Women – The Daniel Society

Finding Our Way To Lusoke Village

The idea for a Women’s Economic Development Club in Lusoke Village of Zambia had an unusual start. Society founder and president, La Toya McBean, had a desire to launch a compassionate health project in Zambia in 2005, when the HIV/AIDS epidemic was

ravaging Sub-Saharan Africa. However, it was not until March 2016 that she was spurred into action after reading Time magazine’s cover story “The Secret War Crime.” The story was about conflict rape and the women and children who are victims of this heinous act. The story focuses on a young Sudanese woman, who is nine months pregnant and HIV-positive following repeated attacks. With a goal of providing support and resources to these women and individuals diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, the Society set out to create a global health program.

It was soon decided that the project would launch in Zambia, which offered a small, stable community to support a new initiative of this kind. In October of 2016, only a few months after the Time article was published, The Daniel Society visited Lusaka on an exploratory mission to understand the prevalence of HIV/AIDS among vulnerable groups of people. During this visit, it became clear that while HIV/AIDS is still very much a problem, the rate of deaths caused by the disease had dropped significantly in Zambia. However, the problem remains severe in the rural Western Providence, where the prevalence rate is increasing and villages lack access to lifesaving treatment.

Because the Society could not visit the Western Province during this short trip, they decided to meet with villagers just outside of Lusaka to learn how HIV/AIDS had

impacted them. While on their way to a village, the group got lost and ended up in Chongwe, where they were soon directed to a meeting with a local high ranking official. They told him their purpose for the trip and he directed them to the nearby Lusoke Village, where the group met with the village’s Headman and women.

The conversation in Lusoke Village quickly turned to the issues that plague the people daily: poor access to water, high alcoholism among the villagers due to lack of work and activity, and a lack of recreation for their children. They also spoke about the financial challenges facing women and their small businesses. Women lacked the capital to maintain and grow their businesses. They wanted to start a club that helped women with these financial needs. When the Society asked about how HIV/AIDS was impacting the village, they said the disease is under control in their village because people regularly receive treatment from the nearby clinic.

Ultimately, the idea of the Women’s Economic Development Club was presented by the

villagers themselves. Before the Society stumbled upon Lusoke Village, the people already had a vision and hope for their future. Although the Society’s initial focus was on HIV/AIDS, the people clearly presented their most pressing needs and a possible solution to the Society. Because the Society’s mission is directed by the needs of those it serves, the Society will give the women of Lusoke Village a “lift” or “boost” to realize their vision.

The Daniel Society led the first Club meeting in June of 2017. The Club’s mission is to promote hope, entrepreneurism and self-sufficiency to women in Lusoke Village. The

Society will provide seed capital for business micro-loans, financial literacy training, and a savings plan for school fees. Further, the Club will empower its members to become change agents in the village by reinvesting in the Club to sustain its funding level and help lift more families out of extreme poverty. The Society believes that a combination of capital and education will promote self-sufficiency, productivity, and confidence among Club members. Click here to learn more about the Club.

Initiatives such as this one are the result of everyday humanitarians finding creative ways to help those in need. The Lusoke Village project will not cost much to put into action, but it will make a lasting difference in the lives of all its members and their families. As it grows, evolves, and extends to include more members, The Daniel Society will continue collaborating with the people of Lusoke Village to strengthen the project’s model. We hope you will consider joining our movement and helping to further our cause of empowering women. Click here to make a monthly gift and become a member of The Daniel Society.

First Meeting of The Daniel Society Women’s Economic Development Club of Lusoke Village

On June 10, 2017, nearly 30 women in Lusoke Village of Chongwe District (Central Province) met with us to learn how The Daniel Society Women’s Economic Development Club can help them start or expand their small business. During this first meeting, the Club appointed its leadership team and agreed on the micro-loan terms, including a savings and reinvestment plan. Stay tuned for more updates about this project’s implementation!

Women’s Role in India’s Economy

A member of the so-called “BRICS” countries, India is noted for its rapidly expanding economy. Though India has certainly grown more prosperous in the recent decades, some groups have benefited from this boom more than others. In particular, women have faced a range of structural and social barriers in fully participating in the Indian economy, which not only hinders their individual agency but also limits India’s ability to continue to modernize.

Gender discrimination begins at a young age. Girls face a range of structural barriers that contribute to unequal educational and economic performance: for example, only 53% of schools have sanitary facilities for girls. Further, the threat of gender-based violence discourages girls and women from leaving their homes and is used by some parents to justify marrying off daughters before the legal age of 18; however, marriage provides girls little protection from violence—over 50% of both male and female adolescents justify wife beating, and 6 in 10 men admit physically abusing their wives. There are numerous instances of rapes and sexual assaults on girls and young women across the country, most notably the gang rape and subsequent death of a physiotherapy student in Delhi in 2012 that spawned nationwide protests and the BBC documentary India’s Daughter.

