Women and girls' empowerment
When the history of African development is written, it will be clear that a turning point involved the empowerment of women.
- Sheryl WuDunn
Our aim. To open up equal education and earning opportunities so women and girls can reach their full potential and rise above gender inequality in Ethiopia.
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The challenge today
There are many causes of gender inequality in Ethiopia: child marriage, gender-based violence, lack of female sanitary options in schools and scarce maternal healthcare. All of these act as barriers which stop Ethiopian women and girls from reaching their full potential.
Because of this, women and girls are most at risk of poverty in Ethiopia. Two in five girls miss out on school because they have no way to manage their menstrual hygiene. Many women then lose the chance to earn an independent income and contribute to their community’s development. And when a woman lives in poverty, her family and the next generation are far more likely to live in poverty too.
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The solution you can be part of
Did you know that when you lift a woman out of poverty, you’re helping lift up the community around her too? Experience shows that when a woman can access health, education and income, she invests this back into her family and helps bring about positive change in her community. Here’s how our project partners are making this happen:
- Putting an end to period shaming and helping girls stay in school through reusable sanitary packs, puberty information booklets and school workshops
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- Ensuring vulnerable young women are equipped for an independent future through high school/university sponsorships and vital training in reproductive health
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- Equipping single mothers with the means to provide for their families and contribute to society through agricultural training in sheep, vegetable and bee farming
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- Setting up women’s savings groups which train women in financial literacy, provide access to finance, help them find work or start a business and help them develop leadership skills
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See the solution in action
A group of high school girls from Tigray, northern Ethiopia, learning about puberty while also receiving a sanitary kit containing 4x reusable, cloth sanitary pads, 2x pairs of underwear and an informational ‘Growth & Changes’ booklet which dispels myths and answers frequently asked questions.
A workshop for male students to teach about puberty and menstruation. There is great stigma against these topics in rural Ethiopia, so boys grow up thinking this natural part of life is shameful, dirty and a sign of sexual promiscuity. Teaching both girls and boys the facts on puberty is vital to stop period shaming and end these stigmas.
From the 95% of girls in Ethiopia who attend primary school, only 25% will go on to attend secondary school and as little as 10% will enrol in university. Project partners set up high school and university sponsorships which fund accommodation, tuition, school supplies and essentials such as sanitary kits to take away the barriers and ensure girls can finish their education.
A single mother from Gondar city, northern Ethiopia, tends to her crops during the rainy season. After taking part in an agricultural training course, she learnt how to cultivate crops and sell them at market for profit plus also received a start-up kit containing assorted veggie seeds and gardening tools.
Women meeting for their recurrent Savings & Finance Co-Operative where they learn about savings, credit and finance, share problems/solutions about their own small business ventures and grow leadership skills needed to be active and vocal members of their community.
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The impact you can have
“The sheep is the most important thing for me, it has helped my family so much.”
A single mother living on the outskirts of Gondar city, Mare struggled to feed her five kids, let alone send them to school or pay for medication.
One day, Mare heard about project partners Yenege Tesfa who have a growing reputation in northern Ethiopia. She signed up to their agricultural program where she learnt how to tend sheep, grow her own vegetables and sell them for profit at market.
One year later, not only can Mare afford food, medication and schooling for her family, she also has some savings set aside and is hard at work to improve her family’s future:
“I want to improve the number of my sheep and the quality of them. I would like to add more chickens as well.”
When you help lift one woman like Mare out of poverty, you're helping lift up her family and her community too.
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Meet your project partners
Dignity Period
Dignity Period helps Ethiopian girls stay in school by tackling period poverty. They distribute locally-made, reusable sanitary pads and hygiene kits to adolescent girls, while also providing educational booklets to both girls and boys to help dispel myths and reduce the stigma behind menstruation.
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Yenege Tesfa
Meaning ‘Hope for Tomorrow’, Yenege Tesfa are there for the most marginalised in society. They offer group homes for homeless children, run mobile schools for kids on the street, sponsor disadvantaged students, fund free medical services, and run agricultural livelihood programs for single mothers.
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JeCCDO
Established in 1985, the Jerusalem Children & Community Development Organisation (JeCCDO) adopt a child and community-based approach to provide access to basic services, increase opportunities for kids and youth through education and skills training, and improve community development and quality of life.
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Make your impact
Donate today to help a woman or girl reach her full potential and be part of positive change.
