Philippines: Women empowerment through livelihood support
In Barangay Calateo, Juban municipality in Sorsogon, Juanita Janoras tends to her seven-month-old pig whom she nicknamed "Sharon". Sharon is expected to deliver her first litter of piglets, and with some luck, Juanita will earn about Php 2,000.00 - Php 2,300.00 for each piglet by November of this year.
Juanita, the beneficiary of Hog Dispersal project in Barangay Calateo, Juban with her pig, Sharon. CC BY-NC-ND / ICRC / M. Candelaria
Juanita is a member of the Calateo Women's Organization, a government-accredited women's organization dedicated to empowering women in Juban through programs designed to build economic capacity. The organization fulfills an important role amongst communities living in conflict-affected areas such as Juban, where poverty is worsened by sporadic violent clashes between opposing armed groups.
To help empower more women like Juanita, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) provided assistance to the organization through a cash grant for its Hog Dispersal and Rice & Feeds Supply Project. These livelihoods are identified by the members of the organization as the most profitable and sustainable. As part of their organizational policy, Juanita will hand over two piglets to the organization to help other members.
Arlene, the storekeeper of Rice and Feeds Supply project of Calateo Women's Organization, weighs the feeds for her regular customer. CC BY-NC-ND / ICRC / M. Candelaria
Another member of the organization, Arlene Domino, attended the Training on Basic Accounting and Bookkeeping where she learned how to maintain and manage financial records. These skills allows her to support herself financially by working as the storekeeper of the Rice & Feeds Supply Project.
Henry Joseph Herrera, CPA, the Resource Person on Training on Basic Accounting and Bookkeeping, teaching simple cash flow to the participants. CC BY-NC-ND / ICRC / J. Panonce
