May El Habachi

Development

The National •

How freelancing is giving Gazans hope during war | The National

It’s been five months since Hiba Al Tibi, a 32-year-old divorcee, started freelancing at Taqat, a business incubator and co-working space, in Gaza city. Working as a graphic designer, video editor and data entry specialist, she spends about eight hours a day at the space completing assignments for clients in Egypt, Sweden and soon France.

Ms Al Tibi decided to freelance soon after her divorce. With both her daughters living with her ex-husband, she wanted to find a way to improve her situation....
The New Arab •

Displaced Palestinians embrace new beginnings in Egypt

In early November 2024, Rozana Sukaik, her mother, and her brothers left Gaza to seek refuge in Egypt. What she thought would be a stay of just a few weeks has turned into 18 months, with no end in sight.

Yet Rozana and her family are among the lucky ones. With American citizenship, they were able to leave Gaza shortly after the war began.

“We only witnessed the first month of the war, until they were able to evacuate us since we have foreign passports,” she told The New Arab. “The closest and...
AL-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent •

Stigma helps HIV spread in silence in Egypt

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, as well as by media, thought and business leaders and academia.

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, a...
Arab News •

Beirut-based theater company brings joy and laughter to Syrian refugees’ lives

BEIRUT: Sabine Choucair, a professional clown, is on a mission to spread light relief to Syrian refugees and vulnerable people worldwide. She discovered her true calling when she learned the art of clowning while studying theater in the UK.

“I found it (clowning) magical. I found the answer to why I really wanted to do theater and how to use it with people,” she said.

Soon enough, Choucair and her friend Gabriela Munoz founded Clown Me In in 2008, a Beirut-based theater company that performs...
Arab News •

Sustainable and ethical fashion gaining currency in Egypt

CAIRO: Fast fashion is defined as “inexpensive clothing produced rapidly by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends.” While it is affordable, fast fashion is plagued by ethical issues, including the treatment of garment-factory workers.
Its effect on the environment — from the disposal of cheap apparel to the pollution of natural resources — is also a growing cause for concern.
Some entrepreneurs in Egypt are confronting these issues by creating more sustainable and ethical fash...
AL-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent •

Association helps Cairo's 'garbage people' make a clean living

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, as well as by media, thought and business leaders and academia.

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, a...
AL-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent •

Egypt eyes moneymaking potential of e-waste

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, as well as by media, thought and business leaders and academia.

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, a...
Mohammed Bin Rashed Al Maktoum Global Initiatives •

Women empowering women to fight sexual harassment in Egypt

Schirin Salem always knew that she wanted to support women and girls. But it was only in the aftermath of the Egyptian revolution that she realised that she could contribute to solving the country’s sexual harassment problem.
Tired of always being passive and silent, Salem, together with her friend Emeline Lavender, decided to create Igmadi (“Be strong”), a series of events to teach women how to defend themselves against harassers through Zumba fitness and Wen-Do training. Through Igmadi, women...
AL-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent •

Egypt’s education system set for major overhaul

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, as well as by media, thought and business leaders and academia.

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, a...
Ms. Magazine •

Inside the Fight to End Sexual Harassment in Egypt

The #MeToo campaign that took the world by storm strongly resonated with women in Egypt.
Emboldened by the global flood of women breaking their silence on sexual harassment, Egyptian women also took to social media to share their experiences. Defying social norms, Egyptian women bravely spoke up to tell their stories of sexual abuse and harassment with the hope of showing the magnitude of the problem in Egyptian society today.
“Not a single day goes by when I don’t have to worry about my physica...
Fair Observer •

The Lost Generation of Syrian Children

This article saved into your bookmarks. Click here to view your bookmarks. Syria’s children will be a lost generation suffering not only from a life of violence and war, but a life of bleak opportunities.
As the Syrian War marks its sixth year, the humanitarian crisis has become worse than ever. Those paying the highest price of the conflict are children. With no place to go, it is estimated that at least 3.7 million children are displaced—that is 1 in all 3 Syrian children—according to UNICEF....
ExpatGo •

Giving back to society: helping refugees in Malaysia

May El-Habachi looks into the incredibly tough life of refugees in Malaysia and discusses ways that expats and locals can help.

Nadia (real name not given to protect her identity), is a 35-year-old Syrian refugee and a single mother of three children who came to Malaysia in search for a better life. Three years later, she is still struggling to survive.
As a refugee, she is not allowed to work or send her children to school. Sometimes she cannot even pay rent, leaving her and her children vulne...
World Politics Review •

Egypt’s #MeToo Activists See Progress, but ‘the Road Ahead Is Long’

CAIRO—With hundreds of women flooding social media in recent months with accusations of sexual harassment and assault, a growing #MeToo movement is taking Egypt by storm. Their online testimonials have garnered massive public support and prompted reforms to the country’s sexual harassment laws, like granting anonymity to victims and witnesses in sexual assault cases. More broadly, they are challenging the culture of victim-blaming that is often associated with sexual harassment and assault in Eg...
AL-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent •

Is COVID-19 pushing women in Egypt out of workforce?

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, as well as by media, thought and business leaders and academia.

Al-Monitor is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, a...
Arab News •

How coronavirus crisis reinvented online learning as a necessity

CAIRO: In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, 110 million school-aged children stayed at home this term because of school closures, according to UNICEF. The pandemic has led to a regional surge of education technology (edtech) startups filling the gap in place of traditional and workplace settings.

Before the COVID-19 outbreak, edtech in the Middle East received only $1.26 million in funding after a record $20 million was invested in the sector in 2019, according to the startup and...