2021 WFWPI Funding Projects Presentation Session

Written by: Mion Tsuchiaka

As an NGO with General Consultative Status at the UN, Women's Federation for World Peace (WFWP) supports UN objectives, one of them being: “to achieve international cooperation for the solution of international problems of an economic, social, cultural or humanitarian character.” Since 2020, WFWPI HQ has been providing grants of $2,000 (US dollars) each year to 13 national projects. The purpose of the project is to develop original activities in the region and to establish a working relationship with WFWPI HQ.

This year a total of 37 applications were received from 26 countries in 10 regions in a three-month application period. The submissions were based on the following themes: Women's Empowerment, True Family, Youth Leadership, and Environment. The 13 chapters that were selected were: Albania, Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Haiti, Kenya, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the UN Geneva.

There was an orientation session conducted for the selected nations to explain the purpose and objectives as well as how to proceed and finalize the project in each country. Each team planned and developed their work over a period of eight months, culminating in a final project presentation in November.

On November 26, WFWPI HQ held a project presentation event to provide an opportunity for the winners to present their projects and share their experiences with a wider audience. The event was attended by 85 people, including WFWP leaders, members and guests. The participants learned about the successes and challenges of each unique project. It was amazing to see how a small amount of money can have a huge impact and result in the development of a country.

The following is the short introduction of each project.

In order to empower young women and give them the opportunity to speak out about climate change, the Albanian chapter organized a speech contest for young women called “Save the environment, save the future.” The event was held in the concert hall of the Music High School in Tirana and featured 12 finalists. The event was promoted on various national TV stations, including Star Plus TV, Ora TV, and A2 CNN TV. The project coordinator, Ms. Irida Shkoza, was interviewed and she introduced the contest as well as the memoir of Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, the co-founder of WFWPI.

The Australian Chapter held a Global Women's Peace Network Assembly to bring about change by sharing knowledge among women leaders in Australia and the Oceania region, to strengthen their peacebuilding efforts and to provide opportunities for young women leaders to learn from and be mentored by senior women.
The Brazil Chapter implemented the "Heavenly Community, Heavenly Environment" project, which involved planting trees and cleaning public facilities in the cities of Sao Paulo and Paraná from May to September. The number of participants, which was initially 30, increased to 100 as the project progressed, making a great impact on the local communities and raising awareness on the importance of the environment.

The Cambodia chapter focused on family value education for civil servants. With the cooperation of the Royal School of Administration(RSA) of Cambodia and the Deputy Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in Japan, a series of 30 hours of education was provided not only to RSA trainees, but also to civil servants from other ministries who are playing a central role in leading the country. The WFWP lectures mainly encouraged the participants to be good individuals, to review the inner value of family and to extend that idea to the social and national level to make a better place as a whole.

In commemoration of the International Youth Day, WFWP Chad organized a three-day youth seminar on character education with the theme "Youth and Leadership" at the Lycée Feminine National High School in N'djamena. The seminar was attended by 110 high school students and WFWP Chad gave lectures on fidelity, family values, and the importance of living for others. Understanding the value and importance of this project, two school administrators connected WFWP Chad with the Directors of the Ministry of Youth and Sports office and the Ministry of Education office. WFWP Chad hopes that WFWP character education will be a part of the national educational curriculum.

The Côte d'Ivoire and Kenya chapters implemented the "Green Solar Energy for African Villages" project, distributing solar lamps to families in rural areas to change their lives for the better. They also educated people on the importance of mental health and family, and are now famous as the "Mothers of Light" who bring hope, warmth and light to families.

The Haiti chapter also implemented a project to provide children with a "bright" study space. Until now, children in Haiti have not been able to study at night due to the lack of electricity. To solve this problem, WFWP installed solar lamps in the library so that students could study and read books 24 hours a day. This project contributed to improving the literacy rate in the community.

The "Give Me A Chance" laptop giveaway project, organized by WFWP Malaysia, provided financial assistance and used laptops to underprivileged female students who were willing to pursue higher education, as many families were suffering from salary cuts and unemployment due to the pandemic. The project made a significant difference in the lives of the students.

The Philippines chapter held the “Domestic Peace Education Program: The Role of Mothers in Raising Filial Children and Patriots of the Nation” with the aim of providing families with training in non-violent conflict resolution skills and creating happy families and safe communities.

WFWP Thailand organized a training session for youth to educate them to lead a proper life for their family, society and nation, to encourage them to participate in volunteer programs with selfless leadership and to protect themselves from the influence of drugs. Training sessions were held in 10 schools with a total of 320 students participating. They practiced "putting words into action" by participating in volunteer activities to become patriots with grateful hearts and voluntary spirits for their country.

The UK chapter held a speech contest, "Women's Leadership," for young women. First, a mentoring class was held to provide participants with an opportunity to practice their speeches and receive feedback from professionals. The program promised to nurture new emerging leaders who come from diverse backgrounds but share a common desire to bring positive change to the world.

The UN Office in Geneva hosted the “Youth Peace Conference - Palestine Israel Peace Accord.” The conference featured a training program with UN peacekeeping officials, Israeli and Palestinian government representatives and other civil society leaders, where delegates and participants were trained on issues of concern, diplomacy, peace-building tools and negotiation skills. The project empowered almost 80 youth representatives to take a leadership role in peace and successfully mediate a peace agreement on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

WFWPI HQ hopes that this is just the beginning and that we can establish a tradition of recognizing and supporting projects each year. This is a great way to further develop the foundation and impact in the world by working together to expand WFWPI's influence and strengthen the global family.