Friday, January 16, 2015

Support for Christians in Gaza: jobs for youth and electricity for families

(Pro Terra Sancta) Thanks to your solidarity and your support to the Campaign Emergency Gaza launched by the Association pro Terra Sancta, some young Christians living in Gaza started the new year with something new, a positive change and a job.

“Their main work is translating, recording and the digitalization of texts” explains the vice-parish priest of the Latin Church in Gaza, which counts 200 members. The initiative is aimed at creating new opportunities for the youth of Gaza, where unemployment affects about 80% of graduates. Currently the young represent the majority of the Gaza Strip population, which accounts for over 1.800.000 inhabitants. The gathered funds will be destined to provide for 8 young graduates a monthly salary for the next semester. “It’s the beginning; we are getting ready. We’ve started with 3 young people who had completed their studies but didn’t have a job. Our aim is to involve more people in the near future. At the moment we’ve bought new computers and set up the office; we start with 16 hours a week.”

Besides the project against youth unemployment in the Gaza Strip, the Association pro Terra Sancta supports the Christian families in Gaza, which not only are affected by the Israeli occupation and blockade as much as the rest of the population, but they also encounter daily difficulties concerning the Muslim majority. The gathered funds have been used to buy new batteries to assure the population light and electricity for 10 hours rather than the 6 hours usually guaranteed, which are essential to face the freezing temperatures of these last days. (more)