Al Barada Press
“ISIS stopped our work and we lost [everything]. I had to start from scratch. It was difficult for everyone,” says Nadeem Barada, owner of Al Barada Press in Mosul.
Established in 1998, Al Barada cuts and prints nylon, plastic, and paper bags sold to restaurants, bakeries, retailers, and factories. The business suffered a setback in 2006 when sectarian tensions forced many of its trained workers from minority groups to flee. Still, Nadeem managed to rebuild his team and Al Barada survived.
Then, in 2014, ISIS invaded. The building housing Al Barada was damaged by an airstrike and an explosion from a car bomb. Nadeem says he was in the liberated side of Mosul when he received the news that his factory had been looted.
“I knew that part of the city was a dangerous place and that my factory was at risk. I rushed from the other side of the city to see what was left of my factory – and even dodged a sniper bullet on the way.”
It took him five hours to reach the factory as ongoing liberation efforts restricted movement.
“The journey was much more exhausting than I thought. They told me that the area is filled with land mines and that I was going back at my own risk,” Nadeem remembers.
When he finally reached the site, he found that the damaged building had been left all but empty by looters.
“It was a particularly tough day. I found that all the raw materials, inks, solvents, and even products belonging to customers were looted. Only the heavy motors were left.”
Nadeem began to rebuild his business and Al Barada could gradually begin to resume production in 2019. But not long after, the COVID-19 pandemic struck. As Barada’s sales are dependent on economic activity in other sectors, COVID-19 lockdowns severely affected its revenue. Nadeem was forced to use surplus funds intended to install a new and modern production line to ensure the business could survive this new crisis.
“COVID was another setback to my business. The lockdown and movement restrictions greatly affected our operations and 2020 was the worst period. We made huge losses.”
The NII COVID-19 SME Support Programme provided Al Barada with working capital to recover from the pandemic.
“We developed a new production line that enabled us to compete with neighbouring countries, manufacture high-quality products and sell to a wider market,” Nadeem says of the impact the loan made on his business.
Today, Al Barada is faring well and continues to employ five people. Abdallah has been working there since 2004 – returning to his job after the invasion by ISIS and staying employed throughout the pandemic. Abdallah supports his wife and five young children.
“Working here has been a big part of my life. I hope to continue my work and (raise) my children,” he says.