Aid Worker's Details

The Women’s Organization for Managing Economic and Educational Needs (WOMEN) seeks economic self-sufficiency for women living in slums in Hyderabad, India. The organization teaches these women marketable skills that help them get steady jobs, thereby pulling them out of dire poverty and into a state of dignified self-reliance. Many are trained to make crafts that can be sold at markets, while others learn to make foods such as jams or jellies, or to type or speak English well enough to work at a call center. WOMEN regularly holds exhibitions, seminars, workshops and lectures in Hyderabad’s numerous slums. In addition to teaching skills useful for getting a job, the organization stresses healthy living by teaching women about HIV/AIDS and other communicable diseases, how to conserve water and prepare food in a safe way, and also helps women in the slums secure micro-loans from the government to start their own business. WOMEN has conducted other philanthropic activities, such as helping women fill out college applications and providing medical care to sick persons.

The broad array of programs focused on economic development offered by WOMEN reach some 25,000 women each year. There is no shortage of women in the slums to serve as an audience; 1.25 million people live in some 800 slums in Hyderabad. With crushing poverty at every turn for so many women who face unique challenges due to societal and cultural forces, WOMEN is truly a breath of fresh air and source of inspiration for some of India’s most needy persons. WOMEN’s programs have met with significant success. Many women with whom the organization has worked have gone on to own their own small business or to procure jobs with multinational companies in Hyderabad. Some eventually make it out of the slums and into a life of dignity and financial stability. WOMEN is helping vulnerable women overcome the odds and become self-sufficient, able contributors to society. Aid Worker History WOMEN was founded in 1986 by Dr. Azmat Nayeem. After years of public service and with a host of publications and awards for work in the areas of sociology and development to her credit, Dr. Nayeem opted to focus her efforts on women living in destitute conditions in Hyderabad’s many slums. WOMEN was created for the purpose of giving impoverished women the tools they need to forge a better life for themselves.