She can grow a better world
Celebrate and support rural women
Every day, rural women grow food, make and sell products, provide employment and care for others. More and more, they are taking a leading role in preparing for and resisting climate change.
Despite this, rural women - particularly in developing countries - face discrimination and barriers to accessing finance, services, training and recognition.
This UN International Day for Rural Women, we celebrate and recognise the work and impact of rural women. We also highlight the need to support and empower rural women. If we do this, she builds business, drives resilient growth in the sector and leads the way for other women in her family and community. If we open opportunities for rural women, she can grow a better world.
Support from rural women in Australia
Hear from these inspiring women from across Australia as they send messages of support and solidarity to all rural women for the 2022 UN International Day for Rural Women.
Rural women are building business and creating change
Kylie’s business Marama Niu, is part of a growing group of women-led business in Fiji. Kylie started making dairy-free ice-cream in her kitchen and now sells at markets and in a local retailer. She sources her coconut nectar and ingredients from local women’s groups with a sustainable and ethical focus. Good Return is working to bring our Impact Investment program to Fiji, where we will fund women like Kylie to build their businesses, employ other women and set new standards in sourcing and using local products.
Before joining Good Return’s financial capability training (CAFE), Eliya ran a small grocery store. The store made just enough to meet the needs of the family, and Eliya realised she needed a more long-term source of income, resilient to changes in customers and pricing. She now raises chickens and goats, building her farming business so that it provides her family with a stronger source of income and savings. She is more confident in managing incoming and outgoing money and planning for her future.
Siti comes from an area in Indonesia where most people work in farming. After taking part in training with our local partner CROWDE, she became interested in how to reuse paper waste from her village and turning it into woven bags, vases, planter boxes, and giftboxes. Siti now makes her beautiful products as a side business along with farming, and she wants to inspire other women in her community to join the making process and reuse waste for profit.
Good Return backs the strength of rural women
Good Return helps rural women access responsible finance through our local partners. Our microloans help women starting out in small business, and our impact investment fund supports women who run small to medium enterprises, often employing other women and helping their local economy to thrive.
We provide training and support to women working in agriculture in technical skills, business planning and money confidence and management.
We train financial institutions to improve their gender practices, so they understand needs of their women customers and break down the barriers which have traditionally stopped women from accessing banking and finance.
Three ways you can support rural women today
Sign up to the Good Return newsletter below and you’ll receive regular stories in your inbox of women entrepreneurs building business and livelihoods across the Asia Pacific.
Donate to Good Return’s CAFE Initiative - an innovative approach to financial capability training that builds confidence and money management skills for women.
From planting a new crop to adding more produce to a market stall, your loan to a women entrepreneur will help her business flourish and her family’s savings grow.