As the rise of ISIS forced many people to flee their homes, internally-displaced people fled to camps in northern Iraq.  The majority of IDPs are from small villages and most of the female population were unable to attend school due to traditional, conservative policies or a lack of financial resources.  As many of the women now find themselves solely responsible for their family, the lack of education has potential disastrous consequences for their future. 

As English is the main language that is spoken throughout the world, it is becoming an essential skill to learn for professional development in the Middle East.  Beginning in January 2017, the Lotus Flower began offering beginner and intermediate-level English courses for women.  Each course can last between 1 – 3 months, depending on the needs of the students.

Our awareness sessions cover all kinds of issues and topics that affect them – including the prevention of gender-based and domestic violence, sexual abuse and exploitation, plus early marriage and human trafficking. Sessions take the form of group discussions, art and music therapy, as well as community outreach and home visits. These sessions are also targeted at men and boys to encourage and enable wider systemic change.

To complement the language courses and provide additional professional skills, the Lotus Flower provides computer training courses for women and girls. This training provides a base level of computer skills, which are a valuable asset in most modern professions.  Most of the women and girls attending these courses had never used a computer before, so the instructors start from the basics, including turning the computers on and off, opening files, and using office software.

The Lotus Flower Women’s Business Incubator (WBI) provides a financial foundation and business mentorship for women-led small businesses. In addition, our women’s centre will host educational sessions on gender-based violence and women’s legal rights.

What started as a small project, utilising the talents of a few skilled bakers amongst the women is going to develop into a longer term cafe project, to build a more extensive community space that will help foster relationships, confidence and community spirit.

First launched as a pilot in Spring 2019, the Lotus Flower’s Storytelling Sisters project provides an educational platform for local women to learn a combination of photography and creative writing skills, enabling them to share their experiences through photos and stories. The project aims to provide marketable skills and facilitate improved mental health outcomes through shared experiences and community support.

We want to teach women to sew and weave in order to learn the skills to earn a living one-day to support themselves and their families.The Lotus Flower will be working with Yazidi women in Kurdistan region of Iraq. The atrocities Yazidi women have faced hit the headlines in August 2014, and are still doing so today.

In July 2019, we launched the Lotus Flower Café with the support of Asma Khan, founder of Darjeeling Express, in Essyan Camp, which is home to almost 15,000 displaced individuals.

The Lotus Flower will soon be launching our new livelihood programme, Hairdressing Sisters, to further economic and employment opportunities for displaced women in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

The majority of camp residents are Yezidi and have a farming background that spans generations. As the women’s centre includes a plot of unused land, we wanted to facilitate an opportunity for women to use skills that have been taught to them by their ancestors while also providing an income to support their families. The women have recently started to garden and plant seasonal vegetables.