Oxfam Partner Wins Peru’s National Award for Women
8 March 2005
Esther Crisóstomo of FEMUCAY is recognized for her work promoting gender equity.
On International Women’s Day the government of Peru awarded the president of Oxfam America’s partner organization FEMUCAY the “2005 Women’s Order of Merit,” citing “her work in favor of communities and the promotion of gender equity.”
Esther Crisóstomo, the president of FEMUCAY (Federation of Peasant Women of Yauli), a 31-year-old indigenous leader and mother of three children, was one of nine women to receive the award this year. She has been an important leader of her community in Huancavelica--the poorest department of the country--since she was 13, when she started helping her mother promote indigenous and peasant women’s rights.
“The award is a challenge to us,” she said when she accepted the honor in Lima. “It motivates us to keep working for all women, which is a very big and difficult task. This is a stimulus to continue.”
The “2005 Women’s Order of Merit” is the second edition of the annual prize. It is awarded by the Peruvian Ministry of Women and Social Development to give official recognition to “outstanding women who work for the promotion of gender equity,” said Minister Ana María Romero. The award is given to nominees receiving the most votes in an internet poll.
Oxfam America has supported FEMUCAY since 2001, mostly funding its projects to promote leadership of local women, improve women’s participation in the decision making process in their communities, and participate in initiatives to improve women’s income.
