TEN trailblazing Yemeni women have overcome scepticism and ridicule to bring electricity to their villages, illuminating lives with a micro-grid solar business that they hope to expand across their war-torn region.
In a conservative country wracked by hunger and poverty amid a devastating war that has destroyed most infrastructure, 36-year-old Iman Hadi and her burqa-clad colleagues are achieving what many would have thought unthinkable.
Hadi has been managing the all-female Friends of the Environment Station in the rebel-held area of Abs, northwest of the capital Sanaa, since 2019.
Equipped with six solar power grids, the station is the only source of electricity for dozens of houses in several villages.
Hadi said the idea started when the women imagined what they could do to help ease the impact of war on the poorest country in the Arabian Peninsula.
"We were able to make many people happy by connecting their houses to electricity," said Hadi, wearing the all-covering robe and well-worn gloves as she sat behind her desk in a makeshift structure at the station.
The station, one of three in the country but the only run by an all-female crew, started with 20 houses. Today, it powers twice that number.
- Easy-to-pay loans -
Tens of thousands have been killed since 2014 in the conflict, which pits the Iran-backed Huthi rebels against an internationally recognised government supported by a Saudi-led military coalition.
Hospitals, businesses and electricity plants have been destroyed or shuttered, amid severe fuel shortages that force many to work by candlelight.
Before the conflict, only around two thirds of Yemenis had access to the public electricity grid.
But amid the despair engulfing the country, one silver lining is emerging: solar power grids that started appearing on the roofs of houses in cities and villages.
"In Yemen, where people cannot afford to purchase food, access healthcare or other fundamental needs, providing the option of solar energy for remote areas empowers communities and builds hope and resilience in an otherwise often hopeless situation", says Auke Lootsma, the UN Development Programme Resident Representative to Yemen.
Projects like Hadi's station, which received UN and European Union funding and training, have helped Yemenis regain a semblance of normal life.
"Praise be to God, from morning and until evening, fans and washing machines and refrigerators and sewing machines are working in our house," Faeiqa Najjar, one of Hadi's customers, told AFP.
The power grid is helping others to earn money as well.
Hadi gives micro-loans from the monthly net profits of around $2,000, allowing people to open small businesses like grocery stores and bakeries.
- From mockery to respect -
However, the Yemeni entrepreneur's journey was anything but easy.
The small station surrounded by drab concrete walls is in a frontline region that often witnesses fighting between the rebels and government forces.
On top of that, rural society rejects the idea of women working outside the home.
"We have faced many difficulties, including ridicule and rejection from our families and society who believed that this sort of project is only for men," Hadi said.
"But we have handled these difficulties with persistence. Today, their mockery has changed to appreciation and respect for women."
In scenes that are novel for Yemen, every day the women mop and clean the navy blue solar grids, tighten the screws that hold them in place, check the battery life, and calculate consumption through meters hung on the walls.
The project has won the Ashden Awards for Humanitarian Energy that celebrates climate champions, and the UNDP is working to scale up the community business from three to 100 sites across the country.
Hadi was chosen as one of the BBC's 100 most inspiring and influential women from around the world in 2020.
The power grid has turned her into a local business icon, with men asking for her advice as well as small loans.
Her long-term plan is to extend solar services to all 3,060 households in her area.
"My message to all women here is to rise up and to go out to fulfil their ambitions," she said.
ETX Studio
Mon Mar 22 2021
![Yemeni women use solar to light up homes, one village at a time Yemeni women use solar to light up homes, one village at a time](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2021-03/81616386757_YEMEN.jpg)
A team of Yemeni women managed by Iman Hadi work at the Friends of the Environment Station, a solar panel station working since 2019 with UNDP funding and training. ETXStudiopic
![Hukuman penjara bapa lakukan serangan seksual ke atas 3 anak perempuan dikurangkan Hukuman penjara bapa lakukan serangan seksual ke atas 3 anak perempuan dikurangkan](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-04/51714453013_courtgavelmahkam.jpg)
Hukuman penjara bapa lakukan serangan seksual ke atas 3 anak perempuan dikurangkan
Dalam penghakimannya, Che Mohd Ruzima berkata perayu gagal membuktikan bahawa Mahkamah Sesyen terkhilaf dalam memutuskan kes itu.
