These meetings were organized aiming at sharing information on the situation of women living in rural areas in Carazo (Nicaragua) as well as information on the Project the FPSC is implementing with funding from the Junta de Castilla y León: “Empowerment of poor rural women in the Department of Carazo, through the implementation of a programme of technical and vocational training oriented towards entrepreneurship and leadership.”
These sessions were held on 21 August.
The conferences were given by the Project Director FPSC, Macarena Cotelo, the FPSC technician María Abellanas, and the director of the project in Nicaragua, Amalia Gonzalez Fournier, main responsible for the educational project developed by the Social Vega Baja Center, which featured firsthand the reality of this region of Nicaragua.
A video was projected with the objective of showing the opinion and reflections of the women who participates in the Project:
Amalia Gonzalez Fournier visited the FPSC headquarters in the framework of these sessions, and a brief interview was made to her, she answered these questions (among others):
- How many women are benefiting from the Project being implemented with FPSC? What results do you expect?
Over 200 women participating in the project funded by the FPSC Castilla y León.
All these women participating live in rural areas and have limited resources. The program affects issues such as school support, entrepreneurship and human development.
These women had suffered a lack of education and experiment a radical change after being trained thoroughly attending this training program at the classroom.
- How do you empower these women?
They are given very thorough training but which highlights specific aspects: how to cook, how to organize menus, how to buy, how to sell, how to price. All these aspects will allow them to go outside and to put them into practice.
- What other benefits the training provided to these women would you highlight?
The program envisages the possibility of internships, in restaurants and hotels.
- Tell us about the effects the program has to the community.
First, we see a personal satisfaction of participants despite the difficulties sometimes they find such as the need to walk long distances for example.
One of the objectives when selecting participants is the desire they have to succeed, and the possibility that they can replicate what they learned in their family environment, in their neighborhood, or community. That is why the project has a multiplier effect. The change experimented by the participants has an impact on those around them, and that converts them into multiplier agents.