Projects for women’s empowerment
March 8 is often an occasion to reflect on women’s rights and achievements. For Fondazione Marcegaglia, it is an opportunity to highlight the importance of a structured and continuous commitment to women’s empowerment, understood as the creation of concrete opportunities for training, employment, and economic autonomy.
Promoting women’s empowerment means building the conditions that enable every woman to develop skills, strengthen her independence, and access pathways of personal and professional growth. Investing in women’s training and access to employment is not only a value-driven choice, but a strategy capable of generating long-lasting impact on families and communities.
Fondazione Marcegaglia’s action is directed in particular toward women living in situations of vulnerability: survivors of violence, migrant women, women involved in social reintegration pathways, or coming from socio-economically disadvantaged contexts. Supporting vulnerable women translates into targeted socio-professional inclusion pathways and personalised guidance, with the aim of transforming training into economic autonomy.
Fondazione Marcegaglia in numbers: a concrete commitment
In the period 2023–2026, the Foundation’s commitment to projects for women has taken on a broad and articulated dimension, both in Italy and abroad.
The initiatives have reached 6 countries – Italy, Rwanda, Pakistan, Afghanistan, France, and India – and 14 Italian cities, through diversified interventions in the fields of training, employment, education, and housing autonomy.
The total investment amounts to 1,255,500 euros, allocated to 24 projects, including 12 cooperatives and social enterprises established with the specific objective of supporting women in empowerment pathways.
The results reflect a strategy that integrates training for women, job placement, and access to education:
- 4,890 women and girls involved in training programs (tailoring, weaving, catering, food production);
- 94 women supported in job placement pathways;
- 183 scholarships awarded in Italy, Rwanda, and France;
- 37 VLSA (Village Loans and Savings Associations) groups supported in Rwanda through microcredit tools.
Figures that represent pathways of economic autonomy, acquired skills, and new prospects for the future.
Training and employment: projects for women’s empowerment
Behind the numbers are concrete pathways that transform training into real opportunities for autonomy. Women’s empowerment takes shape through projects capable of adapting to the contexts and specific needs of the women involved.
In Italy, professional training pathways for women promoted by Drittofilo, Atelier Bebrel and Motivo Donna in the tailoring and weaving sector, as well as by Roots, Lazzarelle, and EVA in the food and catering sector, transform artisanal skills into concrete opportunities for job placement and economic autonomy.
In Rwanda, the Scholarships and M-VTCprojects support deserving girls in accessing university and professional training, while VLSA microcredit groups strengthen the financial independence of entire female communities.
In Pakistan, through Aagahi, literacy represents the first step toward emancipation; in Afghanistan, through Green Rooms, domestic hydroponics has become a tool for self-sufficiency and micro-entrepreneurship.
These projects for women demonstrate that support is not episodic, but part of a structural vision aimed at creating stable conditions for equal opportunities.
Beyond March 8: a commitment that continues
Sharing these results on the occasion of March 8 is important, but the Foundation’s commitment does not end with a single commemorative date. Women’s empowerment requires continuity, targeted investments, and territorial networks capable of identifying real needs.
In a global context in which gaps in access to employment and economic stability persist, strengthening women’s economic autonomy means contributing to the construction of more equitable and resilient communities. For this reason, Fondazione Marcegaglia intends to continue and expand its support for initiatives dedicated to women’s training and socio-professional inclusion, both in Italy and in the countries where it operates.
Promoting women’s empowerment is not only a response to inequalities: it is a lever for sustainable development and a shared future.
Supporting change together
The commitment to women’s empowerment is part of a broader and continuous strategy of Fondazione Marcegaglia in favour of women and younger generations. Through the support of training pathways for women, job placement, and economic autonomy, the Foundation contributes to counteracting inequalities and strengthening the communities in the territories where it operates.
Investing in women’s autonomy means generating impact that goes beyond the individual project, creating concrete opportunities for social and economic growth.
Discover all the projects supported by Fondazione Marcegaglia
You too can contribute to supporting these pathways by allocating your 5×1000 tax contribution to Fondazione Marcegaglia.
