EMPOWER DALIT WOMEN OF NEPAL

Empower Dalit Women of Nepal (EDWON) enables women repressed by gender and caste to claim their rights and live in dignity.

We Believe that

• Local communities hold the key to their own empowerment
• Women working together can change everything

EDWON's rights based approach addresses the root causes of discrimination and poverty by organizing women into empowerment groups. In these women-led groups, they build solidarity, learn about their human rights and how to take collective action for social change.

The women also gain access to savings and loan activities so they can start small businesses, improve their living standard and educate their children.

EDWON’s bottom-up approach focuses directly on the United Nations Millennium Goals of women’s empowerment, gender equality, poverty reduction, and universal education.

EDWON was founded by Bishnu Pariyar, a young Dalit woman, who grew up in family of subsistence farmers. She has overcome immense obstacles of poverty, and discrimination to become a powerful advocate for Dalit women.

EDWON is an all volunteer U.S.-based 501(c) 3 organization closely affiliated with ADWAN (Association of Dalit Women’s Advancement of Nepal).

ADWAN, founded in 1998, is an independent, non-governmental organization registered in Nepal.

EDWON raises funds in the U.S. exclusively for ADWAN, which leads and carries out the programs in Nepal.

Since 1998

• 2500 Dalit women in 73 groups have become agents of change.
• 95% of all women’s groups started are still active
• Almost 2000 children have received educational support