March 22, 2022/ Socotra Online
Reporting and Photography: Socotra Online Team
The support provided by the Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation to the women’s sector on Socotra Island was of great importance in enhancing the presence of Socotra women at all levels.
Where the Foundation contributed to the implementation of a number of projects that serve Socotra women by supporting them with sewing machines, an integrated kitchen, and equipment to work in handicrafts and encouraging them to work to raise their standard of living.
The women’s sector on the island also witnessed the establishment of several rehabilitation courses for Socotri women inside and outside the island with the support of the Khalifa Foundation, which contributed to raising their capabilities in several practical and life fields.
In terms of caring for the health aspect of women, humanitarian efforts have begun to establish the Mother of the Emirates Hospital for Maternity and Childhood to take care of the health of mothers and children and provide them with health care tailored and appropriate for their condition, as this is a qualitative leap for the health and medical sector on the island because of its positive impact in overcoming many difficulties facing public health.
The Emirati support for the women’s sector in Socotra has enhanced the presence of Socotra women and their participation in local and international festivals, and their contribution to the transfer of Socotra customs and traditions and their environmental and tourism advantages to the outside world.
The participation of the Socotra pavilion in the Sheikh Zayed Heritage Festival represented a major shift in introducing the island and its unique heritage to visitors from different countries of the world.
The pavilion participating in the festival presented the handicraft works carried out by Socotri women, including palm fronds products, as mentioned by the model Hamda Ayesh, who said that the department worked to acquaint the festival visitors with the types of handicrafts that Socotri women make from palm fronds, including the manufacture of banking products in the Socotri language. And mats and in the Socotri language and handbags in the Socotri language, and bags for clothes in the Socotri language and the imperative of Socotra and the rope that connects palm trees when the dates are ripe, as well as brooms called in Socotra “mishait”.
Ayesh added that a number of handicrafts were produced during the festival, which attracted many visitors to the festival.
The exhibitor in the Pottery Department in the wing, Mona Ali, indicated that the Pottery Department displayed several forms of pottery making, which are made of dirt and engraved with the blood of the two brothers to complement its beautifully and wonderfully decorated decoration.
She pointed out that the Socotra pottery displayed takes many classifications and labels in the Socotri language, such as “Jasfa, Kaz, Foti, Falha, Zarf, Magmarah, Sharhin, Magmar ordinary, Kub, Saifa and his people.”
