Technical and vocational Student in Jordan Faces Uncertainty - But Also Opportunity
Alaa’ was not going to let bumps in the road hold him back: “Not finishing high school was not a setback for me”, he said. “In fact, it was just the beginning of my adventure of becoming a professional tailor.”
Alaa’ Al Haraki, an 18-year-old young Syrian, tells us of his exciting journey into his career in sewing and the obstacles he had to overcome along the way.
Alaa’ was not going to let bumps in the road hold him back. “Not finishing high school was not a setback for me; in fact, it was just the beginning of my adventure of becoming a professional tailor”. Though he encountered much doubt and resistance, Alaa’ was not discouraged. “My grandmother was my inspiration: she taught me how to sew and motivated me to develop my talents”.
Alaa’ and his family arrived in Jordan in 2011, at the start of the Syrian conflict, amid huge uncertainty. After years of living in the Zaatari refugee camp, Alaa’ took the initiative and applied for training offered by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) with the support of Enabel, a partner in the Qudra 2 programme. “It was my lucky day when I received a call saying that my application had been accepted”, said Alaa’. He applied for the first level of vocational education training in tailoring. Given the opportunity, he aced all his classes. His success inspired him to enrol in the second level of the course provided by the Qudra 2 programme.
During this time, Alaa’ had the support of his family, too: “My grandmother supported me the whole way, no matter what the obstacle was. She believed in me as much as, if not more than, I believed in myself, and I will be eternally grateful to her. After graduating, I worked at her little tailor shop across the corner in the camp. She started assigning me many technical tasks besides running errands and doing some chores around the shop”.
Besides working at his grandmother’s shop, Alaa’ had to work and study simultaneously to earn some money to support his family.
While Alaa’ has become a confident and competent tailor, he has plans to apply for advanced scholarships and programmes to extend his knowledge and competencies in the field. “I will apply for level three to shift from the semi-skilled to a skilled level of education. I am sure that with the skills I’ve developed, I’m ready for this next step”.