1. Women and Development Photo 1 Photograph credit: Stephen Kadlec
Danielle Lyonne
Photo 3
Photograph credit: François Therrien

2. Why do we need a special focus on women?
Mariama, her daughter, and her mother in her home near Niamey, the capital of Niger.
Photo credit: François Therrien

3. two-thirds of adults unable to read and write are women.
Worldwide,
two-thirds of adults unable to read and write are women.
Source: UNESCO Institute of Statistics, ‘50TH ANNIVERSARY OF INTERNATIONAL LITERACY DAY: Literacy rates are on the rise but millions remain illiterate’
Sreymom running a workshop with local villagers in Cambodia.
Photo credit: Richard Wainwright

4. 75% of people in need of humanitarian assistance in 2014 were women and children.
Source: State of the World’s Mothers 2014 Report page 5.
A mother and her child in a Syrian refugee camp in Lebanon.
Credit: Caritas Switzerland

5. In Australia
Life expectancy for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander females is 73.7 years, 9.4 years less than non-Indigenous females (83.1 years).
Source:
Lorraine and Barbara at The Purple House which supports a connection to country and culture through traditional activities.
Photo credit: Simon Hewson

6. Caritas australia Ending poverty Promoting justice Upholding dignity
Our mission:
Ending poverty
Promoting justice
Upholding dignity

7. Photos: Dinia harvesting rice with the help of her family and neighbours.
Dinia with a new baby piglet, provided to one of her neighbours through the Hog Dispersal Program supported by Caritas Australia.

8. Dinia lives in the Philippines
Dinia lives in the Philippines. In the Philippines millions of people only live on $1.90 a day. Dinia struggled every day to get food and enough money for her children to go to school.
Sadly, her husband died and this made things even harder for Dinia. Dinia heard about a program run by Caritas Australia's partner SPACFI (Socio Pastoral Action Center Foundation Inc.). When she joined, she learned lots of things that have helped make her life better.
Photo: Dinia working with a SPACFI representative, learning about a System of Rice Intensification (SRI) a methodology aimed at increasing the yield of rice produced in farming. It is a low water, labour-intensive, method that uses younger seedlings singly spaced and typically hand weeded with special tools. This method has increased Dinia and her families rice yield.
A staff member from SPACFI is teaching Dinia how to plant organic rice crops.

9. Through the Caritas program Dinia learnt how to grow rice and vegetables without chemicals, how to sell chips and make medicines from plants. Dinia also raises pigs. When the sow has piglets she keeps some but gives some to a neighbour. The whole community shares and learns together. Dinia is a leader in her community now. She says “My life is much better now. It is easier.”
Dinia’s neighbours.
Dinia with her family.
Photo credits: Richard Wainwright

10. Photos: Martina collecting her vegetables to feed her family of 8 and to sell. Martina says “Even though we were eight people, we only had half of a glass of rice for food for one day” . Now Martina, with her community, can provide more for her family. “I was happy other people came to help me”.
After Martina’s husband treated her poorly, and left her and their family, Domingas, a counsellor at Uma PAS women’s shelter, has assisted Martina to move on to a better life for herself and her family

11. Martina lives in Timor-Leste - one of Australia’s closest neighbours
Martina lives in Timor-Leste - one of Australia’s closest neighbours. Many years ago there was a war in Timor-Leste and this has made life hard for many people. Many families don’t have food all the time.
Martina was worried that her family of eight children did not have enough to eat. She was unhappy. Her husband was unhappy too. He was often angry. So Martina decided to leave. She went to a safe place run by Caritas Australia. It is called Uma PAS – which means “a peaceful home."
Photo: Martina smiling, “I’m very, very happy right now, compared with my past life, because of support of the other people”.

