By Soumaya El Filali
By Soumaya El Filali
Rabat – The Association of Women for Rural Development is set to launch, on November 27 at Al Akhawayn university, its one year long project Empowering Women in the Atlas (EWA), which aims to integrate women especially those of rural areas in the economic growth and sustainable development of the country.
The EWA initiative, which is established in cooperation with the US Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) and Al Akhawayn Hilary Clinton Center for Women’s Empowerment, seeks to promote leadership among rural women of the Middle Atlas Region by selecting a 100 female beneficiaries, from marginalized areas. The initiative provides these women with not only the opportunity, but also the concrete measures in the form of worships, training sessions and basic financial tools, through which their economic integration can be attained.
“This project invests in rural women leaders and entrepreneurs by training them in entrepreneurship, environmental awareness, and financial autonomy and helping them optimize their income generating projects,” Lamia Bazir, the founder of the initiative told Morocco World News.
The initiative also offers complete support in the creation and optimization of cooperatives, through the provision of equipment, seed funds, and the access to markets for commercialization purposes.
The event is expected to start at on November 27 at 11 am with an introductory speech from the initiative’s founder and a later introduction of the selected women and their chosen project.
Several workshops and training sessions will be organized for the female beneficiaries. The event will be concluded with an interactive session in which women will share their learned lessons.
Along with the project’s beneficiaries and partners of the initiative, major stakeholders in the region, such as the Greenside Development Foundation, will also be present at the launch event.
With the conviction that rural women are crucial to Morocco’s economic growth and sustainable development, the EWA initiative is creating a win-win situation by increasing economic opportunities for rural women while significantly contributing to the country’s economic growth and sustainable development.
