Choosing Her Own Career.
Leading Her Own Life.
It is WEP’s keystone belief that the decisions an educated woman makes as a self-reliant, informed, responsible citizen, effect lasting social change in her own life, her family, and society.
Women’s Education Project (WEP) provides our Consortium of girl-focused NGOs in South Asia the WEP Center, a program of academic and social support, college scholarships, and career guidance, to assist young, impoverished south Asian women to graduate from college and enter formal sector employment.
WEP Centers are lively, safe places where within a spirited community of peers, young women expand their understanding of the world, develop and express their own opinions, find their voice, discover career ambitions and ignite their inner spark.
Currently, more than 1200 women have graduated; over 800 have entered their first employment as pharmacists, lab technicians, therapists, teachers, corporate and legal assistants, and entrepreneurs.
Why Women’s Education?
ALL ARE AT RISK OF:
South Asia has the highest prevalence of child marriage in the world. 1 in 2 girls in South Asia marry before the age of 18.
Percentages of young women that marry before age 18 by country:
Bangladesh 59% Nepal (37%) Afghanistan (35%) and India (27%)
150,000 people in South Asia are trafficked each year. Most are women and children.
Source: http://www.iosrjournals.org/
50% of women in India between the age of 15 and 49 are anemic.
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
67% are missing from formal sector employment and instead they enter underage marriages and work unpaid, trapped in their homes, or work at informal (often unsafe) jobs.
If these 126 million young women and girls worked in a formal sector career of their own choosing, they would:
Be self-reliant and financially independent.
Break the cycle of poverty in their families.
Contribute to their career fields.
Raise the World GDP by 26%.
Her needs are urgent. The world can’t wait.
Our Vision
In a world of accelerating change, we see women, proud and informed, making important and responsible decisions about their lives, families and communities. We see women, vibrant and determined, choosing careers for which they are confident and well prepared. We see women, courageous and enterprising, preparing the way for others to follow.
Mission
To assist women of limited means liberate their inner spark: to become confident, educated, self-reliant, and responsible citizens and, for those pursuing a professional path, to develop fulfilling careers of their choosing.
