Women for Women International UK

2012 Update

THANK YOU!BRITA FERNANDEZ SCHMIDT NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR WOMEN FOR WOMEN INTERNATIONAL UK

“I am so delighted to have been appointed Executive Director for Women for Women International in the UK this year. I am inspired every day by the strength and determination of women in countries affected by conflict and I am equally as inspired by your incredible support, commitment and passion for helping those women.

Thank you so very much for everything you have done in 2012 for Women for Women International!”

2012 HIGHLIGHTS Country focus: Iraq Because of the lack of basic skills and education, only 14% of all Iraqi women are working or actively seeking work. It has been reported that at least 1 in every 5 Iraqi women is subjected to abuse. But change is possible! Thanks to your support, women in Iraq understand that they can transform their lives and lead change in their communities.

Beyond the Arab uprising: creating economic opportunities for womenOur joint conference with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development brought together evidence and experience from leading corporate executives, researchers and entrepreneurs, as well as high ranking government officials and journalists to explore different factors that impact on women’s employment in the private sector and asked what impact the Arab uprisings had on economic opportunities for women.

Join me on the Bridge For the third year running, thousands stood together on bridges around the world to call for peace and equality on International Women’s Day. 215 Join me on the Bridge events took place in 59 countries in all corners of the world including the eight countries where we work.

Bosnia Peace March In July, a group of our supporters participated in the annual “March of Peace”, a 120 km route to Srebrenica, which commemorates the victims of the 1995 genocide. The March of Peace team collectively raised £14,000!

Run for Congo Women134 of our amazing supporters collectively ran 1,340 km and raised over £30,000 for our programmes in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“The women in Congo are the voice that no one hears. I thought by running I can represent them and be the voice for them.” – Ngudi Lema, London, moved to the UK from DRC in 2005.

IN QUOTES WORDS OF HOPE FROM PARTICIPANTS AND GRADUATES

“I learnt that you can still be entrepreneurial even if you are poor and have no money.”

- Esther, Rwanda

“Through Women for Women International I learnt how to stand up for my rights as a woman. We learnt to express ourselves in the home.”

- Zainab, Iraq

“I was nothing, I was absolutely zero. But Women for Women International helped me to become someone and today I feel I have value.”

- Participant, DRC

“If it wasn’t for the training sessions I would never have learnt about human rights, especially women’s rights. Also my business is now flourishing and my customers are happy and keep coming back.”

- Shishang, Nigeria

“Your letters bring joy to my heart and I eagerly await them. I get so excited. Our letters make me feel important as a person because I know there is someone in this world who cares and supports me.”

- Participant, Kosovo

Women for Women International • 32 – 36 Loman Street • London SE1 0EH • United Kingdom • T: +44 (0)20 7922 7765 F: +44 (0)20 7922 7706supportuk@womenforwomen.org • womenforwomen.org.uk • twitter.com/womenforwomenuk • facebook.com/womenforwomenuk

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SOUTH SUDAN Despite the volatile environment in South Sudan since independence was declared over a year ago, Women for Women International is still seeing success among the women we work with. Graduates of the Women for Women International programme in South Sudan report increasing their average daily income from £0.07 to £0.33, a more than four-fold increase.

RWANDA Over 500 women are now cultivating and marketing beans, maize, carrots, green peppers, cabbages and aubergines, selling not only in local markets, but also to larger-scale food processors, local boarding schools, local businesses and World Food Programme’s Purchase for Progress programme.

NIGERIA More than 70 groups, made up of 875 women, are engaged in small-scale poultry production. The Poultry Marketing Initiative has many advantages over frozen, expensive and chemically treated poultry products because they do not require expensive investment in refrigeration and chemicals leading to lower production costs and prices for consumers.

KOSOVO During the past year, our Women’s Opportunity Center in Pristinë has become a center of activity, including business training, workshops and ceremonies. A job placement services pilot programme has been launched and we will be supporting our first set of graduates in finding paid employment in Pristina.

IRAQ Iraqi Women for Women International participants report an impressive increase in their knowledge and understanding of their rights and they are sharing that understanding with other women. 93% of graduates report that they have educated another woman about her rights, compared to 0% when they first enrolled.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA76% of graduates in Bosnia and Herzegovina said that they save a portion of their income whilst only 30% of them were able to save before enrolling to the programme. Saving is an important tool for women to be able to make business investments and plan ahead.

AFGHANISTAN Women for Women International’s work in Afghanistan has yielded graduates with marked improvement in their quality of life. 83% of graduates are earning an income, and 94% report improvements in their physical well-being.

SNAPSHOTS FROM THE FIELD

Women for Women International have partnered with Space NK to launch IN PEACE eau de parfum. 10% of the net profit from every bottle of IN PEACE goes directly towards our work helping the most vulnerable women in war-torn countries. IN PEACE is available in Space NK stores and online on the Space NK UK website.

Since 2008, Women for Women International and Goldman Sachs have partnered to empower women as business owners and entrepreneurs in the countries where we work. 10,000 Women is a five-year, global initiative to drive economic growth and opportunity by providing 10,000 underserved women with a business and management education.

Barclays’ involvement with Women for Women International ranges from giving substantial grants for our work on the ground to engaging senior staff members and employees who have been organising a multitude of fundraising events as part of the ‘Barclays Big Initiative’ supported by the company’s Women’s Initiative Network (WIN) and their Global Diversity Department.

Swarovski has been supporting Women for Women International’s most high-profile events such as the annual Gala and the 2012 Fashion Show in London.

PARTNERSHIPS THAT MAKE A DIFFERENCE WE ARE DEEPLY GRATEFUL FOR THE SUPPORT PROVIDED BY ALL OUR CORPORATE PARTNERS, INCLUDING: