The Pastoral Women’s Council (PWC) is a local women-focused organization that works to empower pastoralist women and girls to improve their lives, as well as the lives of their families and communities. PWC was established in 1997 (and formally registered in 1999) by ten Maasai women from Loliondo in the Ngorongoro area, under the customary sacred tree known as Oseki. Today, PWC serves the Ngorongoro, Longido, and Monduli districts in the Arusha Region of northern Tanzania with the help of its members of more than 6,500 pastoralist and agro-pastoralist women. With a combined area of 28,337 square kilometers and 180 localities, the districts are home to more over 500,000 people.
The majority of these communities are found in isolated, rural settings where the majority of women and girls lack access to basic services and support systems.
PWC is partnering up with SCF for a three-year project that will focus on enhancing livelihoods and socio-economic empowerment of 5,000 pastoralist and agro-pastoralist women and youth living in Ngorongoro, Longido and Monduli districts by strengthening Engishon Microfinance and expanding local Village Community Banks.
