Costa Rica celebrated its first same-sex marriage when two women, Alexandra Quiros and Dunia Araya, celebrated their wedding: an “extraordinary moment”.
Gender
Some say the poor can’t save: Rwanda’s Abarikumwe women prove otherwise
The women of the Abarikumwe Association dispel the myth that villagers in developing countries spend their earnings instead of saving them. #TheAfricaTheMediaNeverShowsYou.
10 talented and ambitious women living in the village of Cyeza, in Rwanda’s Muhanga district, formed a cooperative in 2006. They wanted to develop their artistic specialty, weaving with sisal fibres, and make a living out of it. Each woman has her own story to tell, but they all share one thing: the determination to bring financial security to their families.
Yusta launched the initiative. After receiving professional training on basket weaving she called friends, and friend of friends, to teach them the necessary skills and ask them to unite with her.
With a positive outlook on life, Yusta and her companions have moulded a space for themselves where they can gather, develop and exchange new skills, designing innovative products and overcoming everyday struggles. The women of the Abarikumwe Association, which literally means “people who are together” strongly believe in the advantages of joining associations, as well as the power of hard work combined with their passion for crafts in lifting them out of poverty.
Azizi Life, a social enterprise connecting talented local artists to the wider world has been working with them since 2008. It has given them access to the global market and encouraged them to be evermore creative by producing funky items such as bracelets, earrings, Christmas decorations and napkin rings.
The women now make around 50,000 Rwandan Francs ($72.50) a month. With this income they help their families and communities and invest in land. Yusta, for example, bought a small plot of land on which to plant coffee. She sold the coffee and rented other plots on which to plant beans. With the income from weaving and coffee combined she was able to purchase a stunning home for her family of seven, with a plantation and a big garden.
Yusta’s companions, the Abarikumwe women, have also found creative ways to save. Their personal savings aren’t in banks but, rather, they eat and breathe. Most often, they come in the shape of pigs and sometimes cattle if they can afford it. Bearing in mind that one pig can birth up to 10 piglets, which can each be sold for 100,000 Rwandan Francs ($145) once they grow up, this is a smart investment.
The Abarikumwe women’s stories show how anyone, regardless of how poor they are, can rely on their adaptive capacities, using creativity and innovation to cope with their living conditions and environment. This is the fabric of Africa that is being celebrated through the hashtag #TheAfricaTheMediaNeverShowsYou, created by young Africans to show you the Africa that doesn’t make the headlines.
The pandemic and its restrictions are affecting everyone, without exceptions. However factors like housing, income inequalities, gender, access to technology and working conditions are influencing how people experience the health crisis.
Time magazine’s 100 Women of the Year project sheds light on influential women’s stories, from Amelia Earhart to Greta Thunberg. A selection of some of the greats for International Women’s Day.
The New York Supreme Court has found former film producer Harvey Weinstein guilty of rape and sexual assault. Even though he was acquitted of other charges, the verdict could be a turning point for women’s rights.
Joaquin Phoenix, who won Best Actor at the 2020 Oscars, reminded us that we need to overcome our egocentric view of the world, and rather choose love and compassion towards others and the natural world.
Climate change poses a risk for millions. However, women are the most vulnerable to its negative consequences: a few simple considerations by the Italian Climate Network help us perceive the global implications of this.
Un violador en tu camino – the rapist is you – is an anthem protesting the impunity of gender-based violence. It began in Chile and has become a global flash mob, bringing people to the streets and resonating all over the world.
Denis Mukwege, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018, is known as the “doctor who mends women” because in his hospital in Africa he healed thousands of rape victims, in their body and soul. We interviewed him in Milan.
At the dawn of a new era, women in Japan still face old challenges: they’re paid less than men and struggle to scale the professional ladder. How can the impasse be broken?