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Partners With the $150,000 raised from Cycling Forward 2004, Beyond the 11th funded two worthy programs through CARE International and Women for Women International. We received updates from both organizations and are thrilled with the progress made by the 500 widows enrolled in the programs. The poultry-rearing program is well underway. CARE’s team of poultry trainers selected 400 widows to participate. As part of this vocational training program, the women also receive literacy and rights awareness training. Poultry training classes began in November and covered topics such as: coop construction, vaccinations, chick feeding and disease diagnosis and management. One month later the women were given coop-making materials. As the coops were constructed, each widow received 15 chicks, many purchased from past program participants. To motivate participants, CARE employs graduates of previous poultry programs as assistants to the veterinary doctors. These graduates help monitor, train and execute follow-up services. In the process of collecting data on chicken health and egg production, CARE also conducted a detailed survey on general household information. Results from this survey provide valuable insight into the lives of the widows participating in the program. Data on income levels, income generation, expenditures and food intake was provided. This information will be invaluable as Beyond the 11th plans for its next grant-writing effort. Below are quotes from two widows participating in the Beyond the 11th program. In November, I participated in the poultry program and now I am able to make approximately 80 Afs ($1.50) a day from selling eggs. I am a member of a savings group in my district and I hope one day to receive a loan to purchase an incubator so that I can raise many more chickens. I am hopeful for the future of my daughters. I want them to be educated to the highest levels, maybe even university.” ”Before I joined CARE’s poultry program, I used to send my small son, to sell boiled lentils in the market, far from our house. My daughters and I used to wash clothes for our neighbors. I‘m ashamed to admit, I did not send them to school. Now I have the chicks I am able to sell eggs in the markets and can send all my children to school, buy stationery for them. I know about the two ladies who rode bicycles a long way to raise money for us and I’m very thankful to them. I hope they will continue to help us so that we can purchase incubators and receive more training about poultry-raising. If I manage to receive an incubator, I will donate some of my chicks to other needy women, that will be my small contribution to helping others like me.” We are overjoyed that our program is positively affecting widows’ lives. Self-sufficiency is a giant step in the direction of dignity. During the following months, CARE International plans to continue monitoring the chicken coops and to mobilize participants into savings groups. These groups ensure that the widows are able to access the support necessary to make informed decisions about how to make the most of the money they make. We eagerly await the next progress report on the widows and their poultry-rearing efforts. We wish them great success in this endeavor. To find out more about CARE International click here. The 100 widows enrolled in the Women for Women program are divided into five groups scattered throughout Kabul, Afghanistan. Once the group members were selected they chose a name for themselves. Candle, Spring, Tulip and two Hopes are now funded by Beyond the 11th. All the groups participate in right awareness and vocations skills training sessions. Topics covered in rights awareness include, human rights, the economy, equal education for boys and girls, voting, community communication, woman and Islam and “landmine lessons.” Each group was offered a number of vocational skills and chose from, groups then decided which skill they thought would be the most practical and profitable. Jam and pickle making, shoe and bag making, jewelry making and tailoring are now being mastered by the program participants. The following are two short stories from Beyond the 11th recipients… Mariam is very grateful for the program because it shows women how to come out of the house and how to work together. It taught her the value and the rights of a woman in the world and in Afghanistan. Before participating in the program Mariam had a lot of economic problems that she was not able to solve… She is planning to buy a tailoring machine in order to sew clothes for a wage. She is extremely grateful to have other women who are thinking of her and her children. Before participating in the program, Fatima was working in the house in order to earn money and support her family. Since participating, she has used her sponsorship funds to buy fabric and thread in order to design and stitch together products to sell in the market. She feels very good about her ability to work and support her family. She is eager to graduate from the skills trainings course and to work in the jewelry making that she likes. We are thrilled that the Women for Women program is providing hope to widows in Afghanistan. We eagerly await the end of the vocational training classes and hope to see the handicrafts made by women in the program. To find out more about Women for Women International click here.
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