W.E. (Women Empowerment)
How to facilitate the inclusion of women at decision levels?
Women are excluded from individual and collective leadership although they are the pillars of local families and communities, being the main provider of well-being for their children, husbands and even neighbors.
TATU has decided to create a platform for the women called Kazi Na Sala, guaranteeing them a space for expression and taking initiatives, with our support.
3 programs were identified to frame the initiatives:
The long-term goal of WE GROW is that the women in Msitu wa Tembo will feel empowered personally, within their families, and as members of a larger society. We provide a personal empowerment program for each woman to increase their agency on individual, relational, societal, and institutional levels.
Then, through group support, they may start paving the way towards their personal objectives.
This is divided in 2 steps:
- Team building: making them feel that they belong to a support group. Our weekly meetings build solidarity between the women, which increases their capacity to express their own convictions and feelings.
- Self-realization: everyone strives to become what they want to be. We are working to offer the women the necessary tools to know themselves better, uncover her potential, express and materialize the changes she would like to see in her life. The first need is for the women to identify their own value, potential and vision. We are stressing, among other topics, the importance of self-awareness, self-esteem, women rights, etc.
We trust this project will be the key in the process of empowerment of the women to become what they want to be. A woman who feels empowered has more abilities or personal recourses to make decisions for herself, has shared decision-making power within her family, is able to participate in economic and political spheres, and has access to resources that allow her to access all of her rights. Therefore, WE Grow aims to target all four of these levels, with emphasis on personal and relational empowerment. Once they feel empowered, they will be a natural motor of change in the community!
An economic empowerment program to reinforce saving and entrepreneurship. Women are given access to knowledge and capital in order to continue growing their business and gain more financial independence.
A few months after the start of the group, through their own financial structure, with their own money and following a few seminars, women have started saving, lending and investing in small businesses.
Up until now, eleven out of eleven groups have started a business activity using their savings and knowledge and nine out of eleven are still running after one year.
The group Kazi Na Sala also aims to develop bigger business projects at group level.
The local women’s main concern is how to care better for their community.
This project is about reaching out to this community, sharing the information and trainings received and serving the community they live in. It consists in initiatives coming from the women towards their community.
Associated Projects to W.E. (Women Empowerment)
Bikes are used for rental to community members. The profits are almost entirely given back to Kazi Na Sala.
Social business that is dedicated to supporting Maasai women from Msitu wa Tembo and Londoto.
Social business and community health project working to address the lack of knowledge regarding menstruation and increase the resources available to manage it.
