On International Women’s Day, World Relief Celebrates 4 Million Women and Girls Served

***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***
March 8, 2019                                                                                          

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Lauren Carl
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On International Women’s Day, World Relief Celebrates 4 Million Women and Girls Served

Baltimore, Md. – On this global day dedicated to honoring the achievements of women, World Relief announces several exciting new initiatives to affirm the value and dignity of women around the world and equip them to transform their communities in the future.

“Women have God-given talents and gifts that are crucial for transforming communities,” commented World Relief Vice President of Advocacy and Policy Jenny Yang. “When you give women the tools to provide for themselves and their families, miracles happen, and it’s a beautiful thing that we have the privilege of seeing time and again.”

By working with the local church and communities, World Relief’s services empower women through practical education, community participation, employment services and more. In 2018 World Relief served 4 million women and girls through its programs, including:

• Around the world, teaching over 90,000 women how to manage their finances through our Savings for Life program.

• In Congo, training almost 4,000 youth in sexual and gender-based violence awareness and sensitization.

• In Jordan, expanding our marriage and parenting programs to include men, recognizing their critical role in impacting change within the home.

• In Rwanda, launching a partnership with Starbucks Foundation to empower 12,960 women to thrive through safe relationships, healthy homes, clean drinking water and economic opportunity.

• In the U.S., welcoming 1,595 women and girls here as refugees, and serving more than 160 female survivors of human trafficking.

 World Relief President Scott Arbeiter commented, “World Relief believes in the dignity and potential of every woman and man God has created. The church is uniquely positioned around the world to unlock this potential. On this international awareness day, we’re excited to continue equipping communities, including our own, to bring about the flourishing of people made in the image of God across the world.”

 This International Women’s Day, World Relief commenced several special initiatives that celebrate the impact they’ve had on millions of women and girls and build on the work that has gone before to equip more women than ever before.

 This year, World Relief marked a new relationship with Starbucks Foundation. Over the course of a three-year commitment, the Starbucks Foundation’s Origin Community Grant will contribute $500,000 to World Relief’s work to empower 12,960 Rwandan women and impact the lives of 57,000 Rwandans in the District of Nyamasheke. This partnership will build on World Relief’s existing work of promoting women’s leadership, encouraging healthy homes and providing safe drinking water.

 Separately, World Relief is raising $100,000 to create a better world for women – one that fights systems of gender injustice and empowers women around the world to build bolder, brighter futures. Anyone making a donation on International Women’s Day to World Relief’s initiatives will not be subject to processing fees. Additionally, World Relief urges those interested in supporting women around the world to consider donating to their ongoing match campaign with One Day’s Wages, which will go live on March 18 and specifically focus on raising funds for their comprehensive sexual and gender-based violence programming.

World Relief CEO Tim Breene commented, “Change truly starts from the ground up. We’re grateful for the partners who have come alongside us in our mission to equip the local church to bring about flourishing over the last year, and we’re prayerfully expectant to see the good that is made possible by women and men taking up the call to be the hands and feet of Christ around the world.”

For more information on how World Relief’s work has impacted women and children across the globe, please visit worldrelief.org/women.

Download the PDF version of this press release.

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About World Relief:

World Relief is a global Christian humanitarian organization that seeks to overcome violence, poverty and injustice. Through love in action, we bring hope, healing and restoration to millions of the world’s most vulnerable women, men and children through vital and sustainable programs in disaster response, health and child development, economic development and peacebuilding, as well as refugee and immigration services in the U.S. For 75 years, we’ve partnered with churches and communities, currently across more than 20 countries, to provide relief from suffering and help people rebuild their lives.

Learn more at worldrelief.org.