The 23-year-old Syrian father of three always wanted to have his own career.
“Like any other young person, I always dreamed big,” he says. “But life responsibilities were bigger.”
A tough start in a new country
Aziz and his family have been living in the camp since June 2016. They are from Deir Ez-zor in south-east Syria, where the young father had to leave school after the ninth grade to help provide for his family. Abdul Aziz was hoping to find a job when they arrived at the Azraq camp in Jordan, but he struggled to find work.
“Unfortunately, opportunities to earn a living are scarce in the camp. I spent most of my days depressed,” he says, “feeling like I’m in an open-air prison made it feel even worse.”
When he saw our brochures and staff in the camp promoting vocational classes, he hesitated to register. “I knew that I would not be able to get a job as long as I’m in Azraq camp,” he explains. In addition to the difficulties in earning a living in the camp, being in village five, an area with many restrictions, like the lack of electricity, made Abdul Aziz’s hope even slimmer.
I didn’t choose the tailoring class, the tailoring class chose me.Abdul Aziz, Syrian refugee in Jordan.
He quickly changed his mind, telling us: “One day I saw my neighbour holding a graduation certificate from NRC’s youth centre. He had taken the electrical connections class. I liked the way he explained the electric circuit with passion and how he would wire his caravan when village five was provided with electricity, as it is only provided in villages three and six for the time being.”
He went to the centre on the last day of registration, but the electrical connections class was full. That’s when he was informed about the tailoring class that had some spaces left.
“At first I did not like the idea, but I thought of giving it a try instead of waiting for two months doing nothing.”
“I didn’t choose the tailoring class, the tailoring class chose me,” he laughs.
“A woman’s job”
Abdul Aziz had never used a tailoring machine before. “I always thought it was a woman’s job,” he says, and points out other things that were new to him, like having a female teacher.
“Then when we learned about the different types of tailoring machines, how to control the speed, how to draw patterns, cut them into the cloth and sew them, I enjoyed doing it!” He went on to make himself a pair of trousers and a shirt.
“I am going to wear them for our graduation ceremony!”
Gaining skills for life
Abdul Aziz has made many friends during his time at our training centre. Being in a group has made it easier for him to integrate with other students.
Abdul Aziz also enjoyed working on problem solving, one of the life skills he learned in class. “It made me think of who am I and who I want to become,” he says, and he praises his teacher for her efforts: “She was very patient dealing with male students, solving conflicts between us in class and teaching us how to respect each other.”
“At the end of the course, our class designed a thank you gift for the youth training centre.”