·         CAMBODIA       ·         TAJIKISTAN       ·         GUATEMALA

·         CAMBODIA

FLASH: Many years of civil conflict in Cambodia have led to a significant increase in the number of widows and female- headed households. Even in traditional male-headed households, the major breadwinners are women since the husbands are often invalids of war. The level of unemployment is high and there are very limited opportunities for employment in the formal wage sector. Many women engage in the informal economy and start their own businesses to feed and clothe their families. The Association of Local Economic Development Agencies (ACLEDA) was established in 1993 with the assistance of the UNDP and executed by the ILO. The project aims at raising the standard of living of the poor by supporting income generating activities through the provision of micro- and small-enterprise credit services for the poor, especially women. It now operated in 11 provincial branches and 22 district branches throughout the country.  One of the branches in the Kampot Province was established with the support from the Japan WID Fund and is managed by the UNDP Gender in Development Programme.

 Quote: Mu Sochua, Head of the Ministry for Women's and Veteran's Affairs (Cambodia): "I am mobilizing politicians so that we can have a bigger voice, a bigger pool of women leaders to transform the politics of conflict into politics for development." Her goal is, she says, to initiate a transformation from within the establishment with the aim of redressing structural inequalities and altering cultural perceptions of women.

 ·         TAJIKISTAN

FLASH: The Women in Development Bureau formed under the auspices of the Deputy Prime Minister of Tajikistan and supported by the UNDP, began in January 1996 to implement a small enterprise development programme in the Karasu Council of villages in Kofarnihon region. The region was a war torn area with 87% unemployment rate among women, and where houses and public buildings had sustained significant damage. Credit schemes were used to implement small income-generating projects, through which about 1,500 women in the Council benefited. The success of the project is reflected in the fact that Women's Center "Bonuvon", which ran the microcredit activities of UNDP, subsequently continued to manage full-fledged credit schemes with minimal supervision from the WID Bureau. "Bonuvon" also opened a business school with courses on business planning, entrepreneurial and accounting skills, statistics and laws concerning small and medium enterprises.

 ·         GUATEMALA

FLASH: In post-conflict Guatemala UNDP is supporting a project aimed at reducing inequalities between men and women in the Guatemalan legislation with the objective of eliminating laws that are discriminating against women. The work of the National Women's Forum, which was established by the Peace Accords to promote the participation and representation of women in decision-making, is supported by this project.

Quote: "The direct participation of women at the peace table is the only way to ensure that women's demands are incorporated in peace agreements", Luz Mendes from Guatemala at UNDP Beijing + 5 panel discussions. In Guatemala, she says, women's groups forged ties with indigenous people's groups and other marginalised sectors, and managed to get official acknowledgement of women's roles and experiences in the country's war and development process. They ensured a place at the peace table and have used the peace accord to address main instances of discrimination against women. Consequently, the peace accord supports women's rights to land ownership, access to credit and participation in polical proceses. Patience! Peacebuilding is a long-term undertaking."