As part of the activities held this week on the occasion of the UN’s CSW69 in New York, our Director and Project Officer, Macarena Cotelo and Gema Talaván, had the opportunity to meet with Haneen Zaidan and Rulla Sarras, General Director and Director of Fundraising and Development, respectively, of the Palestinian organization Rural Women Development Society (RWDS).
RWDS is our local partner in Palestine, with whom we are currently implementing our convenio to promote the green economy and economic and rural growth. Agricultural Development Association (PARC) also takes part in this initiative as a partner, and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) as funder.
In addition, with RWDS we are implementing a project, funded by the Generalitat Valenciana, to promote women-led cooperatives in Jenin (Palestine), as well as another initiative in humanitarian aid to strengthen the resilience of Palestinian women living in a situation of chronic humanitarian crisis in the West Bank, with the support of the Comunidad de Madrid.
At CSW69
Like Fundación Promoción Social, RWDS organized and held its own side event during CSW69. At this event, Haneen Zaidan and Rulla Sarras described the current situation of the population of Gaza and the impact of the war on rural women, highlighting their role as agents of resilience.
It was a very worthwhile occasion that allowed them to exchange experiences and lessons learned on the empowerment of women and girls, and to continue working on identifying new lines of joint work.