Orkeda - Nehaya Sabri

The growth and development of Palestinian cities has led many people from smaller towns and villages to relocate to more commercial and industrial areas in search of opportunities and a better life. However, the growth of urban areas due increased economic opportunities has left cities devoid of recreational areas such as parks and gardens for families to experience nature. To address this issue, Nehaya Sabri of Qalqilya sought to bring a touch nature to the city for individuals and families alike to enjoy. 

Nehaya’s twelve years of experience as an agronomist in the plant industry allowed her to focus her talents on cultivating high demand indoor plants including various orchids, sansevierias, known as snake plants, and zamias. However, because the market for indoor plants is flooded with imports, Nehaya strives to establish her own fiber glass green house to cultivate locally produced competitively priced alternatives, she explains, “I have been working in this field for over 12 years, and I wanted to introduce high quality indoor plants that are locally grown and accessible to all Palestinian.” 

Nehaya aims to capture thirty percent of the indoor plant market within the West Bank and aims to market her plants for households as well as to enhance the corporate atmosphere with a touch of nature. Nehaya is confident in her abilities to establish her indoor plant nursery, “I am not only going to cultivate and sell indoor plants but I will rely on sustainably regenerating my own saplings so I will not have to rely on any imported materials.” 

Furthermore, Nehaya explains that by developing the indoor plant industry within the Palestinian territories will positively affect employment opportunities and inspire a new generation of Palestinians to focus on developing and supporting their own industry by using locally produced flower pots and growing materials. Nehaya expresses her confidence in Palestinian industry, “I support Palestinian industry, we have the capability to produce high quality alternatives to imports that will support our local markets and inspire each other to take our creative ideas and turn them into a reality.”