Formed in 1997, Global Fund grantee Woman of Tomorrow (Femme de Demain) works with women who have been "forgotten," who live on land that has been so over-farmed it is depleted of nutrients.
Many of them are heads of households, widows, teen mothers or young girls orphaned by AIDS. They cannot read, and are subject to fraudulent levies and taxes when they take their goods to market.
To combat such bleak conditions, the group trains women in basic literacy, accounting and pricing. To address the over-dependence on agriculture, especially during the dry season, a 2001 Global Fund grant of $7,000 supported their efforts to teach women other ways to earn a living. The group also teaches women about their human rights, explaining that a woman who becomes economically empowered, but remains oppressed within her home may be even more miserable than she was before.
Recent events in Togo have made the group's work even more challenging. In February 2005, Togo's 18-year dictatorship ended with the death of President Gnassingbé Eyadéma. Ensuing actions led to the instatement of his son, Faure Gnassingbé, as president and involved reports of electoral fraud, violent clashes and roughly 30,000 people fleeing the country. These events forced Women of Tomorrow to temporarily suspend its activities for four months.
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