At Blumont, investing in women and girls makes our mission to create a foundation for progress possible. On International Women’s Day, we’re highlighting how Access = Opportunity, both in the communities we work in and on our global team.
Through our Acogida program in Colombia, women have access to housing subsidies, psychosocial support, and community-building activities, and are referred to local healthcare, education, and migration services.
Providing access to services, knowledge, and agency for women around the world
In Colombia, Jordan, and Syria, we work with women in refugee or displaced communities so they can understand their rights and live more equitably. Through awareness campaigns, these women can access information that empowers them to protect themselves, pursue goals, and support others in their community.
The PROTEKT program in Jordan is breaking barriers for women by creating job opportunities in infrastructure and agriculture, sectors they are typically excluded from.
In Jordan, the Smart DESERT project trains employers on creating a safe workspace for their employees, particularly women with refugee backgrounds. For women who have migrated to Colombia from Venezuela, our Acogida team connects them with local services that can help them access their basic rights to food, shelter, education, and healthcare.
Our teams in displacement camps help women and girls access education, training, and technology so they can pursue more opportunities. The TIGER program engages girls living in Jordan’s Za’atari Refugee Camp in educational sessions and youth-led community initiatives. These activities give girls the chance to develop their talents, become digitally literate, and aim higher for the future.
Girls like Rania attend educational activities hosted at community centers in Za’atari Camp, including the Innovation Lab, where they can develop their talents and pursue academic subjects.
“After joining TIGER, I became more confident as my skills in reading, math, Arabic, and English have improved. I proudly scored 98 percent in the tenth grade at school,” said Mariam, a teenager who has become more engaged in school and the community since joining TIGER.
Women with disabilities and elderly women deserve the same uninhibited access to the resources they need to live happy and healthy lives. In camps in Jordan and Syria, our teams have set up support networks for these vulnerable women, including regular check-ins to ensure they can receive the same support, training, and medical care—and engage in the community—just as everyone else.
Women entrepreneurs also need equitable access to support for their businesses, so they can compete fairly in the market. The Jordan Livelihoods Project and Smart DESERT project have helped hundreds of women who are refugees or with low-income backgrounds, formalize, register, license, and market their home-based businesses. “The equipment [Smart DESERT] provided me with made it possible to increase production and double my sales,” said Ikhlas, a Jordanian business owner. With this support, women like Ikhlas are increasing their profits and expanding their reach.
The Achieving Access to Measurable Livelihoods program in Iraq provided business and vocational training to women who had recently returned to Iraq from abroad, providing them with in-demand skillsets.
Access to equitable opportunities at Blumont
Across our teams, there are women in all roles, including in global, country, and project-level leadership and historically male-dominated roles, such as engineering and agriculture. We celebrate equity across our offices and program sites because women bring invaluable experiences, knowledge, and perspective to our work. Our hiring teams for new projects place a special emphasis on diversity and inclusion to ensure we find the best candidates who can complement each other’s experience.
Access to knowledge, services, and rights, as well as job opportunities, leadership roles, and equal treatment, gives women an equal playing field and the opportunity to make the changes they wish to see in their lives—and in our broader world.
