asbahi wakes up with the rising sun and gets ready to begin a new day. She received a certificate after completing the course successfully. She is now a trainer at the union, teaching the village women how to weave Maawaz. She also weaves Maawaz and markets them online. “I am now both a trainer and a producer. I feel proud to have taken on a challenge and succeeded. My dream is to open a big workshop to produce handmade Maawaz and distribute the products to the market.”

100 women from rural areas

Until now, 100 women from rural areas of Taiz and the district of Ash Shamayatayn have attended the courses in Maawaz weaving.

The Yemeni Women’s Union has organized several training courses in the district of Ash Shamayatayn to empower women and promote women’s labor participation,” said Samira Al-Azazi, director of the Yemeni Women's Union in the district. “When we decided to organize a course in Maawaz weaving, we could not find a female trainer. We had to work with a male trainer. After the course, we saw how some course attendees were very good at weaving Maawaz. Now, we have female trainers teaching women how to weave Maawaz.”

Teaching women how to weave Maawaz is a significant step, but it is not sufficient to close the gender gap in the country. In 2017, Yemen was ranked at the bottom of the Gender Gap Index 2017 (144th out of 144 countries). Sonia Al-Asbahi and many other women encourage women to participate in the labor force.