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Short
Biography |
Mrs Olga Djanaeva,
is Director of Alga, an NGO in Kyrgyzstan. She has
participated in various research work on energy sector,
social mobilization, rural development, rural labor
resources, migration, women and violence, domestic violence,
gender training, women's empowerment, womens' rights etc.
She has participated in a number of seminars and workshops
in different countries including India. |
|
Presentation |
Presentation:
RURAL WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP: OVERCOMING
TRADITIONAL BARRIERS AND DISCRIMINATED CUSTOMS
NGO “Alga” is a
voluntary public organization, which was founded in January
1995 by the initiative of the rural women of Kant region.
Mission of Alga is
to improve rural women’s status and standards of living
through stimulation of women’s awareness of realities and
develop their capabilities for self – actualization,
strengthening of the participation of rural women in
development efforts and for the advocacy of their rights,
development of empowering strategies and structures which
promote the growth of economic and social status of women
and communities.
For today Alga
itself has grown considerably from a small informal group of
volunteers in 1995, undertaking some activities promoting
women’s rights in a few villages to a registered NGO, with a
staff of 26 people of different disciplines with a
continuously increasing variety of development activities to
support women’s development in all its aspects in as many as
144 villages.
Alga aims to
strengthen socio-economic and gender analysis capacities of
women and communities at local level through using of
participatory approaches, collection of gender disaggregated
socio-economic information, appropriate trainings so that to
make rural people to be able to better understand all the
constraints and opportunities of the development process for
the improvement of their social status and livelihoods. Alga
was working for changing of women’s attitude to live, on
enhancing of their capacities, leadership development and at
the same time on the creation of favorable environment for
women’s empowerment, advancement, recognition of their role
and equal human rights and on development and strengthening
of the relevant institutional and legislative mechanisms.
Alga provides a
range of services, such as trainings, workshops, round
tables and training of trainers and etc. Training courses
had different duration and target groups, according to the
specific objectives and needs. There is a collection of
training modules; developed on the base of the Training
centre. Other important activities were information
provision, raising awareness on various issues among rural
women, communities, stake holders, decision and
policy-makers.
Alongside with
education Alga provides practical support for improving of
the economic and social status of rural women and to
diminish isolation and social exclusion of vulnerable rural
women and their families through widening access to
resources such as micro credits, seeds funds, artificial
insemination and through initiation of such projects like:
access to pure drinking water, rehabilitation of the village
infrastructure, creation of vocational courses, improvement
of the conditions and quality of medical services, creation
of community institutions for women support and protection,
development a space for women’s leadership and activism, and
etc.
Rural people,
especially women do not have enough capacity or means to be
heard at different levels of society. To change that, Alga
made its input to development of the advocacy skills and to
the facilitation of the process of organizing different
advocacy campaigns, sharing knowledge, best practices and
know-how through networking cooperation. Alga also continues
to introduce some innovative social and economic
technologies regarding key development issues such as gender
equality, sustainable agriculture, and organic farming,
sustainable livelihood opportunities. Alga also renders its
assistance to develop and make available information and
communication tools for rural women in order to strengthen
their voices and possibility of being heard at all levels of
society. |