About us
The Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation’s established purposes are:
- To conduct projects in regions of war and armed conflict that promote women’s self-reliance and self-esteem, women’s psychosocial and/or physical health; or that contribute to promoting women’s participation in the building of a democratic civil society.
- To foster studies and research on the effects of war and armed conflict on women.
- To bring to the attention of the public facts and information about the effects of war and to build public support for peaceful conflict resolution through the use of civil means.
The aim of the foundation is conflict resolution through civil, non-military means, where women have power over decisions and are actors in all spheres of society (so that the resulting peace is to the benefit of all people). In a peaceful and just society, women live free from threats, fear and exploitation, their human rights are respected and they enjoy the same social, economic and political opportunities as men.
Kvinna till Kvinna literally means ”Woman to Woman”. Kvinna till Kvinna cooperates with women’s organisations working for women’s rights and peace.
Our partner organisations organise meeting points for women in environments where it is difficult for them to connect. They influence policy and generate dialogue across border conflicts. They work to promote women’s health, to provide information and education about women’s human rights, and to prevent human trafficking and violence against women. Our role is to provide financial support and to mediate contacts between organisations.
Today, Kvinna till Kvinna supports more than 100 women’s organisations in five regions afflicted by conflict: Central and Western Africa, the Middle East, the South Caucasus and the Western Balkans.
Kvinna till Kvinna provides information about the situation facing women in conflict zones and the important work for peace that women’s organisations carry out. We also do advocacy work in Sweden and internationally to try to increase women’s representation in peace processes. Through contract teaching initiatives such as the ITP programme, we use our expertise to spread knowledge about women, peace and security.
Kvinna till Kvinna has a feminist perspective. This means that we are striving for a society where women and men have the same social, political and economic rights. Our aim is to help strengthen the position of women so that women and men can be part of shaping their societies to the same extent and on equal terms. In our view, gender bias and inequality in power structures are the main underlying causes of social inequalities, and they are consequently an obstacle to democracy, development and peace.
As Kvinna till Kvinna is a fundraising foundation, we have no members. However, we do have volunteers – people who are committed to our issues and who help to convey our message in various ways. Kvinna till Kvinna also has links to a number of organisations that support us in our work and help us to spread knowledge and information about the issues we work with.
Updated in: 2013-03-21