Since its establishment, Shakti Milan Samaj is working with the purpose to fight negative attitude towards HIV positive women in society by raising voice against their rights.
Empowering women and their children socially and economically through providing trainings on care and support in HIV and AIDS, income generating projects, skills development, emergency support and education for their children.
Education and Skill Development training
With an objective to make positive women economically independent Shakti Milan Samaj is organizing various kinds of skill development training since two years. Members are getting various skill developments training such as computer training, driving, sewing and knitting and bakery. Similarly, Shakti Milan Samaj is also providing Education support to the women who are involved in the organization and interested to read. As a result, they are building up confidence and growing optimism towards life. Not only for infected women, is organization also providing education support for their children. Till now it has supported 50 children. In addition Shakti Milan Samaj is also providing others training such as CHBC training, HIV/AIDS management training, Counseling and advocacy, gender, Human Rights training to the positive women.
Income generation Program
Shakti Milan Samaj has been running income generation program since two years with an objective to support the daily livelihood of HIV infected women so that they become economically independent. Till now, fifteen infected women are employed through this project. They are engaged in various types of activities such as meat shop, the poultry farm, cloth shop, fruit shop, and some are engaged in street shop. On the basis of their condition, capabilities, observing business area and surrounding, such help is being provided. They manage to return the money back, pay school fees for their children and generally affording the basic needs. Shakti Milan Samaj collects the amount to help other HIV infected women, who want to start business like them.
Crisis Centre
The main objective of establishing Crisis Center is to provide services to HIV positive women who are from outside of kathmandu valley for their treatment and care. Since one year, many women and children are getting care and support in this centre. It provides lodging and fooding for HIV infected women and children who are undergoing treatment and come to Kathmandu for CD4 count and taking ARV. As their financial condition is not so strong, they can’t book and stay in hotel for long time so it has become very effective to the patients. Up till now it has supported more than 200 infected women and their children in crisis centre
Emergency support
The objective of Emergency support fund is to save the lives of patients who are severely ill and need immediate support for treatment. Since two years Shakti Milan Samaj has been helping to positive women who are financially weak and come from outside of Kathmandu and also from Kathmandu valley. Till now more than two dozen of patients are benefited from this support and the number of people who need such support is increasing day by day. In this process, Shakti Milan is supporting in various cases like operation case, PMTCT cases and other require medical support.
One rupee campaign,
Before one year Shakti Milan Samaj has started one rupee campaign on the occasion of 2006 World AIDS Day and this process is going on continuously like a campaign. The two main purposes of this campaign are to continue the project of treatment and other services to HIV infected women even if the donor stops program. Secondly, it aims to make people aware of HIV and AIDS related issues and to increase contact with the people. This campaign is also included in other many programs organized by Shakti Milan Samaj.
Nutrition support
Shakti Milan Samaj has been regularly providing nutritious food to HIV infected women since last two years. Each month’s last Friday, Shakti Milan Samaj has been distributing nutritious food such as fruits, meat, eggs and juice to them.
Street Drama
Shakti Milan Samaj has been performing Street drama on different occasion in order to make people aware about HIV and AIDS and to generate awareness about violence against HIV infected women. The violence, oppression and injustice to Women is the great violation to human right and bad to prestige of country. So, the main purpose of performing street drama is to spread awareness among people about HIV/AIDS and to unite themselves to fight against violence of HIV infected women.
Single women campaign
Shakti Milan Samaj has been organizing specific programs for the HIV infected single women by integrating them in a group. In our society, HIV infected women living with their spouse are also facing discrimination, oppression and injustice from family and society. In this context, pain, suffering, violation and oppression of single women is unimaginable and worse. So Shakti Milan samaj has started this campaign. The single women living with HIV infection gets specific facilities in our organization. The number of single women involved in our organization is more than one dozen and the number is increasing still. Organization is providing various kinds of training, income generation and other facilities such as education support for the children. The organization is mainly focuses upon them and organizing various programs for their welfare.
EJAF Hostel
Since last year Shakti Milan Samaj has been running a hostel for HIV infected women who are educated, have some skills and training and are able to work. Shakti Milan Samaj has been running this hostel with an objective to make positive women economically independent realizing that the programs will be viable and effective and can reach to target people only if the HIV infected women are involved and identify the problems of HIV infected women who are skilled and enthusiastic. The hostel is effective in short time and till now 17 women have lived and all women have already employed. As such process of coming and asking help is increasing and we are also supporting them to identify the job.
Other activities
Creating awareness on HIV and AIDS to the people living in slum area, carpet industry, Hospitals, Schools and other public places. This is done by women living with HIV and AIDS, by sensitizing communities on HIV modes of transmission, prevention and access to treatment and care for those who are infected.
Advocating for the rights of women living with HIV and AIDS. Shakti Milan Samaj collaborates with other organizations in the effort to fight for the rights of people living with HIV and AIDS in the community. It is also contributing towards influencing the government to be committed towards the issue of HIV and AIDS and to enact laws and policies that protect the rights of people living with HIV and AIDS.
Empowering women and their children socially and economically through providing trainings on care and support in HIV and AIDS, income generating projects, skills development, emergency support and education for their children.
Organizing other program like press conference, interaction among the members, discussion, meeting, coordination and networking with other organizations and hospitals.
Publishing leaflet, pump let, posters in order to spread awareness on HIV and AIDS.