Working around the clock, female refugee artisans crafted palm-sized brooches of late Egyptian actors to honour them at El Gouna Film Festival.
Samaher (L), a Syrian refugee, shows off a brooch of late Egyptian actress Ragaa El Geddawy that she made. UNHCR/ Pedro Costa Gomes
Fanned out across a display table, palm-sized brooches of late iconic Egyptian movie stars piqued the interest of the crowd strolling through the marketplace of the Red Sea’s El Gouna Film Festival (GFF).
Fouad El Mohandess, Shweikar, Ragaa El Geddawy, Ahmed Zaki and Hassan Hosny were some of Egypt’s most beloved celebrities. They owned the big and small screen for decades, seeping into the hearts of millions across the Arab world.
Actors such as Basma, Asser Yassin and Arwa Gouda took to Instagram to rave about the brooches, which were cut, sewed and beaded by 59 refugee and Egyptian women.
Entitled “Stars in the Sky”, the project was a collaboration between ALEXBANK, Thaat Social Enterprise and UNHCR to support the female artisans and thrust their work into the spotlight.
“Today, an actor will wear my work and tomorrow it will be all over the news!” said Raneem, a 36-year-old refugee artisan from Syria, her voice gushing with excitement.
Miles away from the red carpet, in a workshop nestled in the city of the Pyramids, a buzz of Syrian, Sudanese and Egyptian dialects fills the room.
“We had to deliver 2,500 brooches in just eight days,” said Fatma, a refugee artisan from Sudan. “I don’t know how we did it, but it only takes a look at my blistered fingers to remind me,” she chuckles.
Peri Abouzeid and refugee artisans wearing the stars in the sky brooches. UNHCR/ Pedro Costa Gomes
Refugee artisans working on the brooches. UNHCR/ Pedro Costa Gomes
Refugee artisans working on the brooches. UNHCR/ Pedro Costa Gomes
Run by Thaat Social Enterprise[1], the workshop is a production and learning space that was established in 2017 by UN Women in partnership with the National Council for Women (NCW) and UNHCR to empower refugee and Egyptian women. But for many of them, the workshop is more than just that.
“I loved my experience here because it introduced me to women from different nationalities,” said Fayqa, a retired Egyptian teacher. “While we were working, I would often pick up some sewing tricks or learn traditional recipes from them.”
The place is also often bustling with children whose giggles would echo in the corridor and their little feet would stick out underneath the tables while playing hide and seek.
“Some women bring their children along to the workshop because they can’t afford to send them to a nursery and don’t have anyone to look after them,” said Samaher, a Syrian refugee artisan and mother of four.
There are currently 258,882 registered refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt, 48 percent of whom are women. Slightly over one third of them are the main breadwinners for their families.
UNHCR links refugee artisans with quilting, crocheting and sewing skills to social enterprises specialized in the production and marketing of handicrafts in Egypt such as Thaat. This helps refugees provide for their families’ needs, make use of their talents and contribute to their host communities.
“When we were asked to produce the brooches, I jumped at the opportunity,” said Peri Abouzeid, founder of Thaat. “It was a tight race against time, but I knew the difference this job would make for the women whose income was dwindling because of COVID-19.”
Having worked with refugee artisans for over three years, Abouzeid was also aware of the doors this order could open for them.
“Stars in the Sky was a golden ticket to GFF for the artisans, who deserved to have their work seen and their story heard by everyone from filmmakers, celebrities, and beyond,” she said.
Launched under the slogan “Cinema for Humanity”, GFF is one of the region’s youngest and most prominent film festivals. Although this is the first time for refugee products to be displayed there, UNHCR has been present every year since the first edition of GFF to advocate for refugees and engage civil society actors through roundtable discussions and production and documentaries.
Building on the festival’s commitment to supporting humanitarian causes, this year UNHCR and GFF signed a cooperation agreement to provide a platform for UNHCR within the festival to raise public awareness about the refugee cause and feature refugee voices.
Also high on UNHCR’s agenda at GFF this year were children in the Arab region and particularly in Egypt. Together with the Sawris Foundation for Social Development (SFSD), UNHCR organised a panel discussion entitled ‘Children Matter”. It was moderated by Lebanese TV presenter Raya Abirached and featured Lebanese director Nadine Labaki, UNHCR Representative Mr. Karim Atassi, Assistant Secretary General and Head of Social Affairs Sector of the League of Arab States Dr. Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, Executive Director of SFSD Eng. Noura Selim, and UNHCR High Profile Supporter, Actress Kinda Alloush.
UNHCR’s advocacy efforts at GFF culminated in another partnership agreement with SFSD to support refugee children in 2021-2022. The agreement was announced at a high-level reception co-hosted by both parties.
On the sidelines of the reception, a buzz was brewing around the brooches with attendees such as presenter and Master of Ceremony Indji Ali and Egyptian actress Bushra showing them off before posting them on Social Media.
“I am so proud of them,” exclaimed Abouzeid. “This experience truly tested our limits and showed the women how strong they are.”
[1] The workshop, known as ElMashghal, is being implemented by UN Women Egypt in partnership with the National Council for Women (NCW) and UNHCR Egypt, within the framework of the “Leadership, Empowerment, Accessibility & Protection” (LEAP) programme, that is generously funded by the Government of Japan.
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