Global Grassroots 2011 Year-End Magazine Global Grassroots 2011 Year-End Magazine | Page 26

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Global Grassroots 2011

sustainably earn a living by training them in tailoring. In addition to vocational training, CVTS offers workshops on HIV/AIDS prevention and reproductive health as well as literacy and English classes. The program is designed to give each woman not only a new way of earning an income, but also the ability to protect herself and her family. The goals of the project, measured through surveys, interviews and home visits, include that each beneficiary: is able to make clothes on her own, shows improved hygiene and nutrition, has greater knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention methods and means of contraception, and develops some reading and writing skills.

Issue: This team has identified women's involvement in sex work and, in turn, exposure to HIV/AIDS as a critical issue in their community. Many women and girls were left widowed or orphaned from the genocide and felt forced into sex work, as they lacked the education or skills to secure other jobs. One team-member states, "After talking to the women, we have helped them to decide to leave prostitution and change their lives, but they need skills training in order to be able to earn a living without prostitution."

Community Vocational Training

School*

(CVTS)

Solution: The Community Vocational Training School gives former sex workers and single mothers a new way to

Impact: CVTS has provided 200 sex workers with the skills to achieve a sustainable and healthy alternative for themselves and their families. In collaboration with another Global Grassroots team, "Achieving a Better Life", the women have attended theater performances on domestic violence, and a few have started to discuss the issue of abuse

photo by Laya Madsen

photo by Laya Madsen