Ahali Center for Community Development

One of Grassroots International’s newest partners is the Ahali Center for Community Development, based in Nazareth, Israel.

Ahali (Arabic for "people in community") is a pioneer in grassroots activism and community organization for the Palestinian minority in Israel.

Comprising 20% of the Israeli population, Palestinians face systematic discrimination. They experience enormous neglect in living standards, social services, education, employment and public infrastructure.

Ahali believes that only a strong, conscious, organized and active Palestinian civil society can demand full citizenship and realize minority rights. Ahali envisions equal distribution of Israel’s national resources and preservation of Arab national and cultural identity.

Ahali works with women, farmers, artisans, youth and students to advance and support the rights of the Palestinian minority in Israel. Ahali provides its members with skills and tools to identify their social, economic, political and cultural needs and to join together to meet those needs.

Ahali has developed a number of innovative programs to empower the community which Grassroots is pleased to support:

• The Arab Farmers Project, which aids in lobbying and advocacy, providing training and support for sustainable development projects. The project includes hundreds of farmers organized into local farmers’ committees.
• The Rural Women’s Program, has trained more than 21 women's groups throughout the country to run income generating projects. The program places a special emphasis on overcoming the obstacles presented by social constraints and globalization.
• The rehabilitation of lands located in the “seam zone” of the Separation Wall in the Qalqilia region of the West Bank. This project is very important as it helps keep land in the hands of Palestinians and is a way for Palestinian farmers on both sides of the Wall to mutually cooperate and build political awareness