future now”

emaining active. This has prompted them to follow a
different route and create their own safe spaces, like women’s
groups, to address the needs generated from such a
radically changed situation.
In 2014, three more women’s groups in Aleppo and Al-
Hasaka and one in Deir Ezzor were founded.
Although the research only includes half of 2015, there
appears to be a decrease in the establishment of women’s
groups this year, with only two emerging, both located in
the northern countryside of Aleppo. Given that the groups
were only recently founded, their activities are still few.
One group aims to document violations against women
perpetrated by all the warring parties and provides shelter
for women survivors of war, while the other focuses on
advocating children’s and women’s rights and implementing
literacy campaigns.
Participants in a gender workshop in the countryside of Aleppo. On
the wall is a quote by Simone de Beauvoir. It says, “One is not born,
but rather becomes, a woman”.
Photo: Badael Foundation
Age dynamics and group size
A majority of the women’s groups members are between
31 and 50 years old (see Figure 3). This marks quite a difference
compared to civil society organizations (CSOs) in
Syria in general, where research shows that 74 percent
of the members are between 16 and 30, a much younger
average 11 . Within the women’s groups, members between
16 and 30 only constitute 42 percent. Similarly, CSOs in
general only have 8 percent of members between the ages
of 41 and 50, although it is the second largest age group
within the women’s groups. Possible reasons for these distinctive
differences are further discussed in Chapter Four
under Individual Efforts.
When looking at administrative staff, members and volunteers
(hence, all included in the term “members”),
what stands out is that the women’s groups are mostly
relatively small in size 12 . 18 groups have a maximum of 16
members, and 17 groups have between 17 and 32, making
the average group size 20. The lowest number was found
in one group in a Damascus suburb (two members), while
the maximum number (200 members) was held by one
group in Daraa (see Figure 4).
Some of the women’s groups stated that having a small
number of staff negatively affected their work and its sustainability.
Some attributed these low numbers to a lack
of funding, others to the dangers and threats imposed by
war which forces people to flee the country.
Number of members
400
Figure 3: Age structure of women’s groups
350
300
364
344
250
200
150
238
269
100
50
0
15
58
60
12
40
2
Years