With support from USAID Sapan, OHSD and six other women-led non-governmental organizations formed a coalition to train and prepare plans for their respective provinces to apply for WDF funding. The funds are open to all women, rich or poor, urban or rural. Returning to Khon Kaen, OHSD collaborated with other development groups to learn how local women could start applying for the grants. Some women were skeptical that the young activists could help since they believed only well-connected individuals could access the new funds. But four communities that received OHSD training and assistance submitted applications and two received WDF funding.

Women living in the Deep South of Thailand struggle for acceptance as community leaders and many still need to fight for basic rights. Under the leadership of its founder and president, Pateemah Poh-itaeda-oh, the Women for Peace Association (WePeace) is working to ensure that women’s issues–such as access to education and freedom of expression–are recognized and addressed. Using support from the USAID Sapan Program, WePeace trains local women on how to improve their communities through “community scorecards,” which keep track of the activities that promote open government, and government-funded literacy training.