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Project supporting youth from marginalised backgrounds through research

By Dana Al Emam - Mar 23,2017 - Last updated at Mar 23,2017

Participants take part in a workshop held by the Participatory Action Research Project in Amman on Thursday (Photo courtesy of Dot Media)

AMMAN — While conducting a research, Nour Khaled discovered an opportunity to shed light on an every-day issue facing young women in her community, and to spread societal awareness and better communicate about it.

The 20-year-old Syrian residing in Amman’s Sahab neighbourhood lived in what she calls a “closed” community that did not allow young women to leave their houses for education or work purposes.

“Girls would stay at the house for days without leaving, an issue that started negatively affecting their psyche and complicated their relations with their family members,” she told The Jordan Times on Thursday, while attending a national workshop held by the Participatory Action Research Project for Adolescent Engagement, part of the No Lost Generation initiative.

After she conducted a number of interviews, Khaled concluded that “closed-mindedness” of some families, which they attribute to cultural norms and traditions, negatively affects many young women. This is when she decided to dig deeper and look for a comprehensive solution.

In her study, Khaled recommended conducting awareness sessions with parents and allowing “more open-minded women to visit more conservative women” to convince them of the benefits of women’s participation in society.

But Shobak resident Raghed Shobaki, 21, described the spread of wasta (nepotism) as a major hindrance to equality and justice. He then decided to conduct his own study on the topic.

He found out wasta to be a “very negative” influence, as it contributes to brain drain and ignites animosities. 

After studying the causes and effects of this problem, and conducting the necessary interviews, Shobaki identified a set of measures to be taken to eradicate this “unhealthy” phenomenon.

Khaled and Shobaki are part of a larger group of 46 young researchers aged 14-24 participating in the national version of a regional project seeking to support young people from vulnerable and marginalised backgrounds, by teaching them how to conduct research.

Under the project, carried out by UNICEF and other partners, young people are trained on research methodologies that are sought to help them determine and understand the underlying causes of problems affecting them and their community. It will also allow them to develop and implement possible solutions to such issues, including advocacy with key stakeholders, said the organisers.

The pillars of the regional project, implemented in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria and also including Palestinian and Iraqi youth, are capacity building, data collection and analysis, and advocacy and action.

Syrians make up for 54 per cent of participants in the national workshop, while Jordanians amount to 39 per cent. The remaining participants are Palestinians and Iraqis, according to organisers.

While 26 per cent of the young researchers are in school, 24 per cent are working, and 74 per cent are out of school, with females comprising almost half of the participants.

Commenting on the project, UNICEF Representative in Jordan Robert Jenkins said the project provides a platform for vulnerable youth to engage in their communities and ask questions to solve problems.

He cited engagement and self-expression as direct successes of the project, adding that, even if change is slow, progress is noticeable.

Although a lot of the issues that were raised require long-term solutions, he highlighted the need for continuity in providing platforms of engagement for the youth to contribute and feel part of a bigger network.

Yazan Mashini, who provided technical assistance to researchers at Zaatari refugee camp, said that participants were introduced to several research tools, such as individual interviews and mind-mapping.

Another researcher, Natalie Ismael, said the progress that participants have achieved is “impressive”, adding that some of them are at a “humble level” of education, and initially seemed unable to grasp the point behind the project, but then developed a desire to learn and give back to the community.

Participants discussed their research outcomes with private and public stakeholders, as well as decision makers, and will continue working with the project to develop advocacy and implementation skills.  

 

Khaled and Shobaki expressed their hope for their voices to be heard and their research outcomes to be implemented.

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