Kabalan had a dream to open his own salon since he was young and worked very hard to make his dream come true. He started learning about hairstyling when he was 16 years old, through that time he used to save money and buy tools and equipment to prepare for his future salon.

Kabalan is a single young man, he lives with his grandmother and his aunt and he is the only provider for the family. At the beginning of the war he was called to serve in the army, unfortunately, his services lasted for ten years until he was discharged in 2020; he couldn’t wait to go home and start his life project but unluckily, everything he prepared was stolen and he had to start all over from scratch. 

As he had a wide experience in hairstyling for both women and men, he found a job in someone else’s salon hoping to save money again and establish his own business, what he didn’t expect was the severe economic crisis that came after the war and changed all his plans because he couldn’t afford purchasing new equipment. 

With the support he got from the Micro Projects Program, he had the opportunity to open his salon and work independently, also started teaching his young cousin this profession. Today with the skills he has, Kabalan aspires to expand his services to include both women and men in the future.  

Alber loved blacksmithing a lot until he mastered this skill because this profession was his passion, he started working in his workshop in Al-Bayada neighborhood since a very young age.

He was living with his wife Nariman, his son Yousef and his little daughter Angel a peaceful life in their house in Hamidia, when the war started they fled to a village near Homs in 2011. During this period Alber was in a car accident that caused him a serious injury in his leg and it took him 3 years to recover.

After this difficult period and when things started to get better in Homs, Alber and his family came back home. Unfortunately, his workshop was completely destroyed and he lost all the machinery he had, as the sole provider for his family, he started working using simple equipment but that required a lot of time and effort from him, sometimes he was unable to provide many services because he didn’t have the needed machines.

Providing him with the essential machines and equipment for his project will increase his production and his profits, this is the first step towards achieving his life dream of establishing an iron furniture showroom in the future.

This family’s tragedy started when they were displaced from their village (Om-Sharshouh) leaving behind their whole life. Osama who is the only provider for his family of five and his parents had a restaurant in his village which later was completely destroyed with the start of the war. 

Since he moved to the city of Homs, he searched for a source of livelihood to provide for his family and tried working in many professions like wall painting, cars repairing and floor tiling but unfortunately, a health condition forced him to stop every time. He thought of opening a mini-market and dairy shop because he noticed that these food commodities are highly demanded and people in his neighborhood have to buy them from another area, the only problem that prevented him from implementing his project was his limited financial resources. 

Supporting Osama to open his own shop will help him in providing a decent income for his big family, and at the same time will give them the chance to have a new beginning.

“Life is like a boxing fight, the last man standing wins.” with these words Joseph described his life, he is a married man and a father of two boys; Ghassan (13 years) and Marcus (10 years), he worked as a wall painter since 2007 in many different cities around Syria. As it is known, this job requires a lot of physical effort which caused him many health problems and he couldn’t continue anymore in this tiring field. With very simple capabilities, he opened a small cleaning materials shop which was more suitable for him.

One day, Joseph and his wife woke up to find their son Ghassan unable to move, he was paralyzed! 

Doctors told them that he won’t last for more than 4 hours, which was shocking news for the family especially that he was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome. Thankfully, his body responded to treatment and he gradually started to get better. During that tough time, Joseph couldn’t work at all, which weakened his business and he became unable to purchase new goods due to the economic crisis. After he had the support he needs from the Micro Projects Program, Joseph chose to stand up and fight again for his family, hoping that better days will come.

Her will to live was stronger than all the pain she went through, giving the greatest sacrifice by choosing to keep her baby instead of taking the cure as a pregnant woman, her name is Nisreen and she is a mother of two; Jessica and George. She was diagnosed with breast cancer while carrying her baby. Taking the treatment was harmful to him so she refused it, and completed her pregnancy with a lot of courage and patience. 

After her baby’s birth, she went through long-term treatment until she beated the cancer and got her life back to normal. Her treatment was not only emotionally draining but also financially, a heavy burden on her husband’s shoulder who works as an employee for the Electricity Company with a very low income. Before her illness, Nisreen used to work in a second-hand clothes shop where she gained good sales experience. 

Today, Nisreen wants to help her husband in providing for their children by opening a coffee shop. Supporting her to start this project will give be a good chance to get the new start she needs to overcome all the bad times and forget the past.

