Gender inequality is a serious global issue. To address it we must empower women throughout their lives.
The WildHearts ‘StartHer’ Strategy supports women and girls in the developing world through three initiatives: Enterprise, Education, and Health.
First, we financially empower women by giving them access to finance and enterprise training. Our education project then ensures children have access to essential tools for learning. Finally, our health programme provides girls with basic menstrual health products and education – ensuring once they’re in school, they stay there.
Global inequality is creating vast challenges for women in the poorest regions of the world. Due to a lack of access to education and investment, women in low-income countries are often left vulnerable. They are frequently forced to borrow from loan sharks, entrapping them in poverty.
Our mission is to empower these women by providing vital start-up capital and business training to female entrepreneurs across 40 low-income countries. Women invest 90% of their income back into their families’ nutrition, healthcare, and education. As a result, these women transform whole communities.
We are proud to support women and their families through our financial inclusion and business training programmes, creating transformational impact in the areas that need our help the most.
Every child has the right to an education – whatever their background, gender or ethnicity. Sadly, more than 61 million children don’t attend primary school. These young people are left with long-lasting consequences by not having that vital opportunity to learn.
At WildHearts, we facilitate and champion girls’ education through our StartHer Strategy. Our StartHer in Education initiative provides packs to school students with essential tools for learning. By reducing the barriers which exist for young girls gaining an education, we are transforming lives.
As a result of our intervention, average attendance in schools has increased by 40%, and average academic performance has improved by 20%. Our work has improved access to food, healthcare and education for hundreds of thousands of people
A lack of access to basic Menstrual Health Management is a key barrier to girls’ education in low-income countries. When girls have no access to sanitary pads, attendance rates in secondary schools decrease by 25%, in comparison to 1.5% when sanitary pads are distributed.
By providing girls with sanitary pads, we can drastically increase their attendance at school. Our StartHer in Health initiative supports Menstrual Health Management through the manufacturing and distribution of reusable pads to schoolgirls aged 9-18 in areas vulnerable to period poverty.
The provision of pads, combined with education packs has narrowed the pass-rate gap between girls and boys, reducing significantly from 17.4% to 0.89%. We ensure girls not only go to school, but also stay in school, creating a more stable and secure future.