I don’t take it for granted that I get to meet some of the most amazing humans through what I do. Here’s Azmara in Ethiopia.
One of the things that stood out to me while in country was how men and women were expected to occupy totally different spheres in society. On the surface it looked like very limited interaction between men and women, but deeper it meant fewer opportunities for women.
Azmara always knew she could do a little bit more. She was a skilled weaver and wanted to sell her art in the city. But no one would help her get started. Men in her area told her she should just settle and marry one of them. But she held on to her confidence.
She joined a Purpose Group, found the capital to turn her art into an income generating project. She even used that income to help her new fiancé go through barber training.
Now her family was in a much better position to welcome their baby, which she was expecting at the time we met.