PROWA TO FACILITATE DEVELOPMENT
By Saidu Kamara

April 8, 2004 – (Standard Times) The founder and director of the Progressive Women's Association (PROWA), Mrs. Sia D. Kamanda has observed that the most dejected and frustrated people in Africa are women, who have been denied basic rights like education, employment and social equality.

In the threshold of the 21st century, she is therefore urging all women to rise up and the take their God-given rights and position in developing their country, Sierra Leone.

Mrs. Kamanda was speaking to Standard Times in an executive interviewed recently at the headquarters of PROWA at 16 Kaindordun Road in Koindu Town.

Mrs. Kamanda said the education of women is a task that is inherently very significant and vital to national development, which is why she formed PROWA in November 1991 in Kono with the sole aim of training women for self-reliance so as ro contribute positively to nation building.

She said the organisation started with less than 70 girls but can now boast of over 1,000 women who have passed through their training programmes.

They offer courses in gara dying, batic, agriculture, computer, hair dressing, soap making, tailoring, adult literacy, traditional birth attendants and HIV/AIDS prevention.

The center has qualified lectures from FBC, Njala, Eastern Polytechnique and MMCET and commended the Minister of Education, Dr. Alpha T. Wurie for his determination to improve the status of women through support for their programmes.

PROWA has centers in Freetown, Kono and Kabala, and plans to open more in the nare future.

From: http://allafrica.com/stories/200404080826.html