Progress and Impact Assessment Report

The MEDINA project seeks to assist the people of Shibam and Zabid in acquiring new skills that will improve living conditions in a number of areas. Ideally, these skills would initially assist individuals with producing useful services and household items for personal use. However, once these skills have been perfected, they can be used to supply goods and services to the worker's community, and, eventually, a broader market.

The key candidates for such training are women; particularly, women who reside in poor households. They cannot work outside the home, have limited marketable skills, and often live far from markets. Women living in rural areas cannot easily travel to city markets, and thus must rely on their husbands for information and necessary purchases. Illiteracy also restricts them in their dealings with the outside world which can include possible business dealings. Women are also not allowed to...
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