Women's economic empowerment is essential to protecting women's rights and their voices in the decision-making progress. Women's rights are human rights. It is important for the tourism sector to be more inclusive towards hiring female employees, guides, and female-owned businesses
What does women's economic empowerment look like? It involves the following series of criteria which we have listed below:
It includes women's' abilities to participate equally in inclusive and economic markets
Develop financial independence to support themselves, their family, and also reduce dependence and domestic violence
Access to decent, healthy, and safe work where they do not feel physically and emotionally at risk or harm
Having greater agency and voice in the economic policies that affect them from a local to national institutional level.
Greater Opportunities for Women in Tourism
Women are simply an untapped source of potential and talent in the workforce that can contribute to thriving economies both in local communities and the larger global economy. If provided the access to the right opportunities and resources, women can do anything; from being successful entrepreneurs and business leaders, to supporting increased productivity in industries like agriculture, manufacturing, healthcare, hospitality, and more.
The UNWTO (United Nations World Trade Organization) explains that tourism provides a wide variety of advantages for women, some of which include employment opportunities for increased household income, entrepreneurship, and pathways to leadership empowerment for women and girls in their communities. Tourism organizations that intentionally recruit women and engage with female owned businesses and services in the local travel destinations are paving the way for not just sustainable travel, but also contributing to greater gender equality in this space.
Gender Equality and International Women’s Day
The World Within Us makes gender equality an integral element of all our pre-designed trips. We recognize the tremendous potential that tourism can create for women to accelerate their leadership, educational, and employment experiences. Our curated trips provide opportunities for local women and their businesses to receive travelers – whether it’s booking a workshop led by female entrepreneur, volunteering at a nonprofit that work to empower women, or hiring female tour guides.
We accelerate gender equality within tourism by partnering with nonprofits and social enterprises that have diverse yet equally powerful missions that positively impact women and the roles they have within their communities. Our upcoming trip to Tanzania allows travelers to work together with Solar Sisters to sell and distribute solar lights to provide access to light across remote areas of Tanzania. In Nepal, we've partnered with Seven Woman, a nonprofit where travelers have the chance to learn traditional Nepali cooking and crafts making with local female artisans leading interactive learning workshops.
Our trip to Egypt most notably addresses SDG #5: Gender Equality. We are partnering directly with our nonprofit partner, Ashoka Arab, to expand our workshop and facilitate an event bringing together young fellows and changemakeHERS, In collaboration with Ashoka Arab, we are creating a special International Women's Day event which will support female entrepreneurs including vendors in the Entreprenelle female network to showcase and share their food, designs, and artisanship. The experience will be personalized by us and cater towards our diverse women of all ages and professional backgrounds. This partnership fosters greater collaboration towards promoting and raising awareness of gender equality while also opening up pathways for female entrepreneurs, education, and economic growth.
Our powerhouse female guide, Fatma Bayomi, will also guide our Egypt experience from the Pyramids of Giza, Nubian village in Aswan, to the crystal blue waters of the Red Sea. She will educate our travelers on the ancient history, culture, and treasures of Egypt.
Solar Sister, Empowering women through solar energy | Tanzania in Feb 2021 |
Follow them on Instagram: @iamsolarsister
Seven Women, Training women for financial empowerment | Nepal in April 2021 |
Follow them on Instagram: @sevenwomennepal
Ashoka Arab, Building female leaders and entrepreneurs | Egypt in March 2021 |
Follow them on Instagram: @ashokaarab_world
The World Within Us: Paving the Way for Gender Equality in Tourism
All these trips organized by The World Within Us showcases that sustainable tourism is an incredible space for advancing women’s leadership, skills, and employment opportunities within the local economy. While the tourism industry needs to be more inclusive of females who work directly and indirectly within this space, it’s important that progress be made towards bridging connections between the private and public sectors that allow for greater gender equality - and The World Within Us has proved itself to be a trailblazer in this mission.
Join us on our upcoming destinations for 2021 to support gender equality.