- Title: Woman makes masks out of recycled jeans as coronavirus cases spike in Gaza
- Date: 9th September 2020
- Summary: SELMI PRINTING DESIGNS ON MASK VIA MACHINE VARIOUS OF SELMI WORKING ON MASK SELMI IRONING MASK (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) GAZAN WOMAN WHO RECYCLES JEANS, REHAM SELMI, SAYING: "The idea started by making products from the recycled jeans. I think that the older the jeans material is, the better so I made bags from recycled jeans and it was a nice idea." VARIOUS OF SELMI WORKING ON DESIGN SELMI WORKING ON PRINTING MACHINE PRODUCTS ON DISPLAY SELMI WORKING ON SEWING MACHINE (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) GAZAN WOMAN WHO RECYCLES JEANS, REHAM SELMI, SAYING: "I developed the idea and brought the printer to print on the jeans. Instead of having a plain cloth bag, we print nice prints on it like these, which people will like to buy and will enjoy looking at." VARIOUS OF SELMI ADJUSTING MASK ON SON'S FACE (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) GAZAN WOMAN WHO RECYCLES JEANS, REHAM SELMI, SAYING: (SOUNDBITE ENDS WITH SELMI WEARING MASK): "We have been seeing many kind of masks made from different items, in different designs and shapes so it is nice to have a project to use recycled jeans to make masks during coronavirus pandemic. This is what the mask looks like."
- Embargoed: 23rd September 2020 15:10
- Keywords: COVID-19 Coronavirus Gaza Masks Recycling
- Location: GAZA CITY, GAZA
- City: GAZA CITY, GAZA
- Country: Palestinian Territories
- Topics: Middle East,Society/Social Issues
- Reuters ID: LVA003CUYVN11
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:A Palestinian woman who makes bags out of old jeans to make a living decided to shift gears to make face masks, as coronavirus cases spike in the besieged Gaza strip.
Gaza has reported hundreds of coronavirus infections since the first case emerged in the general population last month, and a United Nations aid group warned that a lack of key medical items including ventilators could make it hard to treat the disease effectively.
Reham Selmi, 36, began her recycling and design project with funding from an international organisation, then decided to address an increasing need for affordable and reusable face masks.
The mother of four says she tries to design face masks out of recycled material and adds colourful prints to them to make them appealing to her customers, especially children.
Selmi sells one mask for $1 and the price of a recycled bag ranges between $1.4 and $9.
So far, Gaza has registered 1,356 coronavirus cases and 9 deaths.
Widely impoverished and densely populated, the Islamist-ruled Palestinian enclave has been on lockdown since authorities confirmed four infections from a single family on August 24. It was the first time the virus was detected outside quarantine zones set up for people returning from abroad.
(Production: Mohammad Shana, Mustafa Abu Ganeyeh) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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