Posts tagged ‘Pro Mujer’
Say NO – UNiTE against violence
“I left my home with the man that is now my husband when I was 14-years-old. I thought I was going to have a better life, but it didn’t turn out that way.
I dedicated myself to maintaining our home while my husband worked. According to him, the woman’s role is to take care of the children and to do everything in the house – wash, iron, and cook. He beat me frequently and there was nothing I could do to stop him.”
Sandra in her workshop
- Sandra Ordonez, Nicaragua
These stories are all too common. Sandra Sandra soon received her first loan from Pro Mujer. According to the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), over 70% of women suffer physical or sexual violence from men during their lifetime.
To help connect women, activists and organizations, UNIFEM has launched the Say NO – UNiTE to End Violence against Women campaign.
Create an action, or join and action, just take action! There are so many ways to say no to violence against women.
Sandra became a Pro Mujer client and microentreprenuer, processing and selling jícaro seeds. Since starting her own business and joining her communal bank at Pro Mujer, Sandra has found her voice and her power. Sandra learned about her rights and found a community to support her.
The domestic violence has ended. Sandra threatened her husband that she would tell the people at Pro Mujer if he continued beating her. She demanded to be an equal partner in the house.
Sandra says, “My life is better because my children are able to go to school to learn to read and write and they are no longer hungry all the time. I am able to do what I want with my money and I don’t have to depend on my husband.”
Mother, Leader, & Entrepreneur
At the age of 15, Linda Flores became a mother. She began making tortillas by hand and selling them
to earn money to care for her child. Linda worked seven days a week, waking up at 4 a.m. and laboring all day at the stove top to make 500 tortillas a day.
She and her husband had two more sons, but could not afford a bigger house. Linda, her husband, and three children slept in a single room that doubled as a living room and kitchen. The walls were made of tin and the floors of dirt.
Two years ago, Linda discovered Pro Mujer. She used her first loan of US$40 to buy corn flour. She attended workshops on business skills and learned to make smart entrepreneurial decisions. Today, she makes over 1,300 tortillas each day.
With her earnings and her savings, Linda expanded her house. She built concrete walls, added bedrooms and put in a brick floor. Her children Julio, 16, Enoc, 14, and Cristhiam,10, have enough to eat.
Linda believes she has grown as a person, as a woman and as a leader. She is president of her communal bank. 
Linda also helps train other women about early detection of cervical and uterine cancer. She has dedicated her life to her family and to making sure other women enjoy the opportunities she had.
On January 25th, Linda Flores will travel to The Hague to address the Radio Netherland Worldwide event on microfinance. The event takes a critical look at microfinance, and asks the question, “who profits?”
Linda is the only microentrepreneur attending the event. Watch a short clip of Linda’s video at her home in Leon and read the reporter’s commentary.
Princess Maxima of the Netherlands will do the opening speech and the key note speaker will be the Dutch Minister for Development Cooperation, Mr. Bert Koenders. The event will be streamed live in English and Spanish.
I Am a Woman Leader
Born in Larreynaga, Malpaisillo, Teresa Centeno is a licensed nurse and health educator at Pro Mujer. With over five years working at Pro Mujer in Nicaragua, Teresa is no stranger to the excitement and challenges of being a health educator; Teresa shares her story in her own words.
Growing up, I always knew that Pro Mujer existed; I knew about the services it offered because I occasionally accompanied my mother, a client of Pro Mujer, to r
epayment meetings. I never imagined that one day I would work for the organization. Years later, a friend told me that Pro Mujer was looking for nurses to provide healthcare and training. I became excited by the opportunity and luckily got the job.
My first breakdown began with my debut as trainer. At one of my first Communal Bank meetings, a client made me feel bad; I felt ignored, neglected, and that my job had no real purpose. I felt like crying, and I told the head doctor at Pro Mujer Nicaragua, Dr. Martha Garcia, about it. I felt out of place. I did not think I could handle it, so I quit. All of this happened in my first 15 days on the job!
Thankfully, the staff at Pro Mujer was supportive. They knew from experience that this work is difficult. They gave me advice and encouragement. I learned to empathize with the women. Many women have various problems and have no one to share them with which, the staff explained, is often the cause of their reactions. This is what makes our job so important. We help women change their attitudes, feel empowered, take care of their health and start their own businesses, but the women struggle. This is the type of job that you have to want and love to do in order to do it well.
The attitude change that Pro Mujer promotes is not exclusive to our clients, our personnel undergoes a change 
as well. We learn from the women and each other, we bond. I like the idea of helping women improve their quality of life and knowing they can achieve things they once thought impossible to reach.
I have also grown close with many of the clients. We laugh together and cry together. They appreciate the services that we provide, and they appreciate how close the staff is to them. They trust me.
Now I say: my job is important, and I am going to contribute to a change that will make a difference in yesterday’s woman to that of today! I am a 24-hour leader—a leader at work, a leader of my actions, and a leader of my home—and I plan on continuing to work with this very noble cause.
“Economica” – The Economics of Being a Woman
How do women interact with the economy? How can we work to alleviate poverty? How does investing in women change a country?
The International Museum of Women’s current exhibit, Economica , tackles these issues and more. Economica explores the role of women in the growing global economy through audio slideshows, podcasts, forum conversations and essays. Curator Masum Momaya introduces the theme of Economica reminding us of the disparities that still exist :
Women constitute an estimated 70% of the world’s absolute poor, those living on less than $1 a day.(1) Women work 2/3 of the world’s working hours, yet earn only 10% of the world’s income.(2) Women are responsible for producing 60-80% of the world’s food(3), yet hold only 10% of the world’s wealth and 1% of the world’s land.(4)
The exhibit also illustrates the potential women have to effect change , as well as the changes contributions so many women are already making.
Women leaders, thinkers and activists from all over the world, including Pro Mujer Co-Founder Lynne Patterson, debate diverse issues such as: New Visions, Basic Rights, Family and Fertility, Business Leadership, Microenterprise, Giving, Marriage and Money, Property and Wealth, and Grassroots Solutions. The essays examine solutions, challenges and advancements.
Watch a slide show about poverty and microfinance that features Pro Mujer client, Flora Callisaya:
