Women’s Empowerment

Women's Empowerment

Asia / Middle East

Women’s Empowerment seeks to advance the role of women, strengthening and empowering them on the individual and collective level to foster human values, sustain peace, and develop families, communities and societies around the world.

“The role of women in the development of society is of utmost importance. In fact, it is the only thing that determines whether a society is strong and harmonious, or otherwise. Women are the backbone of society.” – Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, IAHV Founder

IAHV’s Women’s Empowerment programs promote women as key enablers of peace and stability through leadership, education, and community partnerships. Using a holistic approach to transforming lives, the program establishes clarity of mind, calm focus, and centeredness as the foundation of leadership. Women and men who have participated are committed to their personal and community responsibility to promote and protect women and enable them as catalysts for change addressing key issues such as education, health, employment, political representation, protection of human and legal rights and service delivery. The Women’s Empowerment program has innovative educational initiatives including:

Al Azhar Program, Iraq

–Read about Al Azhar Program

Al Azhar Program mobilizes and supports Iraqi national and community leaders in launching initiatives that promote and protect Iraqi women. The program aims to strengthen Iraqi families and civil society by advancing Iraqi women’s leadership and eliminating gender-based violence on a local and national level. This program draws support from all levels of the community. National Taskforce Members underwent a transformational leadership training, team building, and visioning program which resulted in a National Action Plan to counter gender-based violence, emphasize women’s role throughout the policy development process, provide legal assistance to women victims of violence, find peaceful solutions to conflict, and elevate women into leadership positions. To help women survivors of violence, Life Skills Training and vocational training are taught to women community members. Through community partnerships and the mixed-gendered National Taskforce, the program demonstrates the unique role women leaders can have at both a national and local level to advance peace and the status of women in Iraq.