Empowering Women
The main objective of the initiative is to empower refugee women in the camp. We start by teaching them embroidery as well as many other skills that can help them work and generate income.
The majority of women in the camp are sequestered within homes or at best within the camp. Their agency and morale are low. Their self-confidence is in jeopardy.Many find a way out in early marriage that have a severe consequences on their health and well-being. Khoyoot Initiative reaches out to this category of women.
Adding to this problem, many more issues are arising for women in their homes. Education is failing with many
dropping out or not even making it half way. Marriage is becoming tough with expenses that most cannot afford. Income is very low as people lack many skills to develop and reach outside the camp for very low paying jobs. Loans are increasing with no fixed source to pay and overall life skills within teenagers are dissolving.
We meet the women in their homes, give them work to do with monetary income. Their families witness some change in circumstances as they were able to purchase more things due to increase in the income of household. We then witness that they allowed their daughters/wives to go to the local Community Based Organizations to receive material for the tapestry or to receive capacity building for embroidery courses.
Our measure impact that since economic needs triumph social norms, gender roles are witnessed to be relaxed. Enhanced agency has enabled many women to stretch out of their comfort zone to take up the next challenge.
To solve the other problems within the camp we let each product line done by women support a different segment. Products are now supporting marriage, little girls, education and much more to come.