Several pairs of hands help scrape steaming couscous into a large bowl while others peel potatoes, carrots, and onions. More than 10 women are crammed into the small kitchen, chatting loudly and laughing with one another. “It’s like a wedding in Tunisia! There, all the women always make couscous together,“ says Salha Zaouali, one of the women working at Al Ciliegio, a restaurant located in a property confiscated from the mafia, in the small Sicilian town of Salemi, about an hour’s drive from Palermo. Here, migrant women from North Africa cook alongside women from Sicily, sharing recipes and learning Italian along the way—and in doing so, having the chance to fully integrate into the local community.
The Progetto Donna (“Women’s Project”) at Al Ciliegio is now in its 10th year. For decades, men from Tunisia have come to Sicily to work as fishermen, often spending months at sea. Most of their families stayed in Tunisia, but over the years, more and more women have joined their husbands in Sicily. Currently, about 20 women are involved in the project. “Over time, we’ve had more than 100 women here. They acquired their skills here and then put those skills to use in their daily lives”, says Giusy Agueli about the project’s concept. She provides support to the women who come here, helping them navigate the many difficulties that stem from settling in a new country. Agueli adds that, in the beginning, some women needed their husbands’ permission to participate in the project. “Now it’s changing. The women who have been here longer are teaching the newcomers that they don’t need to ask. You can decide for yourself.”
Cooking and coming together through food are at the heart of Progetto Donna. “Traditionally, these women know how to cook, and they can express themselves through it and share their creations with others. That’s very empowering,” explains Agueli. “That’s the starting point for a project like this: realizing, ‘I can do something by myself.’ So cooking becomes a way of helping each other bring out the best in themselves.” At a time when immigration is under attack worldwide, Al Ciliegio and its women’s project serve as a shining example of integration and cultural exchange.
