A recent New York Times article drew national media attention to sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where rape is widespread and used as a weapon of war, and described how women are raising their voices to address the problem. Unfortunately, what is happening in the Congo is not uncommon - violence against women and children, particularly sexual violence, increases dramatically in conflict situations and increases women’s poverty. As their family members and neighbors are killed or kidnapped, more and more women are forced to become the sole head of household bearing full economic responsibility for their children, elders, extended family, and, in many cases, orphans of friends. In the Congo, for example it is estimated that 60 to 80 percent of women have

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Ritu Sharma, Women Thrive's President and Co-founder, speaks along side the President and leaders from Washington and around the world at the White House Summit on International Development.

On October 21, 2008 Ritu Sharma, Women Thrive's President and Co-founder, spoke on the "Reducing Poverty through Economic Growth" panel at the U.S. President's White House Summit on International Development. Attended by President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, musician and activist Bob Geldof, National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley, and other public and private-sector leaders, the Summit focused on "the Administration's core principles that have transformed the U.S. approach to international development

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With determination, hard work, and the right tools, Simantoi Kilama went from growing up hungry in Kenya to earning enough money to buy her family shoes and food. Listen to Simantoi tell her story and hear how far empowering women can go.

Like many women in poor countries, the women of the Maasai tribe in Eastern Kenya face barriers that keep them from lifting their families out of poverty. Many do not receive a single day of education, are not able to earn their own income, and are forced to marry and have children at ages as young as 12 or 13 - perpetuating a cycle that keeps entire families poor. But, as Simantoi Kilama shows us, giving women in poor countries economic opportunities can turn this cycle around.

Simantoi Kilama, a native Maasai woman who grew up without electricty or

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Over the past year global food prices have soared making even the most basic foods - such as rice and corn - too expensive for the world's poor. The result? Millions of families are enduring extreme hunger or starvation. As is all too often the case in times of crisis, women and children are suffering the most.

Read More - Download our Fact Sheet on Women and the Food Crisis

Why Do Food Prices Matter So Much'

Most Americans have noticed an increase in milk, bread and egg prices. What many people don't realize is that spikes in food prices can plunge households in developing countries even deeper into extreme poverty. This is because they spend an average of 70 percent of their incomes on food, compared to the 15 to 18 percent that households in industrialized countries spend. Over the

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Conflict Increases Violence Against Women
Armed conflict devastates entire societies - it tears apart families and communities, increases disease and hunger, and spreads homelessness and extreme poverty. During and after these conflicts, women and children suffer the most.

Reports from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), Darfur, Chad, Uganda, Kenya and Colombia, show not only that violence against women and children, particularly sexual violence, increases dramatically in conflict situations but also that it increases women's poverty. As their family members and neighbors are killed or kidnapped, more and more women are forced to become the sole head of household bearing full economic responsibility for their children, elders, extended family, and, in many cases, orphans of friends.

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On June 23rd, Michele Kelemen of NPR's Morning Edition reported on the Senate's proposed cuts to the Millenium Challenge Corporation (MCC). Hear Nora O'Connell, Women Thrive's Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs discuss how the cuts would harm women living in extreme poverty on the program.

Click here to listen!

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At the end of May 2008 the U.S. Senate passed a bill to provide emergency aid to Burma for cyclone relief, food security programs, and support for Jordan (which provides refuge to hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees). The Senate funded this assistance by proposing to cut the
budget of the Millenium Challenge Corporation (MCC), which invests in long-term poverty reduction, by one third (Read more about the proposed cuts). The MCC programs are some of the few that comprehensively address women's needs (read more) and require country governments to consult local organizations in their countries in order to receive aid. Moreover, the U.S. had already promised funding to several very poor countries, including the African nation of Burkina Faso. Burkina Faso has already spent $5 million...