Category: Women’s rights

In southern Myanmar, a dam is being built which will flood an area the size of Singapore and impact more than 200,000 people. Nang Shining grew up in a community that’s threatened by the dam, and has become a powerful voice for the rights of people in her community. Read more »

Women are becoming frontline activists in the battle against the dams that threaten their communities: “We all have one dream. We want to be included in the decisions over the dams. We want our rights to be heard” Read more »

Engaging with the political system can be daunting for most people, but with the help of Oxfam’s Straight Talk program, Aboriginal women like Mayatili Marika are finding their voice and making an impact. Read more »

On her way to school, Yusra negotiates the toxic human waste that lines the streets. The sanitation crisis in her home — the Mukuru slum in Kenya — means residents are forced to use pit latrines and plastic bags as their toilet. The threat of disease lingers every where, but the implications of poor sanitation for young women and girls are particularly complex. Read more »

The Mekong river is a vital resource for poor and vulnerable people in the lower Mekong region, including essential water for fisheries and agriculture. Major development decisions — like dams — can affect the food security of the surrounding communities. The impacts of development on women and ethnic minorities is of particular concern. Read more »

Straight Talk is an Australian program that connects Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women with the political system and builds the capacity of women as change makers. One such woman is Heather Shearer, an Aranda woman from Labrapuntja near Ntaria (Hermannsburg), a member of the Stolen Generation and proud mum/grandmother. Read more »

Climate change affects us all, but it often impacts women the hardest. In many parts of the world it tends to be women who grow the family’s food, fetch fuel and water, and bring up the children. It’s women who are most likely to be in harm’s way when disaster strikes. So when clean water becomes harder to find during a drought, or when crops are destroyed by floods, it’s often up to women like Ipaishe to find solutions. Read more »

Right across the globe, Australian aid is making a difference in women’s lives – to survive, to gain an education, to build a business, to lead. Right now, projects like Oxfam’s work in Zambia, which empowers women and builds their economic independence, are under threat because of the largest planned cuts to Australian aid in history. This International Women’s Day, call on the Australian Government to keep supporting those women by supporting Australian aid. Read more »

The money sent home to loved ones by Somalis living abroad makes up a huge proportion of the country’s economy . In fact, nearly half of the Somali population depends on remittances to meet their everyday needs. Today, this flow of money is under threat like never before. Read more »

Vulnerable communities in The Philippines are struggling to cope with increasingly unpredictable and extreme weather. But, thanks to your support, women like Lilia (pictured) can have an amazing impact. Read more »