A new venture aimed at empowering Arab women and bringing them into the workforce was launched in Arabeh this week, with funding from the UJA-Federation of New York and the American embassy.

According to the Abraham Fund Initiatives, which is running the project, the goal is to improve Israeli Arabs' economic situation by encouraging women to work. According to Central Bureau of Statistics data, currently only some 30 percent of Arab women work, compared to about 80 percent of Jewish women.

The program, which will begin in five towns, will open with a public relations campaign urging Arab women to work. It will then offer some 5,000 women vocational training, workshops and seminars. The final stage will be an employment fair to help the women meet potential employers in or near their hometowns.

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Amnon Be'eri-Sulitzeanu, the Abraham Fund's director in Israel, says the project's goal is to create a social climate in the Israeli Arab community that supports women working. He also hopes that if the program is successful, the government will implement it in other towns.

Arabeh's mayor, Ali Aasali, backed the program, saying that growing poverty in Arab towns makes it impossible for women to continue staying home.

The Abraham Fund Initiatives is a non-profit organization based in Jerusalem and New York City. It is dedicated to advancing the coexistence and cooperation between Israel's Jewish and Arab citizens.