RWDC observes 111 International Women’s Day
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Dang Ghorahi, March 9, 2021: Gramin Mahila Utthan Kendra (Rural Women Development Center-RWDC) organized an orientation program at Hotel City Plaza to mark the 111th International Women’s Day in Ghorahi Sub-Metropolis on March 9, 2021.
The program was attended by more than 70 participants representing various social, community-based organizations, women’s rights organizations, civil society, human rights organizations, and interparty groups including the rural women’s cooperatives.
The orientation program was presided over by RWDC chairperson Aasmani Chaudhary while the chairman of Dang District Coordination Committee Jitendra Man Nepali graced the occasion as its chief guest.
The program was started with the national song and welcome speech of RWDC board member Miss Mira Chaudhary.
The first event of the program was the video show of “Geeta Chaudhary’s successful micro entrepreneurship, which was followed by foreign women pilot Jessica who does not have both arms but has secured a license of pilot and now, is able to fly planes in the sky with the help of her two legs.
This was a very inspiring video clip in the program. This was followed by the video clip show related to the pioneering struggle of RWDC chairperson Aasmani Chaudhary in empowering rural women through microfinance and health services for which she was given the international award for dignity in New York in 2008. This video was prepared by Americans for United Nations Fund for Population (UNFPA).
Then the next session of the program was focused on successful entrepreneurship experience sharing by various women enterperprrneurs who had taken micro loans from RWDC promoted Aatmanirbhar Laghubitta Bittya Sanstha Limited (Aastmanirbhar LBS) and become exemplary to other rural women in improving their living standards through income generating activities.
They included Ganga Gharty, who narrated her story of how pathetic her condition was and how she was given two goats in gift by RWDC and Heifer Nepal which now has outnumbered to as many as 75 goals. Hira Thapa who has been physically impaired narrated how she managed to start up her grocery shop along with her physically impaired husband. Then Renuka Rai narrated how she started her Carpet industry and achieved success in becoming self reliant by taking micro loan from RWDC backed Aatmanirbhar LBS.
One of the prominent speakers was 76 years old Devi Maya Thapa who is now the chairperson of the Karmath Mahila Cooperative located at Rihar in Dang district. She told how she started the saving groups under the guidance of RWDC in the initial years which has now grown to large cooperative with more than 100 share holders and having pick up van, tractors and equipments including seed machines worth Rs 50,00000.
Chief Guest Jitendra Man Nepali also said he would appreciate doing anything in the welfare of gender equality in the country.
Speaking during the program RWDC advisor and Chief Executive Officer of Aatmanirbhar LBS Shogat Bir Chaudhary said he would like to see male and female in Nepal without and gender difference. He informed that the NGO -RWDC was initiated to fulfill the Millennium Development Goals with the slogan “A journey of thousand miles begins with a single step”. He believes that “Earning money is happiness, but giving happiness to others is super happiness,” as said by Nobel laureate Bangladeshi Proffessor Yunus who had developed and promoted the idea of Gramin bank to serve the poor people.
Similarly, speaking during the same program RWDC chairperson Aasmani Chaudhary said that she is pursuing her dream to produce thousands of Geeta Chaudhary through economic empowerment and women leadership by adopting the philosophy of “Burn yourself to give light to others.” She believes that a woman without economic independence is always weak and prone to discrimination at the hands of household members and society.
Then the paper presentation on international women’s day, woman security, jobs and opportunity was delivered by Sushma Giri (women human rights activists) who highlighted the current status of women leadership, jobs and security in various forums including negligible representation in the political parties in Dang district.
Soon after the sharing session, the program focused on various women speakers. Most of the speakers spoke about miserable situation faced by most of the rural women including abortion of female children before they are born due to traditional bent of mind in a patriarchal dominated society.
The other speakers of the occasion were women rights activists such as Homa DC, BBC correspondent Bashundra Gautam, Sushila Acharya Vaidya, Kalpanna Neupane Chairperson of Nepal Mahila Samudayak, Maya Pokharel, secretary of Nepal Family Planning Dang, Sushila Poudel of Interparty women’s network Dang, Reva Adhikari of Ekta Bahuudasya Cooperative and the champion of Dang civil society and campaigner Chandra Raj Panta.
The program was mastered by Rajani Shrestha and supported by Parbati Basnet, Bhim Kant Chaudhary, Puran Adhikari, HB Thapa and Navin Chaudhary. The program which began at around 11 AM was concluded by 4 PM with the concluding remarks of RWDC chair Aasmani Chaudhary.
