Women & Gender

On March 8th, the world celebrates International Women’s Day. Each year, thousands of events are held to inspire women and celebrate achievements in women’s equality and emancipation worldwide. The day also brings attention to areas of continued inequality, where acts of courage and determination are still needed in order to make the world more just. The 2013 UN theme for International Women’s Day is:  A Promise is a Promise: Time for Action to End Violence Against Women.

This March 8, IRD hosted a panel discussion in Washington DC on the role of women in preventing and mitigating conflict. Video of the event will be posted soon. In the meantime, please check out the following related resources:

IRD has a proud history of commitment to women’s issues since our founding in 1998. Co-founder Jasna Basaric-Keys is an expert on gender and health programs, especially affecting women in developing nations where some of the most vulnerable women are found. IRD programs employ a variety of strategies to promote gender equity and women’s empowerment in the developing world.

IRD has included gender considerations in each of our programs during design and implementation by accounting for cultural norms, family structures, and gender roles. IRD programs work to reduce gender-based violence; increase women's access to income and productive resources; address women's health, specifically maternal health and HIV/AIDS; promote gender equality in education; and work with existing national and local women's groups. In 2012, Women Deliver, a global women's advocacy organization committed to maternal health, ranked the WomenFirst program in Mozambique, implemented by IRD, as one of its 50 most inspiring ideas and solutions to build a better world for girls and women.

We couldn't be more proud.

Programs

Community Revitalization through Democratic Action

CRDA began as a community mobilization initiative and evolved to emphasize economic... more

Community Stabilization Program in Iraq

The Community Stabilization Program (CSP) helped stabilize and economically revital... more

Creating Jobs in the West Bank

The Gaza Employment Generation through NGOs Program (GEGNP) aided students in the G... more

Enhancing the Value Chain Competitiveness of Sesame and Fonio in Mali and Burkina Faso

IRD is using proceeds from monetization of wheat, vegetable oil, and rice to enhanc... more

Grassroots Theater Initiative

The Grassroots Theater Initiative introduced theater founded on the “theater of the... more

Health Linkages and National Networks for Iraqi Refugees in Jordan

The goal of Health Linkages and National Networks (HLNN) is to increase awareness o... more

Iraq Mothers and Daughters Empowerment Program

Many rural women in Iraq live in extreme poverty. Only 37 percent of rural women ca... more

Peace through Development

The Sahel region of West Africa is increasingly threatened by violent extremist gro... more

Rapid Infrastructure Emergency Project

Decades of civil war devastated the infrastructure of South Sudan, which had never... more

Restoring Peace through Social and Economic Reintegration

In July 2011 the largest country in Africa became two nations, the Republic of Suda... more

Strategic Provincial Roads in Southern and Eastern Afghanistan

The Strategic Provincial Roads Program in Southern and Eastern Afghanistan (SPR) co... more

Strengthening Health Services through Community Mobilization

Through the ESOCUIDA project (the Portuguese acronym for Empowerment of Civil Socie... more

Women First

IRD has been implementing the Women First program since 2005 in an effort to empowe... more

Working with the Displaced in Colombia

Colombia has served as an international leader in the challenge of bringing democra... more