8th March 2021: RER Project celebrated 111th International Women’s Day Program with the theme “Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world ”. The program was commenced by the Deputy Mayor Mrs Krishna Maya Gautam of Bardibas Municipality in Provice 2 from Janakpur Corridor Office. More than 70 participants ─ the project team members both male and female including from local level institutions, multipurpose cooperatives members and Food Information and Action Network (FIAN) Nepal representatives participated in the Women’s Day celebration. RER Project GESI Officer Ms Jwala Nepal coordinated the event. Ms Laxmi Gurung, Senior Officer from FIAN Nepal shed light on the concept of right to food, women human right to food and nutrition. Discussion session was also on existing policy provisions as well as how to generate the enabling environment to tackle harmful traditional practices to women access to food and nutrition.
The project team members urged the need to create a woman friendly work environment. For example, from the day on RER project offices will manage sanitary pads to all female staff in their need. Ms Sita Bhattarai and Ms Indira Shrestha from both corridor offices have been appointed as the gender focal persons. Participants and field staff expressed their feelings also through poems and songs that raised voices to seek out and celebrate women's achievements to challenge and call out gender bias and inequality then to help create an inclusive environment. All participants were given a token of love on the special occasion of this year’s Intel’ Women’s Day.