These factors contribute to women’s limited economic participation in adulthood. Women produce merely 17% of India’s economic output in terms of GDP contribution; however, Indian women spend almost 10 times as many hours as men engaging in unpaid care labor, which, while work, is not factored into conventional economic metrics.

In 2010, only 40% of women aged 25-54 were economically active (defined as either employed or actively seeking employment). Between 2005 and 2010, women’s workforce participation fell from 42% to 32%. In this period, India lost 3.7 million manufacturing jobs, 80% of which were filled by women. India’s decline in women’s workforce participation may also be explained by the country’s shrinking agricultural sector and may be felt most sharply among poor, uneducated women living in rural areas, who have few other economic opportunities. Indeed, 85% of rural women who work are in the agricultural sector. Since 2005, non-farm job opportunities have expanded only in urban areas.

Paradoxically, women’s labor force participation rates are lower in urban areas: merely 15% of women in Indian cities have jobs, approximately half of the rate of rural women.

India has undertaken a range of initiatives to promote women’s rights. In order to provide protection to women who work, the Indian government offers new mothers three months of paid maternity leave and guarantees job protection during this time, although a survey of married working women in Delhi revealed that fewer than a third of respondents continued working after giving birth.

Additionally, over 12,000 Indian schools have implemented gender education programming in order to address misogynistic attitudes. Early reports on the program suggest individual level change, though it remains to be seen whether this curriculum will lead to broader social change. It is clear more work must be done to empower women and girls in India to fully realize their potential.

The Center for Global Initiatives Discusses HIV/AIDS and Economic Empowerment in Zambia

Earlier this month, the Center for Global Initiatives held a number of meetings in Lusaka, Zambia to discuss ideas for a global health initiative targeting people living in extreme poverty. Our founder and president, La Toya McBean, met with local government officials, UNAIDS, research institutions, prison officials, religious leaders and families living in extreme poverty, to discuss efforts addressing the prevalence and treatment of HIV/AIDS.

HIV/AIDS-related deaths in Zambia have declined significantly, thanks to support from the United States and other countries. During one meeting, a policymaker said “people aren’t really dying from HIV/AIDS at the same rate as before.”

On the village level, most people who are living with the disease in one high-rate village are living normal lives because they are taking antiretroviral medication and visiting the community clinic regularly for treatment. They are also no longer afraid to talk about HIV/AIDS, which signals progress in efforts to address the cultural stigma attached to the disease. Church leadership associations are also helping to combat the stigma by educating pastors and congregations about the disease.

However, despite such good progress, we learned that less than 50% of children with HIV/AIDS are actually receiving treatment. Children living in impoverished rural villages in the Western Province are particularly vulnerable and in need of lifesaving treatment. In addition, child marriages and sexual assaults upon children contribute to the spread of the disease among children. This is an alarming crisis and a human rights issue that must be addressed immediately.

Further, with the help of Ubumi Prison Initiatives, we toured two prisons to learn more about the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in prisons. We visited and met with officials at the Kabwe Maximum Security Prison and Lusaka Central Prison. The deplorable conditions from massive overcrowding is a significant problem in Zambian prisons. Such unbearable conditions foster an environment for the spread of the disease. Youthful offenders are also at risk of contracting the disease when housed in the same cells as the adult population.

We also met with families living in extreme poverty to get their ideas about entrepreneurial projects to lift them out of poverty. We learned that in certain villages, there is a dearth of resources to combat extreme poverty. For example, in Lusoke Village of Chongwe District, many women and youth have no income or opportunities to move them forward in life.

What The Daniel Society Will Do

First, to address the pressing need and gaps in providing treatment to children living with HIV/AIDS in the impoverished Western Province, the Center for Global Initiatives will form a collaborative to launch a Rural HIV/AIDS Children’s Initiative. Over the next few months, we will work with our Advisory Board, research team and various Zambian agencies and organizations to analyze HIV/AIDS data and the severity of the treatment gap based on geography in the Western Province. In early spring, we will host a stakeholders meeting in Lusaka to discuss the components and goals of the initiative. To learn more about this project, visit us at www.danielsociety.org/women-economic-development-club.

Second, the Center for Global Initiatives will develop The Daniel Society Women’s Economic Development Club of Lusoke Village to promote the economic well-being of women and families living in extreme poverty. The Club will provide micro-loans to women for entrepreneurial pursuits and a savings plan to secure their children’s educational future. To learn more about this project, visit us at www.danielsociety.org/hiv-aids-children-initiative.

Third, the Center for Global Initiatives will continue to have discussions with prison officials about addressing the massive overcrowding and HIV/AIDS prevalence in prisons. We will also explore areas of research to help prison officials tackle the rate of HIV/AIDS transmission and prevalence in prisons.