"It’s hard to make a living with no job opportunities available"
Livelihoods
Lay of the Land
Sinjar has historically been a farming region – 75% of its pre-2014 income was based in agriculture. ISIS attempted to destroy the community’s livelihoods by burning down farms, polluting boreholes, and stealing and vandalizing farming equipment, all of which threaten the region’s food security. Roads and electrical networks were also destroyed during years of fighting to liberate the region. Small business owners in Sinjar have struggled greatly to resume their livelihoods in the aftermath of such extensive destruction.
Nadia’s Initiative is restoring the region’s commerce, transportation, and trade by holistically rebuilding farmlands, supporting small business owners, constructing new roads and public works, and restoring electrical networks.
52%
OF SURVEYED YAZIDIS INDICATE THAT THEIR PRE-2014 LIVELIHOODS WERE DESTROYED DURING THE GENOCIDE
50%
OF SURVEYED YAZIDIS DO NOT FIND THEIR HOUSEHOLD INCOMES SUFFICIENT TO MEET THEIR NEEDS
65%
OF SURVEYED YAZIDIS OCCASSIONALLY OR RARELY HAVE ACCESS TO HEALTHY FOOD
"As a Yazidi woman, I have four children. It’s hard to make a living with no job opportunities available. We have no financial resources, so it's hard to make ends meet and support our children's education."
– Anonymous
Recent Livelihoods News
Behind every farm is a person with their own hopes, dreams, and challenges. That's why we take the time to listen to farmers, understand their unique needs, and provide customized support tailored to their individual situations.
IDPs face a multitude of challenges as they return to their areas of origin to rebuild their lives. Nadia’s Initiative’s Emergency Livelihoods Support project has helped recently returned families in Aljzeera by rehabilitating their shelters.
At Nadia’s Initiative, we are continuing our critical work to support members of the Adnaniya community by restoring electricity infrastructure, rehabilitating and equipping the complex’s police station, and rehabilitating the shelters of 15 families who have recently returned.
From restoring olive groves and farmlands to rebuilding houses to ensuring access to clean water, Nadia’s Initiative’s 2022 livelihoods and WASH work directly benefitted over 100,000 residents in Sinjar and Bashiqa. Watch our year end video to learn more about our 2022 work in the livelihoods and WASH sectors.
Nadia's Initiative is launching two emergency livelihoods support projects. In Aljzeera, 22 families will be provided with emergency livelihoods support in the form of shelter repair. In Adnaniya, 15 families will also receive shelter repair. Additionally, Adnaniya complex will be provided with electricity infrastructure and the police station will be rehabilitated and equipped.
We are excited to announce that we are launching the construction of a Women's Sports Complex in South Sinjar's Wardiya complex. This recreational complex will include sports amenities, such as a mini-stadium, playground, and volleyball court, as well as dressing rooms and a café.
Nadia’s Initiative utilizes community participation to inform our project development and address existing gaps in community needs. Without the community’s feedback, concerns, and recommendations, our projects would not be truly community-driven.
Nadia's Initiative, in partnership with USAID, is re-establishing Sinjar's Old Market to boost local commerce and provide 60 vendors with a clean, well-maintained space to sell their goods. This initiative will also benefit over 12,000 residents who will have improved access to local products.
Through NI’s women’s empowerment project for female farmers in Sinjar, Sevi received theoretical and practical trainings on sustainable farming techniques, as well as tools, equipment, and a greenhouse that will increase the efficiency and productivity of her farm.
Nadia's Initiative is dedicated to implementing development initiatives that have a significant and lasting positive impact on the communities we serve. We can't achieve this without the communities' input, concerns, and suggestions.
Nadia’s Initiative is supporting female farmers by launching a project to equip female-headed farming households with sustainable agricultural training and an array of tools, resources, and livestock, including greenhouses, solar panels, and sheep.
After years of conflict, poor road conditions became a serious impediment to the success of local businesses in Sinjar. The economic repercussions of genocide created a devastating situation for returnees to Sinjar. By rehabilitating Sinuni Main Road in North Sinjar, Nadia's Initiative and USAID supported the mobility and economic development of many returnees.
“My children are now able to continue their education thanks to this small business. I can now support them and provide them with a better future.” Nadia's Initiative and implementing partner Mission East contacted Qaison to include her in their second women’s small business incubator and reestablish her livelihoods.
Nadia's Initiative recently planted 2,800 olive trees in the Bashiqa and Bahzani regions. In addition to benefitting over 4,000 residents in Bashiqa and Bahzani, this olive planting initiative will contribute to the region's climate change mitigation efforts.
Nadia's Initiative is planting 2,800 olive trees in Bashiqa and Bahzani in the Al Hamdaniya district of Ninewa. The project will directly benefit over 4,000 residents of Bashiqa and Bahzani who depend on agriculture for their livelihoods.
Small business owners in Sinjar long for their socio-economic reintegration into the region’s markets, both to revive their businesses and improve their income generation capacity. Nadia's Initiative and USAID are working together to improve residents’ livelihoods and stimulate Sinjar’s economy.
Female survivors of ISIS captivity and sexual violence from the Yazidi and other minority communities suffered great harm under ISIS. To heal, they need reparations and dedicated social welfare services that address the trauma they have experienced.
Women in Sinjar are significantly underrepresented in the region's agriculture and livestock sectors. Watch the video below to learn about Laila's journey to establish an agricultural business and our commitment to providing income-generating opportunities for women in Sinjar.
Thousands of Yazidi returnees are struggling to sustainably rebuild their lives without extensive socioeconomic reintegration and economic opportunities in Sinjar. Watch the video to learn more about Yazidi returnees' years-long struggle to recover from ISIS’ destruction.
Yazidis deserve sustainable, long-lasting income opportunities. Supporting local businesses enables communities to re-establish their economic stability. That is why Nadia’s Initiative is committed to helping Yazidis establish and scale-up successful, sustainable businesses.
Nadia’s Initiative is restoring livelihoods in Sinjar through rehabilitating public infrastructures and bridging the economic gap by providing sustainable job opportunities. Watch our year end program review video to learn more about our 2021 work in our Livelihoods sector.
“Nothing is harder than seeing my children in need of support and seeing myself unable to do anything. The fire in the oven does not affect me. But warms up my heart.” Learn more about Rakan’s journey to becoming a small business owner in Bashiqa with NI’s support.
Restoring public spaces provides Sinjar residents with a sense of cohesion and communal healing. That is why Nadia's Initiative and USAID rehabilitated Yarmouk Roundabout in Sinjar to provide a safe place for residents to relax and spend time together.
Community consultations are a priority for Nadia’s Initiative and IOM Iraq, as they work to build a new village for Yazidis displaced from Kocho. Insight from local families and leaders will shape the design and implementation of New Kocho and inform the memorialization of Old Kocho.
Nadia’s Initiative paved the road to progress in Sinjar, Iraq by rehabilitating Sinuni Main Road. “Prior to paving the road, I had one or two customers each day. But now, I get 6 to 7 customers a day,” shares Waleed, a local business owner.
“After repaving the road, it became clean and beautiful. People are returning to their houses and many new businesses have been opened. Now we have more customers. I love my work.” Learn more about the impact of Nadia’s Initiative and USAID’s Sinuni Road reconstruction on Hakim’s small business.
Nadia’s Initiative is empowering Sanaa and hundreds of Sinjar farmers to return to their homeland and improve food security by supplying critical agricultural resources needed to rebuild local farms and livelihoods.
In September 2019, Nadia’s Initiative - with implementing partner Dorcas Aid International - began the official implementation of our Farming and Livelihoods project made possible thanks to a generous grant from the Republic of China (Taiwan).