Girls’ Tent: An initiative to empower women and girls in south Gaza 

The “Girls’ Tent” initiative was launched by a group of young leaders in southern and middle Gaza as part of the SDF’s national relief response program “Together For Palestine” (T4P), which targets girls and adolescents in displacement camps. This initiative was funded through the Initiatives Bank, in collaboration with the Save Youth Future Society (SYF), and supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Education Above All (EAA).

Remarkable Engagement

The young-women-led initiative targeted over 600 girls who engaged enthusiastically across various displacement camps in the middle and southern areas of the Gaza Strip to raise awareness about sexual health and personal hygiene for adolescent girls amidst severe shortages of hygiene supplies. It included awareness workshops, distribution of hygiene kits, First Aid Psychosocial support, and recreational activities designed to boost the girls’ self-confidence.

Sahar Mehdi, a young leader of the initiative, shared, “The atmosphere was special, and the girls were highly engaged, eager to learn and advance their situation. For many of them, this was their first time participating in such a workshop, and recommended further sessions. We conveyed our messages through activities rather than lectures, which allowed us to challenge misconceptions about sexual and physical health.” She added, “The initiative left a positive impression that the girls wanted to pursue. This motivates me to lead further activities to support them.” The initiative featured dynamic and enthusiastic sessions, using innovative methods to deliver information. These sessions combined psychosocial support with embedded messages to convey knowledge subtly and effectively.

Impactful Experiences

Rafif Shamlakh, a 14-year-old displaced from Sheikh Ajleen neighborhood in Gaza City, said, “I enjoyed it a lot. This was my first time learning about such critical topics as personal hygiene, body, and hair care. It’s such a valuable intervention for us.” Similarly, Nada Shomaly, a 13-year-old displaced from the Shuja’iyya neighborhood, noted, “The initiative had a recreational impact; we played, released negative energy, and learned a lot about physical changes during adolescence and how to advance personal hygiene—things we didn’t know before.”

A Critical Response to the Crisis

The importance of this initiative lies in its timely response to the urgent needs of displaced populations who have lost access to necessities, including hygiene supplies. Prices for these items have skyrocketed to unimaginable levels. Gaza has been grappling with a severe shortage of cleaning supplies, including personal hygiene products like shampoo and soap, as well as household cleaning materials such as dishwashing and laundry liquids. This shortage increases the risk of disease outbreaks, further exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

The Initiatives Bank: Supporting Youth-led Efforts

The Social Developmental Forum has created this as a platform to support youth-led and designed initiatives, funding and aiding 14 projects in northern and southern Gaza so far. These community initiatives commenced in early December 2024 and will continue until the end of the month. Supported by the Initiatives Bank, they aim to improve community resilience and enhance youth and public well-being amidst the challenges of displacement and the suffering caused by the ongoing Israeli genocidal war in Gaza since October 7, 2023.