COVID-19 Relief Funds for Women-Led Non-Profits

Dear Friends of WomenLead Institute,

More than a year into the pandemic, COVID-19 continues to ravage countries around the world. Case numbers remained low in Papua New Guinea (PNG) until March of this year. Since then, there has been a dramatic surge in cases. With an overburdened medical care system, and misinformation rampant, the number of cases and deaths continue to rise.

PNG is home to more than 65 WLI alumnae. These women leaders span the country, from the capital of Port Moresby to remote villages in the Highlands. To date, donations of COVID Relief Funds have been made to eight of their organizations. Below are three stories of how the funds have been used in PNG:

• Many of the women who work with the WomenLead Institute, lead informal women’s groups created to maximize production and sales of products to earn income for their members and support various community initiatives. One group in PNG used its COVID-19 Relief Funds to purchase materials and train its members to design, sew and sell traditional PNG flag dresses and bilums, resulting in income that enabled women to send their children to school. Group members also provided cooked meals to people living with HIV and AIDS and provided them with transport to the hospital for health services.

• The Simbu Women in Floriculture Group is an informal group of flower growers in the rural highlands of PNG. Lack of roads, difficult terrain, and poor government support created tremendous hardships for women even before the pandemic. COVID-19 exacerbated the harsh situation as the farmers saw their products and other produce go to waste, unable to sell or transport their goods to other provinces. Although family gardens produced food, women did not know how to prepare nutritious meals for their families. The COVID Relief Funds were used to purchase ingredients to help group members prepare healthy and balanced meals for their families. The group also purchased material to sew face masks, and women who owned a sewing machine were able to produce masks to sell in the local market. The money earned went to supporting the group’s operations and to the sewers for their personal use. Because people in Simbu knew very little about COVID 19, the group also conducted Precaution and Preparedness Awareness Training in the community.

• ATprojects is an NGO working in rural PNG. When their UNICEF-supported project that produced Munpad hygiene kits was put on hold from May-November 2020, they were unable to provide the kits (reusable sanitary towels, and supplies) to the female students and teachers they had been serving. This meant that many of ATprojects staff were unemployed for six months. The organization used the COVID-19 Relief Funds to purchase a new heavy-duty sewing machine and polyurethane materials from Australia. The machine and supplies will be used to manufacture thousands more Munpads for girls in 35 schools in Goroka District in 2021.

Thank you again for your generous donation. We will continue to fund organizations such as these in PNG and around the world as funds become available. We look forward to sharing more stories with you.

Regards,

Jennifer Albee

Director, WomenLead Institute

Links:

• WomenLead Institute