Building female dignity and self reliance in the conflict zones of north west Pakistan

This will be a rare opportunity to hear firsthand about Khwendo Kor's (KK) remarkable work with women and girls. As well as their humanitarian work with internally displaced people, founder and CEO Maryam Bibi will talk about KK's model of 'Viable Villages', which is proving very effective in engaging whole village communities in building sustainable educational, economic, health and civic futures with women and girls centrally involved. Their work and that of Maryam Bibi has been widely praised nationally and internationally and yet they, like other NGOs and activists, live with increasing daily threats and financial insecurity. KK's approach is distinctive in their emphasis on involving local villagers both as employees and volunteer collaborators helping to shape and implement the development. As a result, they have been able to work in areas where few others can reach.

Maryam Bibi is the founder and CEO of Khwendo Kor (KK), an NGO for women and girls working in the highly conservative, dangerous yet strategically important Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan.  Maryam was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of York in 2011 for her human rights work. Accompanying her will be Laila Shahnawaz, Senior Program Manager (Civil Rights & Humanitarian).

The event is co-hosted by CAHR and SPSW.

^{Image: Maryam Bibi sitting on the far right.}