GOAL
- MAHSRA aspires to foster the rights based and socioeconomic empowerment of local/rural women and girls and include the youths and other men in radical awareness campaigns that encourages gender equity for equality and full women participation in societal governance policies and political setups.
MAHSRA’s interventions within the women and gender equality domain are majorly addressed through annual objectives, activities, and impact measures.
Objectives
- Significantly reduce cases of violence and discrimination against women, increase the knowledge and awareness of vulnerable women about human rights and legal rights and to provide rescue and rehabilitation support to victims of trafficking, especially those suffering from extreme violence and violation of their basic human rights;
- Redress customary and barbaric traditional practices that discriminate against women and their wellbeing rights on equal and equitable standards within the community;
- Identify entrepreneurial women leaders and present them as role models for women in the community and improve livelihood opportunities for women and thus leading them to economic empowerment;
- Educate and mobilize the youth in addressing issues involving women and their rights and increase the participation of men, especially male celebrities and male officials from the government, judiciary and the police forces in the campaign against violence against women;
- Increase the media sensitivity-levels in covering issues of violence against women and examine the impact of media coverage about the issue of violence against women on general public awareness and policies of the government;
- Create political awareness of women for their improved participation in the political processes of the country and increase the participative representation of women in the lawmaking bodies of the country.
Major Activities
- Identifying and documenting existing cases of violence against women and providing immediate rescue and rehabilitation support to victims of extreme violence, discrimination and trauma with counseling and medical support;
- Organizing events for sustainably redressing customary practices and habitual attitudes that deprive community women from their equal and equitable community development rights;
- Identifying and documenting cases of successful entrepreneurial women leaders and present their reports to the community and the media and also organizing livelihood trainings and providing skill development and seed capital for women to help them undertake enterprising activities;
- Organizing youth-led workshops in schools, colleges and communities for highlights and building a strong field force of youth volunteers to act as agents of change in reaching women and men and sensitize them on the issue of gender equality;
- Organizing celebrity events at the local level with the community where popular celebrities speak out against violence against women and also organizing workshops with male officials from the government, judiciary and the police forces to discuss and sensitize them on the issue of women rights, violence against women and gender equality;
- Identifying and liaising with effective media channels and study their existing reach and coverage of social issues, especially the issue of gender equality and organizing training workshops with media persons to sensitize them about the issue of violence against women;
- Organizing training workshops for local women leaders to build their political awareness on elections, policies, lawmaking processes and the constitution;
- Building and strengthening networks through awareness workshops for women to advocate for policies on violence against women and women empowerment.
Impact Indicators
- Assessment on confident and self-aware local women leaders with knowledge to address discrimination against women and increased understanding of women on human rights and legal rights and how to take counter actions against violence and discrimination.
- Assessment of improved customary and traditional attitude changes privileging women’s equal opportunity in family and community benefits;
- Assessment on increased successful entrepreneurial women leaders and local women-led enterprises and their supply chains, and increased community women developing skills and enterprising qualities for undertaking entrepreneurial activities;
- Assessment on understanding, participation and awareness of youths and improved understanding and responsiveness of women and men in addressing the issue of women rights and gender equality;
- Assessment on public acceptance of the popular feeling and movement for stronger laws brought into force against perpetrators of women rights;
- Assessment on effective partnerships established with various media channels for coverage, improved sensitivity levels of media persons in covering news, increased news items across the media channels and increased government responsiveness towards considering policies to address the issue of gender equality and women rights;
- Assessments on women becoming aware and informed about the various political processes including elections, policies, lawmaking processes and the constitution;
- Assessments on strengthened networks of women at local levels exchanging on issues and advocating for policies for their empowerment, and increased number of women are involved in law making processes.
