Women's empowerment in Nicaragua is intrinsically tied to economic survival, health and reproductive rights, and the struggle against intra-familial violence.

Economic Survival

In Nicaragua's subsistence and agriculture-based economy, women are largely in charge of labor intensive tasks for maintaining the household—carrying water, collecting fuel wood, caring for children, producing agriculture, and working in the market. These necessary duties receive little cultural respect and social resources. This is readily apparent by the lack of government legislation that addresses gender inequality, perpetuating a deep cultural problem and the continued suffering of women across the nation.

Many microfinance and microenterprise NGOs counteract this inequality of power by providing workshops to women that improve health, relationships, and education, as well as cultivating successful microenterprises. As Sandra Ramos, director of Movimiento de Mujeres María Elena Cuadra (MEC), notes:

"We cannot easily erase the fact that Nicaragua's internal economic reality is dictated by the IMF, World Bank, and other foreign lenders that insist on neoliberal adjustment. If women are to survive, we must focus on the politics of the possible instead of focusing on global change. For example, job training for women is a practical survival strategy. We live in a competitive world in which education and occupational skills equal bargaining power, and frankly, we need all the power we can get to negotiate away some of the strangling effects of neoliberal adjustment."

Health and Reproductive Rights

Nicaragua possesses some of the most somber health facts for women:

• Latin American cervical cancer rates are among the highest in the world; the cancer rate in Nicaragua is the second highest in Latin America
• Twenty-seven percent of all female Nicaraguan adolescents are either pregnant or have given birth—the highest adolescent birth rate in all of Latin America and twice the regional average
• As of 2004 census, the maternal mortality rate was among the highest in the Americas; while 62 percent of the mothers' deaths were deemed "avoidable," 82 percent were caused by health service deficiencies. In addition, 30 percent of the victims were under 19 years old, and many of the women die due to botched (and illegal) abortions.

Gynecologist and activist Ana Maria Pizarro notes, "This demonstrates that many of our adolescents are getting pregnant, dying, or aborting in complete abandonment." The problem is severe throughout the country due to early marriages and early sexual activity, combined with a complete lack of sex education in schools. Vulnerable populations receive minimal social programs, if any at all. In sum, vulnerable adolescent women have little hope of escaping the traps set before them due to poverty and cultural views.

AIDS and HIV are also a pressing concern. Although Nicaragua has not yet reached the "5 in 100,000" rate (the "epidemic" rate), the incidence of HIV/AIDS is rising, especially among the female population. The ratio of males to females with HIV/AIDS has gone from 5:1 in 1999 to 3:1 in 2005. With minimal funds allotted toward addressing HIV/AIDS, the virus may go unchecked throughout the country as it has in many other impoverished nations.

Intra-Familial Violence

In 1998, ENDESA, an official demographic and health survey, reported that "29% of the 16,000 women interviewed nationally declared that they had been the victims of violence at some point in their life and of those 37% were hit by their partners while pregnant."

In 1996, the Ministry of Health proclaimed domestic violence a public health problem in a ministerial decree, but little has been done to address the issue. Law 230, which defines domestic violence as a crime capable of sentencing and jail time, seems to only exist only on paper. Furthermore, "Although Law 230 provides that economic, physical, and psychological protection be given to victims of domestic violence, there are not enough professionals and resources available to ensure that the law is fully complied with" (Infopress Centroamerica, 1999). Without strict enforcement, violence will continue to be a common outlet for the anger and desperation arising from poverty and lack of hope.

To combat violence, support gender equality, and promote economic balance, both women and men need gender awareness and equity education beginning in childhood and lasting through adulthood. FSD interns and volunteers assist in a broad range of education, awareness, and empowerment campaigns to provide services for families affected by intra-familial and sexual violence. FSD supports agencies with services that include legal aid and counseling, psychological support, health programs, shelters, job training, microenterprise workshops, and loans to begin or sustain microenterprises. These initiatives aim to offset cultural habits that are deeply damaging to the culture and its people.

Read more about Women's Empowerment programs and opportunities initiated by our Community Partners in Nicaragua.

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