The region of Ash Shuweymiyah lies along the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, where Oman’s vast desert territories meet the Arabian Sea. The region is home to isolated Bedouin communities who fish, and raise goats, camels and other livestock. Theirs is a subsistence lifestyle and they traditionally survive on milk, which is more abundant than water.

Ghida Salim Said Al Bataharah is a member of the Al Bataharah tribe. The women of this tribe are highly-skilled basket makers. This craft is increasingly providing them with the opportunity to earn an income as modernity transforms traditional lifestyles and they become more settled. The Al Bataharah women are proficient at making the karma, a tightly-coiled bowl made with leather and used for the milking of camels and goats, and the fatiyah, a lidded-basket used for the storage of food and possessions.