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Women for Women International gives women survivors of war the tools they need to move from poverty to self-sufficiency. It opened its office in Kabul, Afghanistan in 2002 and since has provided women with the means to become active members of their communities. Beyond the 11th has supported Women for Women for the past two years. The 2004 grant allowed 100 widows to receive emotional support and training in rights awareness and leadership, as well as educational support, vocational skills and literacy training. Widows were also offered income generation opportunities like small business development, technical assistance, microcredit loans and access to local and international markets so they can continue to support their families after their participation in the program. As a first step, widows in the program met in small groups twice monthly for a year, facilitated by a staff member trained in women’s rights. During these sessions the widows addressed issues they face daily and discussed their political, economic, legal and personal rights. At the same time, participants developed a support system with other widows in their communities. Three to five months into the program, graduates chose from a variety of vocational skills training opportunities. Women for Women International staff guided the widows in their choice of viable business opportunities. This training was provided by local instructors with a wide variety of expertise in areas such as jewelry-making, carpet weaving, shoe-making and food processing. In addition, the widows were eligible to enroll in literacy classes. The first group of widows supported by our grant graduated on September 15, 2005 and the remaining four groups graduated in January of 2006. Most of the women have indicated that they would like to form cooperative businesses rather than work individually. This will not only allow them to pool their resources and share responsibilities but will also provide them with an ongoing source of peer support. They have expressed particular interest in cooperative food-making businesses using the skills they learned in jam and pickle-making. A demand exists for both of these products, with raw materials readily available to the women. This year’s grant will provide the original 100 widows with expanded opportunities for business plan development, business training, technical assistance in forming the cooperatives and sustainable income generation. A business counselor with full-time responsibility for this project will conduct the training and work with the women to develop viable business plans. The counselor will meet individually with the women throughout the course of the one-year project and will also conduct monthly group sessions. The group meetings will function as a source of solidarity and support for women giving them the space to discuss a variety of challenges they may be facing. To find out more about Women for Women International, click here. |
