Women on Wings reached a milestone of 10,000 jobs on 9 August 2011. This was a memorable day in the short history of a network of 40 social entrepreneurs and experts working together alongside various Indian organizations to create new jobs for women. These jobs were created in collaboration with Fabric Plus in Assam, Desert Artisans Handicrafts in Jaipur, Krishna Weavers in Hyderabad, Rangsutra in Bikaner, The Ants in Bangalore and Sadhna in Udaipur.
This 10,000 job mark is a vital step on the path to achieving the ultimate goal of Women on Wings. Marischka Leenaers, one of Women on Wings’ experts: “Our mission is to create 1 million jobs for women in rural India. If 1 million women have a job and an income, that means that 1 million families are more likely to have a better future with access to education and development.” Maria van der Heijden, managing founder of Women on Wings, adds: “Women feel empowered when they have their own income and are confident about their own future and the future of their children. The result we’ve achieved was due in part to the input of 40 experts who made their skills and expertise available to entrepreneurs in rural India. By working with international companies such as AkzoNobel, DHL, IKEA, UNICEF and UNDP, we were able to create concrete business activities that produced thousands of jobs.”
