What is Widows Rights International
About WRI
Widows' Rights International is a UK based nonprofit, non-governmental organisation working in the field of human rights for widows, currently focusing on the plight of widows in sub-Saharan Africa.
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Our goals are to:
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Support the international campaign to end harmful cultural practices which ignore the human rights of widows and lead to their dire poverty and social exclusion.
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Raise awareness and understanding of the discrimination and violence encountered by widows in many countries.
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Advocate for widows' rights to be integrated into the human rights agendas of national and international agencies.
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Promote the emergence of a vibrant and informed network of community based groups, widows' groups, NGOs, lawyers and human rights activists working on widowhood issues.
"Aren't there already lots of widows' groups?"
The situation of widows is finally becoming recognised and we're delighted to see so many networks building.
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We work with many of them, but what WRi brings - advocacy and lobbying for change at government level - is complementary to the fantastic on-the-ground work of these groups and networks, and neither competes with that, nor distracts from it.
Our ability to leverage legal instruments and high-level reporting to influence governments adds weight to their work, delivering legislative and evidential tools which they can (and do) use to effect real change. You'll find these in our Reports and International Instruments.
You can read more on exactly how what we do supports what they do on our Stories page (coming soon).
"OK. How can I help?"
WRi isn't a Membership organisation, instead using our expert influence to lobby and advocate with the United Nations and other global organisations to raise the profile of these desperate women and promote local, regional, national and global change. But, that takes resources including legal, media, research, consultancy and more.
So while membership isn't an option, we'd really, really appreciate whatever else you can offer.
We don't ask much. But there are some things you can do:
Recognise
Most of us don't want sad stuff in our lives. We look away. But for these widows, the choice isn't theirs to make.
Simply recognising they exist is the first step to doing something about their situation.
Tell
Alone we can change little.
But by involving others, we can change everything. Thank you for your interest in helping these often-desperate women. Please, tell others.
Support
There are millions of organisations asking for your support, we know. But few of those offer you a chance to do something really good, and for permanent change. Please - support ours.
