Refuge des Femmes d'Haïti (Ref-Haiti), a women's organization working with vulnerable women, has partnered with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP - Haiti) through the national program of the "Spotlight Initiative", to allow 25 women sex workers to come out of their condition by becoming financially independent.
As part of this micro-project which started in August and that will end in October 2020, these 25 women will benefit from : psychosocial support; training on different forms of gender violence, including sexual exploitation and abuse; training in sewing (making protective masks) and in the production of products to fight against the spread of Covid-19; a sewing machine, sewing kits and personal protective equipment kits (PPE made by themselves) as well as a hygiene and family planning kit.
At the end of this 3 month project, these women will be emotionally and economically equipped. They will no longer be obliged to continue their former activities and will be able to meet the basic needs of their families through the production and sale of detergent, bleach (chlorox), antiseptic for the hands (hand sanitizer), masks and uniforms and other sewing products.
Lets's note that the "Spotlight Initiative" is an international commitment jointly funded by the European Union and the United Nations, the ultimate ambition of which is to systematize the application and respect of women's rights as contained in international legal standards, within Haitian society, so as to ultimately promote an egalitarian, harmonious, and economically, socially and humanly developed society.
