CWDR_Network

Network Income Generation Life Skill Hardship Assistance

Institute Office Assistant Home Based Employment Skill Specialist Courses

Malarcholai Senthalir Vetrimanai Niraimathy Mary Illam Anpumanai

History Partners Staff

"Working women changing Society" "Working women changing Society"

Switzerland Branch

Canadian Branch

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London Based Arobanam Children's Fund

Our network

We make great efforts to ensure that women or children do not fall through the cracks in the net we have spread to locate those in need. The system we have works well because it builds from grass root level upwards using the beneficiaries themselves.

Inside the Kilinochchi crDistrict Office

Unlike a state funded system of social workers to visit and identify those at risk, our system works through village level community awareness. While in the urban cities people are encouraged to poke their noses into other people’s affairs to arrest domestic violence and child abuse, we exploit the existing

culture of knowing everyone in the village to locate women and children at risk.

(A Vilage CWDR group at work

A typical village in the areas we cover consists of around 200-300 families. This may be categorized further as being made up of a handful of extended families. Thus the social cohesion and culture exists to identify those at extreme risk. We have setup women’s groups of four to five people in each such village

whose roles are to monitor women with the view to identifying those at risk. When this group identifies someone they bring it to the notice of the divisional coordinator. A division is a well defined administrative area that is bigger than a village and smaller than a district. A division typically is made up of 45 villages and each district has on average 5 divisions. CWDR has a small office

Staff of Mullaithivu District Office

managed by the Provincial coordinator. This office and the coordinator presently act as a convenient contact point between the village level women’s group and the better staffed district offices. When a case is broght to a Provincial coordinator she takes it to her district office and it is actioned.

Actions

What action is taken, with a case of a woman or child who has been identified as at risk, depends on the individual cases. We have a range of possible actions that we have built up through CWDR. If the main issue is lack of income then the woman is selected for one of our range of programs for income generation assistance. If the problem is simply inadequate knowledge about family issues, child rearing or nutrition then we organize our life skill course for the village. If there is domestic abuse of some form or other we have two styles of refuges ( Malarcholai and Anpumanai) and a separate children’s home for caring for their children. We also have welfare centers for mentally and intellectually affected woman.

M.Selvy

(Director for Kilinochchi District Office)

S.Premila

(Director for Mullaithivu District Office)

E.Suhanthini

(Director of Mannar District Office)

A.Rosemalar

(Director for Vavuniyai District Office)

Women in Vavuniya north gets income assistance
Income generation assis- -tance was provided to 26 women from villages in Vavuniya north by CWRD on 10th August 2007. The funding assis- -tance for this was provided by FORUT and ICRC.(more)

Awareness workshops held in backward villages
A series of training workshops were held by CWDR from 12 July till 30 July 2007 in the backward villages in Mullaithivu district. About 40 men and women attended this training workshop from several villages. (more)


Bridge, road and library in Puliyampokkanai opened for public
CWDR undertook the implemen tation of a project to build a bridge and a library and renovate the main road in Puliyampokkanai in the Kilino chchi District. (more)

Events to mark International Women’s Day
On 8 March 2007, to mark the International Women’s Day, CWDR held events in Mullaithivu and Vavuniya districts. (more)