Women Protection, Peace and Economic Development

The implementation of ‘Women Protection, Peace and Economic Development project’ in Covalima and Ermera Municipalities, women's groups and individual businesswomen made excellent changes through individual and group action plans. They have carried out the actions planned, follow the steps and the majorities of them reach an action plan and proceed with other action plans. Some women groups have realized their dreams through rehabilitating of buildings to store and sell their products, buying freezers to store and maintain product quality, enlarging their business through various products, setting up cooperative groups, adding goods to their stalls, adding various vegetables and using local product to produce varieties of cakes. From all beneficiaries they have changed the financial management of their respective businesses for better and safer.

The municipality forum activities encouraged the women groups and Individual businesswoman to make a decision in their family and communities and empower the woman beneficiaries to feel confident in doing some of the business activities in their lives. On the other hand, the women group and individual businesswoman could learn some new information from the guest speakers as well as exchange their experience to each other during the forum in order to empower them on innovative business plan.  

The innovative business plan competition result showed that the winners from Covalima and Ermera Municipalities have utilized the support material from Ba Futuru project team to improve their group and individual businesswoman activities. On the other hand, the national forum had a positive result because the participants could exchange their experience to each other on how to develop products and some of the group already started implement the way of running a business from other groups that they obtained during the national forum in Dili. These results showed that the women beneficiaries had an innovative thinking on how to increase their income in order to, maintain the family economy.

The women participants from both places Covalima and Ermera Municipalities with various ages have shared their knowledge and experience they have gained from the training program with their group members, young girls, families and colleagues. Instead, some of the women have used their skills to resolve conflicts within their families and groups member.