A Woman Who Earns

In India – and in the majority of the world – a woman who earns has more power and respect in her family and community. For women coming out of exploitation, or who are high risk, it is especially important to have the means for financial independence;  Poverty is a major driver of trafficking and child marriage (1). 

When women and girls are not able to contribute to the family’s income, they may be seen as a burden, or as worthless, so when a crisis occurs, sending them to work in unsafe situations, forcing them to marry an older man with more resources, or – in the worst cases – selling them to traffickers, become more likely options.

When I first started HFC in 2005, I was inspired by the advice of anti-trafficking activist Anuradha Koirala (founder of Maiti Nepal and winner of the CNN Hero award). I asked Anuradha what I should do that would be most helpful to survivors. She said “Work on economic alternatives for the older girls. Those that are rescued under age 16 can go back to school and rejoin society through mainstream education. Older rescued girls might not want, or be able to go to school. They may not even have gone to kindergarten. They may have children to support. What they want is a place of their own, a few pots and pans, the chance to support themselves and never have to depend on someone who might sell or exploit them”.

When HFC started, we created income for survivors by selling the handicraft products they made in rescue shelters, including Anuradha’s. Today, we still do some training in artisan crafts, but also offer training in many other fields. 

In 2023 and 2024, thanks to generous grants from the Ashmore Foundation, we were able to offer vocational training to 455 survivors and high risk women in Kolkata. All of the training programs included life skills, human rights awareness, financial literacy and mental health programs. Some also included job placement, remedial education (basic literacy and math), computers and English.