FOSDOO involve in implementing Gender and Gender-based development projects for the last 15 years. Gender is the main cross cuttings area in all main thematic areas which are being implemented. Gender and gender-based development activities involve 03 main target groups and are being implemented in 04 Districts: Vavuniya, Mannar, Mullaiththeevu and Kilinochchi in Northern Province
- Divisional level Women Civil Society Networks and Self Helped Groups-SHGs
- Government institutions and structure – Departments and Authorities
- Survived women from Gender-based violence, Deserted Women, and single women.
FOSDOO’s working priority in gender mainly focusing on Prevention and Respond. To work in these priorities, FOSDOO has built a strong network with village people, school teachers and students, government staff, and members from community-Based Organizations and works together at different levels. Making awareness, provision of emergency support, facilitating, and providing capacity building training programs are the core initiatives to prevent and respond to gender-based violence.
Women Civil Society Networks are the key networks working in selected divisional and district level. FOSDOO is facilitating to form or revitalize these networks and are raising their voices for the violence against women, acting as a pressure group to claim their rights from the government, raise their voices when vulnerable women are being exploited by Microcredit companies.
On the other hand, FOSDOO had facilitated to create Self Helped Groups-SHG to sustain financial and economic wellbeing among the women members in the group. 193 SHGs are functioning with 1350 women members in 04 DS divisions in Vavuniya District and now each group are involving in revolving loan system by using their savings nearly LKR. 200,000/-. The revolving loan system among group members really help the women to obtain a loan a minimum interest rate compare with the higher rates decided by microfinance companies in the market.
Developing networks with Government Departments in Divisional, District and Provincial level is a prominent initiative taken by FOSDOO from the beginning. Connecting Women networks with Government Departments, Referral actions to the government institutions, Legal aid and advice provisions, Psychosocial supports are the remarkable networking benefits for women in need.
To initiate and provide support for implementing Gender and Gender development projects, ZOA, EU-SLCDF, USAID-MSI, Oxfam- Aus, GIZ, TAF, SCORE- USAID, NTT and Palmera are the main agencies working with FOSDOO continuously.