At CARE Rwanda, we firmly believe that overcoming poverty is impossible until all individuals achieve equal rights and opportunities. In Rwanda, women and girls continue to be among the most marginalized, disproportionately affected by poverty. They face various challenges, notably in accessing and controlling property, primarily due to persistent harmful traditional norms that also exclude them from full participation in economic activities, control of resources, and even education.
Despite Rwanda’s remarkable strides in women’s rights and gender equality, these societal norms still prevent women and girls from realizing their full potential. CARE’s approach empowers women and girls with the agency to break free from poverty and lead their communities in doing the same.
Our work prioritizes inclusive governance as a cross-cutting theme to achieve gender justice. Tools like the Community Scorecard are utilized to actively promote women’s leadership, voice, and participation at all levels. CARE Rwanda’s “Her Resilience, Our Pride” program strategy explicitly focuses on graduating vulnerable women and girls aged 10 to 59 years from poverty by 2025, with a target of 1.5 million individuals living in dignity. This strategy emphasizes working across generations in two complementary areas: “Women Economic and Climate Justice” and “Gender Justice and Right to Health.” A key part of our commitment within “Gender Justice and Right to Health” is to empower 500,000 women and girls to exercise their rights to live a life free from violence and make informed decisions, significantly increasing their knowledge in Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (ASRHR).
Beyond economic empowerment, CARE is dedicated to challenging discriminatory social norms, economic structures, laws, policies, and practices that marginalize women. Through extensive experience in financial inclusion, notably via Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) and linkages to financial service providers, CARE supports women, 75% of whom are smallholder farmers, to engage in profitable value chains and build market capacity.
We are implementing several projects within this program area. These projects are being implemented in 11 districts.
Journey of Transformation (JoT): This approach focuses on fostering gender equality and power balance within households, empowering both men and women to make joint decisions that contribute to household well-being and economic empowerment.
‘The World Starts with Me’ was developed by Rutgers University and was identified by UNESCO as one of 18 programs worldwide that is truly comprehensive, the curriculum follows the principles of three combined approaches: adolescents’ development, behavior change, and the human rights-based approach.
Community Scorecard (CSC): This participatory tool empowers program participants to voice their concerns and priorities, fostering collective action and collaboration with local leaders to find sustainable solutions to community-specific challenges.
CARE is a global leader within a worldwide movement dedicated to ending poverty. We are known everywhere for our unshakeable commitment to the dignity of people.
90% of CARE USA’s expenses go to program
services.
