Stories
From where I stand: “I am fearful for smaller countries that have limited resources during COVID-19”
Wednesday, April 1, 2020
Ryancia Henry is originally from Antigua and Barbuda, she moved four months ago to Montecito, California, to take up the position of Director of Housekeeping, managing a team of 60 people, at a hotel that has now closed because of the COVID-19 outbreak. With international travel disrupted, and movement restrictions within the United States of America, Ryancia is among millions of workers in the hospitality industry considering what the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic will be on her, her staff, her family and her friends.
Rickshaw drivers break stereotypes in Nepal
Thursday, December 12, 2019
After returning to Nepal from working abroad in Dubai, Hira Kumari Sewa took part in UN Women’s Advancing Women’s Economic Empowerment Programme and learned to drive an e-rickshaw in order to support herself and her family.
From where I stand: “My dream is to own my own garage”
Monday, October 14, 2019
Christine Wambulwa, 40, is the only woman mechanic in Kakuma Town, Turkana County, Kenya. As the sole breadwinner of her family, she works to send her children to school, so they can have the education she couldn’t afford for herself.
Growing women’s entrepreneurship in Bangladesh
Thursday, October 3, 2019
The “Inclusive and Equitable Local Development Programme (IELD)”, a joint initiative of UNCDF, UNDP and UN Women, facilitates women’s access to the labour market and entrepreneurial ventures by fostering local public and private investments in women-led enterprises and small businesses that benefit women as well as their communities.
From where I stand: “Now I have bigger dreams”
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Sufia Khatun from Pirganj, Rongpur, found herself without any source of income after her husband passed away. Through a joint UN programme, she was able to learn tailoring and get access to finance to invest in her own business. Today she employs 20 women in her community.
From where I stand: “I think of my grandfather when I make Jikos”
Wednesday, August 28, 2019
Refika Cornoleus, escaped the war in Sudan with her her six children, but had to leave behind her home, her husband and her grandparents. She lives in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya, where she makes eco-friendly stoves, which are high in demand.
In Rwanda, weaving baskets and brighter futures
Monday, August 19, 2019
To support livelihoods of women in Kigeme Refugee Camp, UN Women funded the Women Opportunity Centre, supported by the Government of Sweden. The Centre provides women a safe space, trainings and a showroom for their products to improve their livelihoods at the camp and beyond.
Not waiting for handouts: Five stories of resilience from one of the world’s largest refugee camps
Friday, August 16, 2019
In some of the world’s largest camps, refugees and the native communities power their own economies. Students compete for admission into a better school, journalists report on daily news, entrepreneurs learn new skills and health workers deliver babies. And women are often a forgotten part of this workforce. Meet five women and girls who are doing the usual and unusual jobs that keep life going, and aspiring for more.
From where I stand: “There are things for which life doesn’t prepare you”
Tuesday, July 16, 2019
Rosarged López González, 31, was a natural sciences teacher in her homeland, Venezuela. With her husband and 8-year-old daughter, she decided to leave the country due to the social and economic situation, migrating to the city of Cartagena, Colombia, in March of 2018.
From where I stand: “Equality between men and women…is a moral imperative”
Friday, July 12, 2019
Taher Sellami, a young entrepreneur and business student, is striving to use innovative technologies to drive social change in Tunisia and worldwide.
Ask an activist: Why are women lacking land rights in Tanzania and what can be done about it?
Thursday, July 11, 2019
Elizabeth Maro Minde is the Managing Director of Kilimanjaro Women Information Exchange Community Organization in Tanzania, a grantee of UN Women’s Fund for Gender Equality. Minde and her organization provides legal counselling and representation to marginalized women in rural communities. She spoke to UN Women during the 63rd session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women about the issue of land rights.
From where I stand: “My dream is to open the first baby photography studio in Palestine”
Tuesday, July 9, 2019
Doaa Eshtayeh, from Nablus, Palestine, found her talent and passion in photography and has made it her profession. Doaa is the main provider for her family, thanks to the support she received through a UN Women project that helped her develop her skills and buy the equipment she needed.
The simple scheme that’s driving a quiet revolution for Brazil’s family farmers
Tuesday, June 25, 2019
Detailed logging of produce, and addressing gender bias in censuses, is helping to raise the profile of the women vital to production on the country’s farms.
Gaining protection for Indonesia’s migrant workers and their families
Tuesday, June 25, 2019
Millions of Indonesians working abroad now have hard-won legal protection against exploitation, thanks to the work of pioneering campaigners
From where I stand: “I am the living proof of what you can do if you don’t give up hope”
Thursday, June 13, 2019
Narjis Mohaisen lost her eyesight at the age of 13, but didn’t give up her studies. After graduating from university, through UN Women’s Cash for Work project in Palestine supported by the Government of Japan, she has discovered ways to support students with disabilities pursue their dreams.
Joint statement: One UN for family leave and childcare
Saturday, June 1, 2019
In a joint statement, the Heads of UNICEF, UN WOMEN, UNDP and UNFPA committed to strong gender-responsive, family-friendly policies for all United Nations staff, including paid parental leave for all parents regardless of gender, including parents who adopt, foster, or have children through surrogacy or assisted reproductive technology; flexible working arrangements for parents; designated private rooms and appropriate breaks for nursing and pumping; quality and affordable childcare; and child grants for all staff.
From where I stand: “I work in construction, I am living my dream!”
Thursday, May 9, 2019
Maira Assane Amade, 23, fulfilled her lifelong dream of working in construction after participating in the Rapariga Biz Joint Programme implemented by UN Women, UNFPA, UNESCO and UNICEF.
Making harassment at work history
Monday, April 29, 2019
Across the globe, women workers rise each day to power our world. They build, create, and drive progress across all sectors. Yet for millions of women, workplaces are sites of insecurity, abuse and vulnerability. For far too long, the working world has been dominated by unequal power dynamics that endanger the safety and security of women, but change is underway.
The journey along the gender road in Cameroon
Thursday, March 7, 2019
A 200-kilometre road (124 miles) project stretches between the townships of Batschenga, Ntui and Yoko, in central Cameroon. The road crosses farms, forests, water bodies and pastoral areas that sustain the mostly agrarian economy of nearly 40 villages and three towns. The road, a basic infrastructure that many countries take for granted, literally shapes the lives and livelihood of the people living along it. It decides whether a small entrepreneur will get her products transported on time,...
Grooming her business in Nepal: Beautician-turned entrepreneur
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
In the historical town of Banepa, 35-year-old Sulochana Timalsina runs a little shop, half of which is a grocery store and the other half a beauty parlour. The two units share a single space with different purposes for her clients, but one single purpose for this young entrepreneur – empowerment.