Malaysia-Brunei adakan rundingan mudahkan urusan Imigresen
Malaysia dan Brunei akan mengadakan rundingan bagi memudahkan proses keluar masuk rakyat kedua-dua negara.
![Pan-gon mahu kekal hubungan baik dengan Malaysia Pan-gon mahu kekal hubungan baik dengan Malaysia](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/81721124936_KimPanGon.jpg)
Pan-gon mahu kekal hubungan baik dengan Malaysia
Bekas ketua jurulatih Harimau Malaya Kim Pan-gon mahu mengekalkan hubungan baik dengan skuad itu biarpun tidak lagi bersama.
Kos pampasan tanah fasa 1B proses Projek LPB Sabah RM1.2 bilion - Alexander
Anggaran kos pengambilan balik tanah bagi keseluruhan Fasa 1B proses pengambilan tanah dan penilaian pampasan tanah bagi Projek Lebuh Raya Pan Borneo Sabah (LPB Sabah) berjumlah RM1.2 bilion.
Sentiasa berhati-hati, ribut petir diramal berlaku di Sabah
Orang ramai khususnya yang tinggal di kawasan berisiko di Sabah disaran agar bersiap siaga terutama dari segi perubahan cuaca yang tidak menentu yang seterusnya akan mengakibatkan bencana banjir dan pokok tumbang.
Nasib acara sepak takraw wanita diketahui Khamis ini
Nasib acara sepak takraw wanita berpasukan dalam Sukan Malaysia (SUKMA) edisi ke-21 di Sarawak akan ditentukan dalam Mesyuarat Jawatankuasa SUKMA Peringkat Kebangsaan pada Khamis ini.
JPBM Sabah serah jentera khas buat pasukan sukarela
Jabatan Bomba dan Penyelamat Malaysia (JBPM) negeri Sabah sedang dalam perancangan untuk menyerahkan jentera khas, iaitu Volunter Fire Rescue Tender (VFRT) untuk Pasukan Bomba Sukarela (PBS) di Sabah.
Sarawak akan pertahan pingat sukan Muay Thai edisi lalu
Skuad Sarawak akan berusaha mempertahankan masing-masing dua emas, perak dan gangsa dalam kejohanan SUKMA yang dimenangi dalam edisi lalu.
![Usaha pujuk Pan-gon tidak berhasil - Yusoff Mahadi Usaha pujuk Pan-gon tidak berhasil - Yusoff Mahadi](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/81721124841_TBFAM.jpg)
Usaha pujuk Pan-gon tidak berhasil - Yusoff Mahadi
FAM pernah berusaha memujuk Kim Pan-gon untuk terus mengemudi skuad Harimau Malaya hingga kontraknya tamat secara rasmi pada akhir tahun depan.
![Kaspersky tinggalkan pasaran AS bermula 20 Julai ini Kaspersky tinggalkan pasaran AS bermula 20 Julai ini](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-02/51708604164_kasperskyancamans.jpg)
Kaspersky tinggalkan pasaran AS bermula 20 Julai ini
Kaspersky mengesahkan kurang 50 pekerja akan terkesan, dan mereka akan diberikan pampasan susulan penutupan syarikat tersebut.
![Piala Asia B-17: Skuad negara mula langkah kiri, tewas 0-4 kepada Yemen Piala Asia B-17: Skuad negara mula langkah kiri, tewas 0-4 kepada Yemen](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2023-06/71686863543_HarimauMuda.jpg)
Piala Asia B-17: Skuad negara mula langkah kiri, tewas 0-4 kepada Yemen
Skuad kendalian Osmera Omaro terpaksa akur dengan keampuhan pasukan lawan yang terlebih dahulu membuka jaringan pada minit ke-21.