12. At the Caritas Uma PAS house Martina had somewhere safe to sleep
At the Caritas Uma PAS house Martina had somewhere safe to sleep. The helpers gave her food and also helped her learn new skills so she could earn money. Today Martina is much happier. She has a small home and works hard in her small business so she can send her children to school.
Photos:
After suffering through domestic violence, Martina and her family now have their own house and are able to be financially independent so her children can go to school
Martina’s village community have embraced and supported her transition to self-sufficiency from a life of hardship and violence. They all lift each others spirits and help each other to lead better lives.
Martina with her family in front of their house.
Martina with her neighbours.
Photo credits: Richard Wainwright

14. Nguyet (pronounced new-yet) is fifteen years old and she lives in Vietnam. Nguyet has a disability. In Vietnam, a country near Australia, people with disabilities were hidden away.
There is not enough money for children with disabilities to go to school. They often need special teachers. Until now, Nguyet’s whole life has been spent inside her house. One of Nguyet’s neighbours called Quynh introduced her mum to a Caritas Australia supported program that has helped them a lot.
Nguyet- (pronounced) New-yet
Photos: Nguyet at home. For her first 14 years, Nguyet was confined to living behind closed doors, with her parents close by to take care of her many health needs. Then a neighbour’s kindness brought the outside world to Nguyet, and her life and the lives of her parents were changed forever.

15. Through the Caritas program mums and dads who have children with disabilities come together to learn and help each other. Nguyet’s neighbour Quynh is also a teacher and she comes to Nguyet’s house to teach her. Nguyet is learning to read and write and does well at maths. She loves to make colourful paper flowers and hopes one day to sell them.
Photos: Nguyet showing her neighbour’s how to design dolls clothes.
A meeting of the Capacity Building for Parent Associations Supporting Children with Disabilities (CBPA) in Nguyet’s community. Her Mum, Tim is talking to other parents about challenges and successes. The members of the Association rely on each other as neighbours, for advice, tips and encouragement to better the lives of their children with disabilities.
Nguyet sewing dolls clothes.
Nguyet’s mother at a Parent’s meeting.
Photo credits: Richard Wainwright

16. Photos: As a member of the Disaster Risk Reduction Council and the People’s Organisation in her Barangay, Aloma feels confident that her community are doing all they can to prepare for future, climate related, disasters.
As a member of the Disaster Risk Reduction Council, Aloma’s role is to manage relief efforts and logistics in her community. She manages the budgets for medicines, food, communication and other logistical needs, in coordination with the barangay captain. In the event of a disaster, Aloma and her team are now in a position to be ready to help.

17. Aloma lives in village by the sea. Around the world weather is changing. There are more and stronger storms. Typhoon Santi destroyed Aloma’s home in 2009 and it was very frightening for her and her family.
Near Aloma’s village is a group of special friends of Caritas called SPACFI. Aloma joined the program and learnt many things that have helped her and her family. Caritas Australia works with friends across the world as they try to work out ways to deal with changing weather.
Photo: Aloma, her husband, two children and her extended family live in a coastal region of the Philippines, prone to the effects of climate change and natural disasters. Aloma says “I would like to say thank you to countries such as Australia for bringing the The ICDP (Integrated Community Development Program) to our community. This has had a great impact on our lives, on the whole community, especially on us, on my family”.
Aloma and her family.

18. When people cut down trees it is not good for the environment
When people cut down trees it is not good for the environment. In Aloma’s village the community cut down all the mangrove trees for firewood and houses. At the Caritas program Aloma learnt that the mangroves growing in the sea actually protected the villages. Aloma also learnt what to do if there is another Typhoon. The community is now making a plan to keep everybody safe if there is wild weather again.
Photos: Toto, a project officer for the ICDP (Integrated Community Development Program) supported by Caritas Australia, taught Aloma the skills to assist in Mangrove rehabilitation in her coastal community in the Philippines. The Mangroves protect her community from natural disasters and storm surges and provide a sanctuary for wild life, vital to the health of the ecosystem.
As a member of the Disaster Risk Reduction Council, Aloma’s role is to manage relief efforts and logistics in her community. She manages the budgets for medicines, food, communication and other logistical needs, in coordination with the barangay captain. In the event of a disaster, Aloma and her team are now in a position to be ready to help.
Aloma and Toto, SPACFI staff member, in the mangroves.
Aloma and her neighbours at a meeting.
Photo credits: Richard Wainwright

19. Teaching resources
PRIMARY SECONDARY

20. - Letter of Pope John Paul II to Women, 1995