The first 15 projects in Aleppo have been launched. These include the sale of ground coffee, the opening of a minimarket and the production of detergents. Many difficulties have been faced and overcome with the support of the RestarT team
The RestarT project has now arrived in Aleppo.
RestarT (Restarting to Remain) is a project aimed at people who already have experience in production and business but who have been unable to start work again because of the great crisis that has hit Syria since 2011. Men and women receive support to make their work project a reality which means they can stay in the country and contribute to rebuilding it after the war. The project is not about providing financial support, but the capital goods needed to start their professional activity.
The first group of projects are already underway in Homs and since October AMU has started operating in Aleppo.
The first applications selected in Aleppo
The RestarT team in Aleppo have looked at the first group of applications submitted. It met all the applicants and have initially selected 25 projects. The applicants were then invited to attend a training course on how to run small businesses which took place on 18 November.
Of the initial 25 projects, 15 remained after the training was completed. Some applicants decided to withdraw as they did not feel ready for the task.
RestarT’s work in Aleppo got underway with those 15 projects. By December, the project leaders were already being accompanied in the start-up of their new activities. The Aleppo team’s purchasing officer, together with the applicants, started looking for the goods needed to start their businesses and bought them.
What kind of projects are they? These are just some of them: production of detergents; nail care and beauty; opening of a mini-market; sale of ground coffee…
The difficulties encountered
It has not been easy to take these first steps. Many difficulties were encountered, starting with transport, because petrol in Syria has become very expensive. Unstable prices and high costs also made it impossible for the protagonists to buy the required quantity of materials. But the RestarT team in Aleppo proceeds apace, trying to stick to the work plan agreed with each one so that each of these men and women can be a building block in the reconstruction of their own business and the economic fabric of their country.