Meg on a mission

A YOUNG volunteer has spoken out about her experiences of helping improve the lives of women 4,000 miles away in Burkina Faso, and has encouraged others to get involved.
By The Newsroom
Published 11th Mar 2017, 06:25 BST
Updated 24th Mar 2017, 11:12 BST

Meg Healy is trying to increase women’s economic empowerment in the West African country, as part of an International Citizen Service project, enabling them to run profitable and sustainable businesses.

Meg, who is from Petersfield, explained: ‘As a woman in the UK I know my rights to education and fair employment, but for women all over the world that is not true, they either do not have the right or do not know how to exercise their rights.

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‘The rights I have should be shared by women the world over.’

In rural Burkina Faso, many women have no means of earning an independent income, which makes them more vulnerable to poverty, and stops them reaching their full potential.

ICS, and its partner organisation Kabeela, has been fighting to change this.

Meg added: ‘You don’t need cash, skills or qualifications to take part – just the ambition to make a difference.’

When Meg returns, she hopes to take on the new challenge of an Action at Home project, to make sure that her new skills also benefit people in the UK.