Photo exhibition: The many faces of women empowerment
Work captures economic uplift programme that features rural women.
The women in the photographs exude pride over their toil. PHOTO: MYRA IQBAL/EXPRESS
ISLAMABAD:
In rural areas, where men have governed domestic hierarchies and society has undermined the strength and place of women, a slight breeze has swept in to challenge the norm. This gust of women empowerment came through CARE International’s Community Infrastructure Improvement Project (CIIP), which has served to benefit women across nine districts in Sindh and Punjab.
A day-long photo exhibition was held at the Lok Virsa on Wednesday to mark the efforts of the INGO and was presided over by the Canadian High Commissioner Greg Giokas, who lauded the contribution of CIIP towards the economic empowerment of women in the country.
The photos on the walls of the Lok Virsa Gallery were a glimpse into the lives of the programme’s beneficiaries, attempting to relay the successes of CIIP’s advocacy and investment through the beaming faces of clean-looking women, mostly pictured in their vibrant work environments.
One such success is Margha, who is a celebrity in her village in Mirpurkhas, Sindh. However, Margha’s claim to fame is somewhat unconventional. Entrusted with the task of looking after the earthen road that winds inside her hometown, as a salaried-member of the Road Maintenance Team set up by the CIIP, Margha’s savings - from the Rs5,600 she earns each month- have allowed her to install a water hand-pump in her courtyard.
In a CIIP publication titled, “Shaking off the stereotypes: We, the Empowered”, Margha’s feelings upon installing the simple water fixture are related in a small narrative about the excitement and gratitude of her fellow village women as she poignantly noted, “It feels like Eid today.”
Margha’s awareness of the need for quick and constant access to clean drinking water stems from the trainings she gained through CIIP. While one of the components of the project is the organisation of rural women into teams empowered with the responsibility of maintaining the dirt roads that surround their villages, trainings, market linkages and capacity-building of local government institutions to undertake gender development issues also fall under its aegis. With a Rs15 million CAD budget, the five-year project aims to improve the status of women within rural set-ups, equipping them with the tools to battle with their vulnerabilities.
The vibrant portraits of CIIP’s beneficiaries were included in another publication titled, “My Path: Development, My Destiny: Empowerment”, which was available at the event. A silent auction was also held for the riveting photographs taken by freelance photographer, Wolfgang Gressman, with the hope of raising money for the specific beneficiaries pictured.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 21st, 2013.
In rural areas, where men have governed domestic hierarchies and society has undermined the strength and place of women, a slight breeze has swept in to challenge the norm. This gust of women empowerment came through CARE International’s Community Infrastructure Improvement Project (CIIP), which has served to benefit women across nine districts in Sindh and Punjab.
A day-long photo exhibition was held at the Lok Virsa on Wednesday to mark the efforts of the INGO and was presided over by the Canadian High Commissioner Greg Giokas, who lauded the contribution of CIIP towards the economic empowerment of women in the country.
The photos on the walls of the Lok Virsa Gallery were a glimpse into the lives of the programme’s beneficiaries, attempting to relay the successes of CIIP’s advocacy and investment through the beaming faces of clean-looking women, mostly pictured in their vibrant work environments.
One such success is Margha, who is a celebrity in her village in Mirpurkhas, Sindh. However, Margha’s claim to fame is somewhat unconventional. Entrusted with the task of looking after the earthen road that winds inside her hometown, as a salaried-member of the Road Maintenance Team set up by the CIIP, Margha’s savings - from the Rs5,600 she earns each month- have allowed her to install a water hand-pump in her courtyard.
In a CIIP publication titled, “Shaking off the stereotypes: We, the Empowered”, Margha’s feelings upon installing the simple water fixture are related in a small narrative about the excitement and gratitude of her fellow village women as she poignantly noted, “It feels like Eid today.”
Margha’s awareness of the need for quick and constant access to clean drinking water stems from the trainings she gained through CIIP. While one of the components of the project is the organisation of rural women into teams empowered with the responsibility of maintaining the dirt roads that surround their villages, trainings, market linkages and capacity-building of local government institutions to undertake gender development issues also fall under its aegis. With a Rs15 million CAD budget, the five-year project aims to improve the status of women within rural set-ups, equipping them with the tools to battle with their vulnerabilities.
The vibrant portraits of CIIP’s beneficiaries were included in another publication titled, “My Path: Development, My Destiny: Empowerment”, which was available at the event. A silent auction was also held for the riveting photographs taken by freelance photographer, Wolfgang Gressman, with the hope of raising money for the specific beneficiaries pictured.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 21st, 2013.