![Lelaki warga Yaman didakwa edar dadah jenis kanabis lebih 200kg Lelaki warga Yaman didakwa edar dadah jenis kanabis lebih 200kg](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2023-01/71674804741_TBKANABISGANTUNG.jpg)
Lelaki warga Yaman didakwa edar dadah jenis kanabis lebih 200kg
Seorang lelaki warga Yaman berdepan hukuman mati selepas didakwa di Mahkamah Sesyen di sini hari ini atas tiga pertuduhan mengedar dadah jenis kanabis lebih 200 kilogram (kg).
![Pengecualian kuarantin, hanya untuk perjalanan tidak lebih dua hari - Uggah Pengecualian kuarantin, hanya untuk perjalanan tidak lebih dua hari - Uggah](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/http://img.astroawani.com/2020-08/41597313528_COVID.jpg)
Pengecualian kuarantin, hanya untuk perjalanan tidak lebih dua hari - Uggah
Rakyat Sarawak dalam perkhidmatan penting yang keluar dari negeri itu tidak lebih dua hari ke semenanjung, Sabah dan Labuan tidak perlu dikuarantin.
![Malaysia sambut baik gencatan senjata di Yemen Malaysia sambut baik gencatan senjata di Yemen](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/http://img.astroawani.com/2018-04/61524692558_TBHOUTHIYEMENPROTES.jpg)
Malaysia sambut baik gencatan senjata di Yemen
Malaysia menggesa semua pihak di Yemen agar menghormati gencatan senjata itu.
![Serangan kedua AS sasar komander Iran di Yaman gagal Serangan kedua AS sasar komander Iran di Yaman gagal](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/http://img.astroawani.com/2020-01/61578822595_KonflikASIran.jpg)
Serangan kedua AS sasar komander Iran di Yaman gagal
Serangan yang tidak berjaya itu menyasarkan Komander Kanan Pasukan Quds di Sanaa, Abdul Reza Shahlai.
![Buka kedutaan di Palestin, Pyongyang antara fokus 2020 Buka kedutaan di Palestin, Pyongyang antara fokus 2020](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/http://img.astroawani.com/2020-01/71578054745_SaifuddinAbdullah.jpg)
Buka kedutaan di Palestin, Pyongyang antara fokus 2020
Menerusi usaha meningkatkan perwakilan Malaysia di luar negara, pihaknya juga akan membuka Perwakilan Malaysia ke Palestin yang akan berpusat di Amman, Jordan.
![Arab Saudi dakwa serangan fasiliti minyak Aramco ditaja Iran Arab Saudi dakwa serangan fasiliti minyak Aramco ditaja Iran](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/http://img.astroawani.com/2019-09/81568596811_SaudiArabiaAramco.jpg)
Arab Saudi dakwa serangan fasiliti minyak Aramco ditaja Iran
Arab Saudi mendakwa serangan dron ke atas fasiliti minyak Aramco pada 14 September lepas, ditaja oleh Iran.
![Houthi lancar roket sasar barat daya Arab Saudi Houthi lancar roket sasar barat daya Arab Saudi](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/http://img.astroawani.com/2019-08/61567042177_TBROKET.jpg)
Houthi lancar roket sasar barat daya Arab Saudi
Serangan memusnahkan kemudahan ruang hangar pesawat dan menyebabkan aliran trafik udara di lapangan terbang tersebut terjejas.
![Arab Saudi gagal bela Yaman, masyarakat Islam Australia boikot industri haji Arab Saudi gagal bela Yaman, masyarakat Islam Australia boikot industri haji](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/http://img.astroawani.com/2018-08/41534471057_TBMAKKAH.jpg)
Arab Saudi gagal bela Yaman, masyarakat Islam Australia boikot industri haji
Ulama terkemuka Yusuf al-Qaradawi juga telah mengeluarkan fatwa supaya orang Islam lebih mengutamakan ibadah fardu kifayah.
![The Nintendo of Islamophobia The Nintendo of Islamophobia](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/http://img.astroawani.com/2019-03/41552819779_NEWZEALAND.jpg)
The Nintendo of Islamophobia
The late Edward Said, author of the "Orientalism-, in reaction to Gulf War I, once averred that the CNN footage of the war in Iraq amounted to a "Nintendo Game".