Justice and Human Rights Myanmar Project #51698

Crisis Relief to People in Myanmar

by GlobalGiving

Project Report | Jul 26, 2023
An update on your donation to Crisis Relief to People in Myanmar

By Sarah Rahman | Program Manager, Disaster Response

Photo: Khin

Thank you for your generosity in support of this project. Please find below the unedited report from our local partner working in Myanmar that is the recipient of this project's funds.

We also want to inform you that this project is no longer accepting donations, and this will be the last report of this kind. You can continue to support the people of Myanmar by donating to GlobalGiving’s vetted nonprofit partner Girl Determined, an incredible changemaking organization.

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Thank you for your support to women and girls in Myanmar during the past few difficult years. Your contributions and concern have helped to provide essential relief to over a thousand families including foodstuffs, direct cash, and personal care products.

Over two years have passed since the military coup and Myanmar remains unstable. Armed skirmishes take place daily and airstrikes are forcing civilians to flee from their homes. Nearly half of the population is now living in poverty-like conditions and an estimated 1.3 million people have been displaced.

Girls and young women especially lack access to critical services. They often take on extra work or domestic responsibilities to help their families. This can further limit their opportunities.

By remaining on the ground and connected to the few remaining networks, funds from this project are reaching real people as:

emergency supplies (e.g. food, health and hygiene materials, phone credit, clothes, etc.)
cash for transportation and resettling for those forced to flee from their homes
direct support to women farmers
critical support for girls and women experiencing violence, abuse, or neglect
social and creative learning opportunities for girls

Support for girls and women in Myanmar remains urgent. They continue to experience violence, displacement, and lack of opportunities.

In the past year, some schools have re-opened and mobility within some parts of the country has also become easier. However, financial strains on people’s families, and that many girls had already been away from school for two years, means that many girls are not continuing their schooling and have taken on daily-wage work or gotten married quite young.

Aye Moe, a 16 year old girl in one of our programs described what she sees happening with her friends -

“In my village, parents are pressuring their children to marry. One of my friends wanted to finish her education, but she was told that she had to marry even though she is young. Her mother said, ‘What is the benefit of school? After you finish school, you still need to work hard, so it is better if you marry.’ In protest, my friend didn't say anything for months—she didn't sleep and she cried a lot. After three months like this, she left her family and became a Buddhist nun…

Another friend also wanted to attend school, but her mom forced her to marry a rich boy from another village. She fought every night with him and refused to sleep with him. Eventually she ran away to Mandalay. Many young people in my village want to be educated, but their parents expect them to marry. They say 15 or 16 years is enough to marry. I want people in my village to understand that this is violence against girls and women.”

With the instability, we are seeing that girls’ opportunities continue to narrow. Support directly to girls and young women gives them the chance to create space for their needs and their development.

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Dec 28, 2021
Prioritizing Girls' Needs Amidst Growing Crises

By Chase Williams | Senior Program Manager, Disaster Response

Thank you for your incredble generosity in support of this project. Please find below the unedited report from our local partner working in Myanmar that is the recipient of this project's funds.

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We are humbled by how many people have supported this cause so far. It says a lot about how many of you care and want to see the people of Myanmar get their lives back on track. THANK YOU! With your contributions, we have delivered support to help at least a five-hundred families across the country, especially in rural communities. This past year, despite the weight of hardship and tragedy, in carrying out this crisis outreach work, we have had the opportunity to affirm the depth of capacity for joy, creativity, strength, and resilience across villages and towns in the country.

We are working to ensure the funds raised are going where they are needed most—to children losing sight of their dreams, to young adults feeling pressured to find unskilled day jobs or get married, or to parents struggling to cover the cost of rice and cooking oil. More than 200,000 people have been displaced since the military coup in February 2021, having fled their homes, either by force or by fear.

Engaged groups on the ground are finding that adolescent girls in rural villages are particularly impacted by the crises. As girls—but also as children, often coming from poor or minority ethnic and religious backgrounds— girls are multiply-burdened, and rapidly taking on very real adult responsibilities which often puts them at higher risk and limits their future opportunities.

Funds are reaching people on the ground as:

emergency supplies (e.g. food, health and hygiene materials, phone credit, clothes, etc.)
cash for transportation and resettling for those who have had to flee from their homes
direct support to women farmers
critical support for girls and women experiencing violence, abuse, or neglect
social and creative learning opportunities for girls

Bring Needed Foundational Relief

Continued support remains present and urgent. Girls and women are still experiencing violence, displacement, and a narrowing of opportunities. Take, for instance, 13-year-old Thidar from Mandalay, who explained her recent train of thought:

“I want to go back to school. It has been so long, maybe two years, but I miss it so much. I felt free when I was a student. We are getting older and some girls are getting married. This makes me sad… When I think about the virus and other things, I no longer want to think about my future. I’m not sure why I have goals anymore since we can’t go to school.”

Young people are losing hope and losing sight of their futures. Yet, they continue holding a strong line of resistance against the military dictatorship, while getting creative with new methods to continue learning and contributing to their households and communities. Some girls have formed their own study groups or are teaching lessons to younger children. Many are working in their parents’ farms and businesses to keep busy and to contribute to the family finances. Others, still, have taken up an interest in politics, wanting to be part of building a freer and more peaceful nation.

Girls and young women want to act. They recognize the importance of a strong social network. Of caring for the wellbeing of those around them. Of fighting for what they believe in. Your support will enable girls to do all this and to determine their own futures.

Please consider making another donation today, or, even, on a monthly basis. It matters!

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We will be back in your inbox in 2022 with more updates about this critical work.

With immense gratitude,
The GlobalGiving Team

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