Cherie Blair Foundation for Women >>
The Cherie Blair Foundation for Women
Meeting Women in North Pakistan
Supporting a woman entrepreneur in Bangladesh
The mission of the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women is to strengthen the capacity of women entrepreneurs in countries where they lack equal opportunities so they can grow their businesses and become greater contributors to their economies. We accomplish this by working with local partners to provide women with access to business development, networks and finances.
Giving women the chance to contribute to their economies, to make the most of their talents, is the key to higher living standards and stronger economies. Research shows that women tend to invest 90% of their income back into their families, so their success is critical to the ability of their children to escape poverty too. Whatever our gender, we all gain. And yet, women find it harder to obtain investment grants or own land and they find it difficult to get good advice or commercial support. The Foundation is a response to these challenges. Click here for the Foundation website
"I am passionate about championing the cause of women. Whenever I can, I do so through my professional life as a human rights lawyer.And I also have used my higher personal profile over the last few years to take the message out to any audience which will listen to me. So I have spoken to audiences about the importance of women's rights here across Europe and North America but also in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. And wherever I have been, I always tried to grab the chance to meet with women to discuss the challenges they face in their own societies. I have always found these meetings fascinating and frequently inspiring. When you hear first-hand, for example, of the role women are playing in healing the scars of Rwanda, you leave humbled by their courage but also determined to do what you can to help.
What has also struck me is the widespread desire of women in the developing world for advice and support from those of us who live in the more developed countries. They feel such help would not only have a real practical benefit - whether with advice on how best to tackle discrimination or, for example, expand their businesses - but would also play a major role in boosting morale in their fight to improve their lives.
I have also been encouraged by the fact that, whenever I have mentioned this to women in countries like our own, there has been a real enthusiasm to provide this help and support..That is the reason I have set up the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women. Its aim is to help women across the world to realize their potential by promoting and supporting their economic independence and empowerment. In particular, it seeks to promote women's role and leadership in the global economy by enhancing the growth of women-owned small and medium enterprises in the developing world.
Women with economic security and independence have much greater control over the lives of themselves and their children. It also, importantly, gives women a more influential voice in their communities and wider society to tackle injustice and discrimination"
Cherie Blair
About the Foundation
Cherie Blair's passion and commitment to championing women's rights is well known. The Foundation was set up in response to Cherie's experiences meeting and talking to women around the world and the realisation that, with help, women can overcome the challenges they face and play an important part in strengthening the economies and societies in which they work and live.
The Cherie Blair Foundation for Women consists of a small team with Cherie Blair as the Founder of the organisation. Mrs Blair is deeply involved in shaping and developing the young foundation by providing knowledge, time, networks and seed funding. The Foundation is run by the Board of Trustees which in turn is advised by a Steering Committee.
The importance of the Foundation's work
"Investing in women is not only the right thing to do. It is the smart thing to do"
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon 2008
Backing women's rights isn't just good ethics, it's sound economics. In today's world, more than ever, we must make the most of all human resources if the economic and social challenges that we face are to be solved.
Yet women are often excluded from the labour market, from access to finance or from education and as a result are under-represented in the world of business. Women account for just two per cent of land owned and ten per cent of credit extended globally. The world is missing out on a huge pool of talent.
Yet when men and women work together, businesses, economies and societies prosper.
That is why the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women is working to overcome barriers to success and help women fulfil their economic potential. In time, we hope to create a global network of women entrepreneurs by helping women to grow their businesses and encouraging those who have already succeeded to share their experience with others.
Implementation
We offer women improved access to business development, networks and finance in areas of the world where gender disparity is significant.
Our approach is to work in partnership with local organisations to develop projects where we can make the biggest difference and where we see clear potential for women in business to become self-sustaining in the longer term.
Geographically, our efforts focus on regions where women suffer significant inequality and where we believe we can make the biggest difference.
The women we work with have the potential to take the next step towards becoming successful entrepreneurs or are running small businesses which have already had some success but are struggling to sustain their position or expand.
By focusing on the women who have already achieved a level of success, we know that the right foundations are already in place, and with the appropriate support so much more could be achieved. Typically, we work with our partners to provide services in three areas:
• business development
• network opportunities
• access to finance
The Cherie Blair Foundation for Women is a UK registered charity: number 1125751.
Registered Address: 66 Lincoln's Inn Fields London WC2A 3LH
If you would like to find out more or make a contribution click here