People On the Move, Suspended Futures

Syrian Fatima came to Türkiye with her family due to the internal turmoil and unsafe environment in her country. Fatima was 14 years old when she arrived in Türkiye, she wanted to continue her education, which had been interrupted and started high school with the approval and support of her family.

One year later, she had to end her education due to her family’s financial difficulties, the language barrier, and difficulties related to cohesion. Being the oldest child in the family, Fatima got married to be able to support her family financially. About two years later, she decided that she wanted to continue her education life and eventually enrolled in the open education system.

Coming across the Association for Social Development and Aid Mobilization (ASAM) owing a friend, Fatima attended the computer course opened at ASAM Ankara Community Center while continuing her education at the same time. After attending this course, Fatima gained further knowledge about using computers, met new people and expressed that this course was an inspiration for her and her psychosocial state improved significantly. With the inspiration gained from this training, she decided to continue her education in the field of computer science and began working to become a computer engineer.

After completing the computer course, she participated in the Speaking Club activities organized by ASAM.  Fatima wanted to discover and improve herself in every field so she also attended kitchen and knitting-sewing workshops.

Fatima says  “First, I want to prove myself to me, not to anyone else. I want to complete my education, begin to work, and sustain my life without being dependent on anyone else, neither financially nor morally.”.

(Note: The real name of the beneficiary has been changed.)