Formed in 1997, Global Fund grantee Woman of Tomorrow (Femme de
Demain) works with women who have been "forgotten," who live on
land that has been so over-farmed it is depleted of nutrients.
Many of them are heads of households, widows, teen mothers or
young girls orphaned by AIDS. They cannot read, and are subject
to fraudulent levies and taxes when they take their goods to
market. To combat such bleak conditions, the group trains women
in basic literacy, accounting and pricing. To address the over-
dependence on agriculture, especially during the dry season, a
2001 Global Fund grant of $7,000 supported their efforts to
teach women other ways to earn a living. The group also teaches
women about their human rights, explaining that a woman who
becomes economically empowered, but remains oppressed within her
home may be even more miserable than she was before. Recent
events in Togo have made the group's work even more challenging.
In February 2005, Togo's 18-year dictatorship ended with the
death of President Gn