HESNA MIHEMED

Shahba- Six years have passed since Afrin was occupied by the Turkish state and Turkish-backed factions. During this period, the people, who did not accept oppression, torture and cruelty in Afrin had to leave their homeland and took shelter in Shahba.

Afrin-Shahba Cooperative opened a bakery in Shahba on March 8, 2024 to provide employment to displaced women of Afrin. 15 people, including five women, work at the bakery now. At the bakery, they bake 6,000 bags of bread daily and 38,000 bags of bread weekly.

“This bakery was opened by the cooperative and both men and women work at the bakery,” said Zeyneb Murad, the director of the bakery. “We put this project into practice to provide employment for displaced people. Currently, five women work at the bakery but this number will increase. We sell bread cheaper.”

‘We want to grow our bakery in the future’

 Zeyneb Hesen, an employee at the bakery, earns a living for herself and her family. “We were displaced from Afrin and took shelter in Shahba. We have faced many difficulties until now,” she said. “I work at this bakery to support my family. I thank the cooperative for providing employment for us at the bakery. Women and men work at the bakery together. We want to grow our bakery in the future. We are happy to support our people by working at the bakery.”