From where I stand

Christian Aid is learning more and more about the communities we work with thanks to new projects that help people share their own stories.

Here are two from Haya and Enddy.

Haya taking photos of her surroundings.

Overcoming trauma in Syria

Haya took part in a photo-journalism project helping young people in north-west Syria deal with trauma and express their hopes for the future.

It’s part of Christian Aid’s Creating Alternative Futures programme, funded by the European Union. This programme helps young people affected by the Syrian conflict catch up on their education, learn new skills and access psychosocial support.

Many of these young people have lived through conflict for almost half their lives. Photography allows them to catalogue what they see every day and express themselves.

Haya’s story

My name is Haya. I am 20 years old from north-east Syria. After I finished high school, my dream was to go to university, but the circumstances of war and displacement prevented me from achieving this dream.

At that time, I felt darkness everywhere around me, as if life had ended – the case for many of my country’s people. But I finally found light through my camera which expresses my pain and hope at the same time.

I love photography because every picture has a beautiful story, different memories, and unforgettable moments.

In the past, I took many photos in different places, but when I joined the photography training, I benefited a lot from this experience to improve my photos.

‘I finally found light through my camera which expresses my pain and hope’

We photograph to understand the meaning of our life. If you cannot feel what you are photographing, you will not be able to make others feel anything when they look at your pictures.

How many people entered this place for quarantine after being infected with coronavirus? Some of them died after they struggled with the disease, and others survived to tell us the story of their suffering and how important it is to adhere to preventive measures.

When I see the bees absorb the nectar from this white and pink flowering tree, it gives me hope, and I feel reassured and secure. This road tells us hundreds of stories full of tears and laughter of the people who crossed it – during the journey of displacement and asylum, or in ambulances on their way to the hospital after being infected with coronavirus, or even hikers enjoying the beauty of nature.

See more photography from Haya and others at caid.org.uk/mysyria

Sharing community concerns

Our True Voice is a network of community reporters from Nigeria and Zimbabwe sharing first-hand accounts of the challenges and solutions of social exclusion.

It’s part of Christian Aid’s project, Evidence and Collaboration for Inclusive Development (ECID), funded by UK Aid, and is helping to focus support where it is needed most.

The reporters are individuals from the marginalised communities the project aims to support: women, people with disabilities and young people.

One of them is Enddy Ziyera from Zimbabwe. He has covered stories across a range of topics including health and gender-based violence.

These reports are valuable evidence in advocating for improved services and they make sure that people’s voices are heard.

Below is one of Enddy’s latest reports.

Enddy Ziyera

June 2021, Zimbabwe

Access to clean water remains a challenge for residents of Gimboki

Access to clean water remains a pipe dream for many residents of Dangamvura especially those residing in Gimboki.

Women and children spend hours in long queues at the two communal water points, to fill up a few containers. Altercations, shouting, and cursing are a daily ritual as people jostle for a chance to fill up their containers. At these water points, social distancing, wearing of face masks and other Covid-19 safety protocols are not observed.

Many women do their laundry by the nearby rocks to take advantage of the water point. This increases the chance for the virus to spread. Some water vendors charge people as high as US$3 to fill up a 200-litre container. But this is very expensive compared to the less than Z$90 (US$0.25) for 1,000 litres of water charged by the local authority.

This has increased the levels of poverty and inequalities among residents, especially women whose social status continues to dwindle. It is time that local authorities and developers found a lasting solution to the water problem.

Head to evidenceforinclusion.org/our-true-voice or follow #OurTrueVoice on Twitter to see future reports.