The goal of the Widows’ Initiative for Economic Sustainability (WIES) was to create jobs for over 500 female heads of household (FHH) and develop business opportunities so that FHH could attain economic independence.
Widows Initiative for Economic Sustainability (WIES)
The Iraq Foundation was awarded a grant from the US Department of State Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues to implement a 24 month project for Iraq aimed at economically empowering over 500 female heads of household in Iraq by building skills, promoting entrepreneurship, and connecting them with employment opportunities. The project was implemented in five provinces (Baghdad, Basra, Diyala, Maysan, and Ninawa).
The goal of the Widows’ Initiative for Economic Sustainability (WIES) was to create jobs for female heads of household (FHH) and develop business opportunities so that FHH can attain economic independence.
All activities of the Initiative focused on providing income-generating opportunities and economic self reliance and growth for the targeted beneficiaries, and tapped into all resources available at the local and national level. Women beneficiaries will become productive contributors to the national economy, achieve economic independence for themselves and their families, and make better decisions about their families’ health and education resulting in an improved standard of living for the families and confidence and dignity for the women.
The project had three objectives:
Objective 1: Expand FHH’s access to economic opportunities through providing job skills and technical business training
Objective 2: Assist in launching new women-owned medium and small enterprises (MSEs) and assist existing MSEs to expand
Objective 3: Match motivated and skilled FHH to suitable jobs in the private or public sector
Last Update: Tuesday, September 6, 2016.
