Gaza: The Roof Is Now the Field

Photo by Emad Badwan

What started as a project from fascination has developed into a relatively lucrative means of contributing to his family’s needs.

By Eva Bartlett
Uruknet.info
2 December 2010

Excerpt:

On the flat, square, cement roof of another Beit Hanoun home, Ahed Shabat, 42, looks after the plants and vegetables growing in tubs and cement planters amidst hung laundry and water tanks.

“We grow things we can use year round, like garlic and onions,” he says. “But also seasonal plants like spinach, parsley, radishes, eggplant, corn, okra and chili peppers.

“We also grow flowers and herbs to use in tea, like mint, mirimiyya and zaatar,” he adds. The latter two herbs, that commonly grow wild in the hills of the occupied West Bank, are a staple for most Palestinians’ tea, and have medicinal uses.

The rooftop helps support his family of six, and is a tranquil island. “This garden is mostly for our family’s consumption, and at the same time saves us money,” Ahed Shabat explains. “My family enjoys sitting up here amongst the plants, because most of Beit Hanoun’s plant life has been destroyed.”

Home-grown food projects like rooftop gardens, and raising rabbits and chickens on the roof help combat the severe poverty of Gaza’s 80 percent food-aid dependent population. Those living in tightly-packed refugee camps or overcrowded towns but with access to a roof can potentially stave off malnutrition and at the same time generate a small income.

“I love raising birds,” says Abu Jihad, 17, at his rooftop coop of roughly 100 chickens and a score of pigeons in central Gaza. “In the beginning I learned about chickens watching how my friend worked with his coop. The only place I had to keep chickens was our roof.”

Read the complete article here.