Gender Equality and Social Inclusion

Finding a work-life balance

Family and business were tangled together for Celestina Arnaldo. She used to depend on her son to find suppliers for her vegetables, which he wasn’t paid for. Then Arnaldo received training from iDE to be a farm business advisor and learned how to organize her business as a separate entity from the household. With that in place, her family worked to increase their production. Now Arnaldo is the general manager, her husband is the head of production, and her son has become the accountant and driver. The business pays everyone a monthly salary, they keep track of all their transactions, and they have been able to use their profits to invest in a truck.

Stopping at nothing

An entrepreneurial spirit was alive in Nazrin Nahar Mila long before she met with iDE. Driven by fierce independence and the will to succeed, the young Bangladeshi woman defied gender norms and pursued her education while working as a private tutor. Since taking part in an eight-week training course, she has been able to secure an official identification card and business license, which have allowed her to set up shop at a local bazaar and sell products door-to-door. Women sales agents like Mila not only generate their own incomes, providing them with more independence and agency, they also deliver better access to products and services for other women and young girls in their community.

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Disability is no barrier

In a place like rural Cambodia, where latrines aren’t common, it is especially difficult to find a toilet facility that accommodates people with disabilities. Che Chemm bought a disability-accommodating latrine and shelter, furnished with grab rails and a sitting toilet, from an iDE-supported local business in 2017. Some 18 months after the latrine was installed, the team returned to visit Chemm and found he was particularly pleased with his purchase. He gestured toward the neighboring homes of his sons, one of whom also has a disability. Now both Chemm and his disabled son have the shelters, which were designed by iDE.