Women's Economic Development

Integrating Women into markets – equitably and sustainably

MEDA is showing that women can rise above the social and cultural barriers that stand in the way of business success and improved livelihoods through our programs in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Haiti and Ghana. MEDA’s women-centered economic development is founded on respectful interaction with cultures and communities, is rooted in thorough market research and incorporates MEDA’s well-known technical value chain leadership.

For example: MEDA’s Pathways & Pursestrings project links home-bound women embroiderers to higher value markets in Pakistan. With support from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the project will reach over 20,000 women entrepreneurs in the embroidery, glass bangles, seedlings and dairy value chains. Our USAID-funded Entrepreneurs project has improved livelihoods for over 100,000 women in the country through targeted and appropriate interventions in the honey, medicinal and aromatic plants, dairy and embellished fabrics subsectors.