New opportunities for local women - Women’s Resource Center in Azerbaijan

Chinara Babyeva, 48, was forced to flee her home due to the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan and settled together with her family in the village of Zobucuq a settlement built for internally displaced people in the Fuzuli region of Azerbaijan.

Chinara has two daughters; one is a student and the other is still at school. Her husband, a person with disabilities, is a veteran of the conflict. “My husband is not able to work, that is why my income is particularly important for our family, but I have never before had a steady job, one that I actually loved,” Chinara remarked.

Her life changed in January 2022 when she started receiving free psychological counseling at the Fuzuli Women’s Resource Center. At the Center, Chinara learned about a new project - “Women’s Economic Empowerment in the South Caucasus” - that was soon to be launched on the initiative of UN Women and the UNDP, one which provides valuable opportunities for local women to develop their skills in order to gain an income.

The Women’s Resource Center in Fuzuli, together with three other centers launched within the project, is a space that serves to develop women’s entrepreneurship, enhance their self-employment, broaden their opportunities and increase their income. One of the core activities of the center is providing training and professional masterclasses to women, especially women from low-income and socially vulnerable backgrounds, and to help them launch their own businesses.

Chinara therefore decided to make use of this opportunity, and she joined a training course on beauty services. There were six women in total. Some studied how to cut and style hair, others chose to learn the art of make-up. By the end of the course, everyone had received knowledge that would later provide them with the opportunity to work in a team. Ruhia Hasanova, who herself received training earlier in the project, opened the first ever beauty salon in the village of Zobucuq, and provided work for each of the six training graduates. Now Chinara and her friends have steady jobs that they all love and can profit from.

“We are a novelty in this village. We know that we need to learn more, but the knowledge we have at the moment is sufficient to start drawing an income for our families. And more importantly, we have a space where we can develop professionally. If I am allowed to speak on behalf of all six women, I can say that this project has changed the lives of each of us, giving us all a chance to stand on our own two feet. This is the most significant asset for rural women and especially those women who have suffered damage because of the war,” stated Chinara.

Thus far, 75 women have been trained within the scope of the project and with the assistance of the Fuzuli Resource Center. The UN Women project “Women’s Economic Empowerment in the South Caucasus” is implemented with UNDP Azerbaijan with funding from the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) and the Austrian Development Agency (ADC).