CARE International’s history in Denmark
CARE Denmark was established in 1987 to help CARE International’s mission to fight poverty across the globe.
Since its founding, CARE Denmark has focused on helping rural communities adapt to climate change impacts. It also supports both emergency and long-term assistance to those most exposed to climate disasters.
CARE Denmark’s work today
Today, CARE Denmark works with partners globally to fight poverty and inequality, as part of the CARE International Confederation. We support people most vulnerable to climate change impacts and with the least resources in creating a good and dignified life for themselves, especially women and girls.
CARE Denmark aims to be present before, during, and after a climate emergency hits.
We focus on:
- Education
- Adaptation to climate change impacts
- Crisis response
What does this look like in practice?
Many cashew producers in Tanzania struggled to maximise their crops and be fairly compensated for their work. Nuts processing – one of the most valuable products – was done elsewhere. Additionally, farmers often lacked knowledge of sustainable agriculture.
CARE Denmark and partners worked with communities to change that. Local processing centers and a small factory are being built in Tanzania, owned by the farmers through a cooperative. Here, they can shell the nuts themselves and learn how to use and sell more parts of the cashew plant that often go to waste.
In this way, farmers get a larger share of the profits, and production is more sustainable.
Focus on women and girls
Together with the CARE International Confederation, CARE Denmark puts women and girls at the heart of all its work.
In emergencies, we have a special focus on the safety and needs of girls and women. We provide safe women's areas in refugee camps, medical care, and emergency aid products that girls and women need, such as sanitary towels.
In our long-term development work, we support women in earning their own income so that they can support themselves and their families, save for times of crisis, and become financially independent.
We help women think innovatively and find the best opportunities in their own contexts. For example, this could be building climate-smart kitchen gardens, which provide both food on the table and extra vegetables for sale.
We also support women in joining forces in savings loan groups (VSLAs), where they jointly save up and can give each other loans for investments – from school books for the children to starting their own business. We offer training on how to use new and climate-smart farming methods or start your own business, and we help create important local business relationships.
All this helps give women a better status in the local community, where we support them in making their voices heard and being at the forefront when important decisions are to be made – for the benefit of everyone.
Learn more about CARE Denmark’s work here.
