A BRIGHTER FUTURE

But getting women on board in the first place is still a challenge. “We have a team of six people going through the neighbourhood knocking on doors, giving out brochures and telling as many women as we can about the economic, social and vocational training we can offer them,” says Shan. “But I’d say 98% have to talk to their husbands when they get home before saying yes – and in lots of situations, their husbands will say no. We’ve also been called troublemakers and told that we’re making women speak back to the men or raise their voices at them.”

It’s a distressing example of how, although the KRI is currently safe from active conflict, the real obstacle these women face comes from society – not the outside danger of an explosion or protest. “It’s sad when a woman has the potential to start her own business, but her brother or husband won’t allow her to do so,” says Shan. “Most of the participants from Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, are Muslim and have never had the chance to be educated.

While in the district of Shekhan – a long-disputed area between the Kurdistan region and Iraq – the security situation is not always stable, but Muslims, Yezidis and Christians live there and we have a cohort of 350 women signed up to the programme,” she adds. “The remnants of war I see are through the people in Shekhan and their emotional scars.”

But this is also where Women for Women International’s work shines most. Among the women Shan has worked with is Farida, a refugee living in northern Iraq. “The programme has allowed me to leave our house, educate myself and make new friends,” she says. “I’m motivated to learn English as much as I can so if I ever get the opportunity to travel, I will know the world language. The centre has changed my life.”

HOW YOU CAN HELP

You can sign up to sponsor a woman survivor of war through Women for Women International’s year-long programme for £22 per month, or you can make a regular donation for a smaller amount. As a sponsor, you are matched with a ‘sister’ (a woman enrolling in the programme) and will receive a welcome pack, a photo (if she is happy to provide one) and regular updates throughout the year. You can also write her messages of support, and you will receive letters from her, too. If you sign up before International Women’s Day (8 March), you will also receive a free tote bag.

Find out more at womenforwomen.org.uk/tote

Image: Getty Images

Women for Women is helping rebuild Iraqi women’s lives with hope