Yakin Ertürk, Director, UN Division for the Advancement of
Women: supporting our conference in 2001
.... "The issues which widows generally face and those encountered by women in developing countries are cause for serious concern. The situation of widows should continue to be featured on the international fora until they become firmly integrated into the policy agenda.
The widows’ survey by our partner in Afghanistan (AWEC)
The survey programme has finished. We surveyed about eight hundred widow women in five provinces of Afghanistan, that is, Kabul, Mazar, Herat, Maidan Wardak and Paktya.
We have finished the coding, and soon we are going to finish the data entry.
We faced some problems during survey. For example some widows’ families wouldn’t let us to talk with them but rather demanded “what will you do to help us?” Some even said that “lots of organisations have come here and told us that they will help us but, they didn’t?”
The project activities are going very well. We have arranged additional training for all the women; after receiving the trainings, all of them got small loans and started their own businesses.
We also started a bead weaving program, which has proved to be very successful.
The women are very happy to have learned bead weaving and most of them have even started small and private businesses selling their woven beads.
From Zainab Abassi
Project Manager,
Widows’ Rights & Support Project
AWEC
Also Read .....WRI's Visit to Afhganistan
From WRI Newsletter 6 - Full copies of the Newsletter available from WRI office
From WRI Newsletter 6 - Full copies of the Newsletter available from WRI office