To develop the skills, knowledge and confidence of refugee women by providing a safe space for women to work together, create, learn, and expand their horizons.
The strength and leadership that female refugees provide bolsters their homes and communities on a daily basis. Working with FORGE, Angolan refugee Jacqui B. established the Meheba Women’s Center in 2005 to encourage and support women in the Meheba community. To this end, Jacqui B and the staff of the Meheba Women’s Center, in conjunction with FORGE, have created a place for women to pursue vocational training, workshops on their gender-specific rights, and informal counseling services to address cases of rape and domestic abuse. Today, the Meheba Women's Center, managed entirely by refugee women, is a vibrant and bustling cornerstone of the Meheba Community.
To provide skills and education to the women of the Kala community so that they can better provide for and protect themselves and their families.
As of December 1, 2009, FORGE is no longer working in Kala Refugee Camp. Thus, FORGE is no longer accepting funds for this project. The women in Kala Refugee Camp face many daunting challenges. Though they are typically seen as the providers of their families, they enjoy very few resources and opportunities to expand their abilities. Additionally, they are often met with violence and disparagement even from men within their own families. However, the women of the Kala Women's Center believe in the capacity of Kala's women to address many of the large-scale problems that face the camp. The programs run through the Kala Women's Center provide the community's women with opportunities to take control over their own health, economic situations, and empowerment - capacities they find invaluable both in their life in the camp and in their future back home.