Imad worked in selling clothes for six years and everything was going well for him, until the devastating war started and destroyed his shop completely. Being the sole provider for his wife and three children, he had no other choice but to use his car in goods distribution, without knowing that this job will become his new source of livelihood for a long time.

When COVID-19 began to spread, he noticed that the local market requires more sanitizers and cleaning products so he communicated with a specialized company that gave him an exclusive agency to distribute its products in the city of Homs, he found this job profitable for the first few months but unfortunately, the economic crisis came later and affected his business very badly.

Imad needs to improve his work by buying bigger amounts of goods which will help him to increase his sales rate and provide a better income. Supporting Imad gave him the chance to enter the market strongly and this way he will be able to cover all of his clients’ needs and guarantee the continuity of work. 

Shukri is a retired school teacher who lives with his wife Mouna and his twin sons; Rabih and Rami (13 years). After retirement he couldn’t stay without a job during the hard economic circumstances, so he thought of opening his small shop especially that it is located in Wadi Al-Sayeh (a neighborhood near Al-Hamidia), as a neighborhood newly emerged from war, Shukri took the advantage of having the only mini-market in the area where life was coming back.

Just like all the other shops during the economic crisis, his shop was heavily affected and it became almost empty. Providing his small shop with support for more goods and food commodities, will help him in getting a sufficient income and that surely will give him the hope of ensuring a better livelihood for his family.

After being a manager for five years in the KSA, Saeed’s life was suddenly changed forever when he lost his dream job because of a brain hemorrhage. Saeed lives with his wife and their three daughters, and he is the only provider for the family which started from scratch after losing everything they had.

Opening a mini-market was his decision and with the experience he had, his shop became very popular, and what really made it special was his excellent service for the customers. Unfortunately, the inflation had a very negative effect on his business and the continuing rise in prices caused a serious shortage of goods which for sure reflected on his income. 
Giving Saeed the chance to improve his project will ensure him the stability he needs, and help him provide a dignified life for his family.

This family’s life was changed forever and they won’t forget that day when they lost their beloved ones in the blink of an eye. The family was living a lovely life at their house in Al-Hamidia until the vicious war forced them to flee to a village near Homs where they stayed in a rented apartment and thought they would be safe away from war dangers. 

Unfortunately, the unexpected happened! While his father and his sister were sleeping peacefully, a malfunction in the gas heater caused a gas leak and asphyxiated them. That huge disaster had a great effect on his mother because he was all what she was left with after losing his father and his sister at the same day. 

In 2014, Elias and his mother returned home and started a new life. Because he has a long experience being a chef, he opened a sandwich shop where his mother could stay and help him, they built a very good reputation and their shop became well-known for the delicious food they serve.

The current situation of the country affected his shop a lot especially the frequent blackouts which damaged his equipment badly and made the electric generator a necessity. Purchasing new equipment for Elias’s shop revived hope in this family’s heart again and this project gave them the push they needed after all the tragedies they lived. 

Noura who studies psychological counseling is the youngest girl in her family, she lives with her parents after her three brothers traveled abroad searching for job opportunities to help their father in supporting the family during the hard economic circumstances.

Noura as well thought of a way to provide her own income, especially that her father has many health problems so she decided to use her skills in doing makeup, her mother who encouraged and believed in her talent helped her in preparing a suitable room at their house where she could work.

The main obstacle in her way was not being able to afford buying the essential tools to start her project. She applied for makeup kit and materials so she could work as a makeup artist and this way she would be able to do what she loves and to help her family at the same time.

Suleiman lives with his family of six; his father, his wife and 3 daughters. In 2012, the industrial area became very dangerous and he couldn't reach his workshop for car repairs that he had opened there back in 1998, when the family's journey with displacement had started.

the family fled to a village near Homs where they had to stay at their relatives' place with another 6 families for 3 months, being the sole breadwinner, Suleiman rented a workshop there but unfortunately there were many well-known workshops that he couldn't compete with, so he moved to another village called Fairuza looking for a new beginning, he found a suitable place and started working with simple capabilities.

The good news was the withdrawal of the armed group from the family's neighborhood. Suleiman and his father rushed to Homs to check on their house which was damaged and started to repair it, while his wife and the three girls stayed in Fairuza.

After that long and tiring journey, the family was finally able to return home. Suleiman kept working in his workshop but needed many equipment and tools. Hearing about the Micro Projects Program restored his hope, he is now able to provide many services he was unable to do before, in addition to the improvement in his income and livelihood.