Women for Women International

Women for Women International is a non-governmental organisation that provides women survivors of war, civil strife and other conflicts with the tools and resources to move from crisis and poverty to stability and self-sufficiency, thereby promoting viable civil societies. Women for Women International mobilizes women to change their lives through a holistic approach that addresses the unique needs of women in conflict and post-conflict environments.

They work in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kosovo, Sudan, Iraq, Rwanda and Nigeria.

Programmes and activities

Women for Women International has 5 key areas of activity:

1. Rights Awareness
2. Job Skills Training
3. Employment Opportunity & Microcredit Lending
4. Sponsorship

Women for Women International identifies women who have lost everything in conflict and often have nowhere else to turn. These women participate in a one-year program designed to transform them from victim to survivor to active citizen. The Sponsorship  programme directly benefits the individual woman with financial aid from a sponsor. In the next stage, women participate in the Renewing Women’s Life Skills (ReneWLS) Program that provides them with rights awareness, leadership education and vocational and technical skills training. They also offer job skills training to strengthen women’s existing skills and to introduce new skills in traditional and non-traditional fields so women can access future employment opportunities. Building on the skills training program, Women for Women offer comprehensive business services designed to help women start and manage their own microenterprises.

URGENT: Call for Donations!

Four Iraqi women highlight the challenges they face in a documentary:
One year after the official end of the war in Iraq, the country is still in a state of turmoil. Operation Iraqi Freedom may officially be over but violence has escalated and women’s rights continue to be marginalised. Read more.

In this context, Women for Women International is launching an urgent appeal for donations to meet the demand for the year long vocational programme in Iraq and the seven other countries where we work.

Between 25 November and 10 December all donations made to Women for Women International will be matched pound for pound by a generous group of supporters. This means that all gifts will go twice as far to support the many women who are rebuilding their lives after conflict and war. Go to www.womenforwomen.org.uk to find out more.

See also

Ted Talk, Zainab Salbi

References

• http://www.womenforwomen.org