EMERGENCY UPDATE
Working women, Working moms By Frank Elvey
The women of Salavante aspire to a better life. One year after their village in the Philippines was flooded by Typhoon Parma, their aspirations include having more adequate food, more savings, better community facilities, more self-reliance, and better disaster preparation and response.
In the first photograph, a group of Salavante women are reflecting on their aspirations, achievements and challenges and what they can do to improve family and community wellbeing. The 26 women call themselves Salavante Working Moms Disaster Risk Reduction Organisation, or ‘Working Moms’ for short.
The Chairperson of the group, Vilma Rufo, is pictured in the middle photograph, together with the bamboo handicrafts the women make, mostly for sale to local traders. An item sells for 4 to 10 pesos and by making hundreds of handicrafts, each Working Mom can earn up to 1,000 pesos a week (or HK$180), an important supplement to the family income.
In the third photograph, the women are working alongside the local group Peoples Disaster Risk Reduction Network, other partner organisations and Oxfam Hong Kong, to develop concrete plans to achieve their goals. This includes engaging with government to advocate for better public services. The women also plan to link with women in other communities to share what they have learned through working together and supporting each other. Frank Elvey, Regional Manager for Archipelagic Southeast Asia with Oxfam Hong Kong, visited Salavante in October 2010 as part of a Responsible Wellbeing Workshop that included partners and Oxfam staff meeting with the women's group. / Photos: Sandy Wong, Oxfam Hong Kong
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