Our vision is a world in which women and girls are treated fairly, enjoy freedom from violence and poverty, and have meaningful access to the processes that shape their communities, nations, and international affairs.
ABOUT WOMEN AND GIRLS EMPOWERED (WAGE)
Women and Girls Empowered (WAGE) is a global consortium to advance the status of women and girls, led by the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLi) in close partnership with the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), Grameen Foundation, and Search for Common Ground (Search). WAGE works to strengthen the capacity of civil society organizations, private sector organizations (PSOs) in target countries to improve the prevention of and response to violence against women and girls; advance the women, peace, and security agenda; and support women’s economic empowerment. In this context, WAGE provides direct assistance to women and girls, including information, resources, and services they need to succeed as active and equal participants in the global economy and public life. WAGE also engages in collaborative research and learning to build a body of evidence on relevant promising practices in these thematic areas. To account for the deeply interconnected nature of women’s and girls’ experiences, WAGE’s initiatives employ approaches that are highly collaborative, integrated, and inclusive. WAGE is funded by the U.S. Department of State Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues.
OUR WORK IN CENTRAL ASIA
National Women’s Business Agendas for Central Asia is a multi-disciplinary regional program aimed at building and supporting country-level and regional alliances of women’s organizations to improve the ability of Central Asian women to engage in economic activity. Launched in April 2021, the program is working with women’s business associations (WBAs) and women’s civil society organizations (WCSOs) to identify and address legal and societal barriers to women’s participation in the Central Asian economies. The program will foster collaboration among WBAs, CSOs, and other key stakeholders in the private sector and civil society to establish and advocate National Women’s Business Agendas (NWBAs) in the Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan (target countries), and will connect with Turkmenistani women to engage in advocacy on women’s economic empowerment issues. The program is led by CIPE with operational support and GBV technical expertise from ABA ROLi and Search for Common Ground in the area of advocacy.
PROGRAM GOALS
- Strengthen the capacity of WBAs, WCSOs, and other key stakeholders in the private sector and civil society to identify and address barriers to women’s economic empowerment in Central Asian countries.
- Foster collaboration among WBAs, WCSOs, and other key stakeholders to develop and advocate National Women’s Business Agendas.
NATIONAL WOMEN’S BUSINESS AGENDAS FOR CENTRAL ASIA
WAGE believes if women’s organizations have increased organizational capacity to serve and advocate for the interests of Central Asian women and are better equipped to address legal, regulatory, and societal barriers to women’s economic empowerment-including violence against women and girls-through collective action, then these organizations will have greater ability to advance women’s participation in the economy, ultimately resulting in Central Asian women leading more resilient, independent, and economically sustainable lives.
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES
Capacity building for women’s organizations and identification of barriers to WEE
WAGE will assess the capacity and needs of women’s organizations and will offer targeted capacity building on coalition building, participatory consultative processes, policy analysis, advocacy, violence against women and girls, and more. WAGE will establish a steering committee in each target country, made up of local WBAs and WCSOs, to represent the voices of women in the private sector through the National Women’s Business Agendas (NWBAs). The steering committees will produce an assessment of the opportunities and barriers to women’s economic empowerment, using a participatory process guided by WAGE’s Women’s Economic Empowerment assessment tool and CIPE’s National Business Agenda methodology.
Fostering collective action among women’s organizations to develop and advocate NWBA
Building on these assessments and incorporating consultative feedback from women in the private sector and other key stakeholders, WAGE will establish National Women’s Business Agendas (NWBAs) in the four target countries that will address barriers women face to full participation in the Central Asian economies. The steering committees will then develop and advocate for policy recommendations to diminish the identified barriers, with WAGE support via technical assistance and small grants. WAGE will foster regional collaboration among steering committees to identify common barriers and recommendations raised by the four NWBAs and the experiences of women from Turkmenistan.
RESULTS
- Unprecedentedly, the NWBA project created Coalitions for the Development of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Gender Equality, uniting more than 30 civil society organizations, women’s and business associations in each country. Throughout the project, these coalitions have increased their capacity, developed the National Women’s Business Agenda, and launched advocacy to improve the environment for women’s business.
- Supporting the Coalitions’ advocacy efforts and raising public awareness of women’s opportunities and barriers, Search launched a successful media campaign, reaching 5 million people across Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
- Within the Media campaign, information was transmitted through different media products designed to change the public perception of women in business. These products included social videos, success stories with women entrepreneurs from regions, and collaborations with influencers.
- Search partnered with recognized media outlets throughout the region to spread WAGE’s messaging further. Search worked closely with Kaktus Media in Kyrgyzstan, Batyr Jamal in Kazakhstan, and Your TJ in Tajikistan. These partnerships increased the reach of the campaign and the impact of the project. The final evaluation of the campaign showed that more than 79% of WAGE’s subscribers have started to have a more positive attitude towards women in business.
- Beyond shifting perceptions, the media campaign also aimed at providing women across Central Asia with growth opportunities by resharing various learning and funding opportunities. Search also organized learning trips for the media campaign’s followers from different regions. These trips further empowered women in their entrepreneurial journey.
“During the three-day Study tour, all participants met many successful women, gained invaluable experience, visited businesses, and participated in training events on various topics. At the end of those three days, I reconsidered my business idea and decided to do what I was really strong at. There were no English classes in our village, so I decided to start homeschooling the children who live in my village. It was one of the quickest decisions I ever made. Before I left Bishkek, I ordered a special board and took it with me. […] On October 28, 2022, I started my first English classes. At first, I taught students in one room of my house. From the second month, I moved to a spacious apartment and continued teaching. During that time, I was able to teach about 30-40 children, and they are still learning now. My dream is to open a large learning center in our village since rural areas don’t have the same opportunities as cities.”
PARTNERSHIPS
WAGE seeks to establish meaningful partnerships with and among government, CSOs, women entrepreneurs and business associations, and the private sector to ensure a holistic approach to addressing the multifaceted problems facing women entrepreneurs in Central Asia. By engaging with established entities, WAGE takes a locally relevant and sustainable approach to addressing key development challenges in Central Asia. While the region faces common challenges, WAGE recognizes the distinct set of challenges facing each target country and will adjust its approach and mobilize relevant expertise and technical assistance to address them. WAGE’s partners in Central Asia house some of the best experts on gender-related issues and advocacy in Central Asia, including Women’s Forum “Kurak” in the Kyrgyz Republic, Association of Women Lawyers in Kazakhstan, International Women’s Association “Sharq Ayoli” in Uzbekistan, and National Association of Businesswomen of Tajikistan.
