Sangita Karki is a community health volunteer in the rural district of Dhading in Nepal. Clad in her signature light blue sari, she goes door-to-door providing basic healthcare services to women and families who would otherwise have none. Amongst the many organisations recognising the vital role of community health volunteers globally are One Heart World-Wide and Living Goods, working in different parts of the world to the same end – to galvanise the power of women to strengthen communities.

Since 2003, our grantmaking journey has also led us to appreciate the deep roots that effective organisations develop within communities. Our partners appreciate the nuance and rhythm of culture and tradition, providing access to basic goods and services, opportunities for livelihood sustainability and access to education for women and girls.

Life in these communities are often defined by limited resources and entrenched cultural norms. That is why we rely on our partners to translate theory to practice, demonstrating the tangible benefits of strengthening women and their role in society.

Educate Girls, for example, deploys volunteers to work personally with girls, parents and schools to keep the at-risk girls in school. Using fun, child-centric learning tools, the girls become confident in English, Hindi and maths, keeping pace with their peers in school.

We have been inspired not only by the stories of impact by our partners, but also the way that women catalyse change within their communities. The resilience, creativity and camaraderie they build in their daily lives multiply when presented with opportunities to grow and learn.

When mobilised, women are a formidable force for good. The community health workers of Medic Mobile, for example, use mobile apps to coordinate patient care efficiently. They not only provide life-saving services, but also represent a new model of the role that women can play in society.

We see such role models in so many of our partners. In urban Jakarta, Indonesia, nurses and volunteers of Yayasan Rumah Rachel represent female expertise and strength as they help their patients live their last days as well as possible.

Other partners have encouraged the entrepreneurial drive of women to create opportunity for others in the community. Thriive, for example, supports women-led micro-enterprises in Cambodia, Guatemala, Kenya, Nicaragua, Palestine and Vietnam through loans for business growth. Uniquely, the loans are “paid forward” with contributions of job training, services and goods to the most vulnerable members of their communities. In this way, local businesses immediately benefit their communities through social investment and outreach, while creating new jobs through business expansion and increasing employment prospects for their trainees.

Culturally-sensitive and holistic efforts creates sustainable impact for generations. Over the last two decades, Little Sisters Fund’s has enabled over 2,600 girls to gain an education, reducing their risk of child labour, early marriages and trafficking. The girls, who regularly outperform national averages in national examinations, have more than transformed their own lives with higher education and purposeful careers. Many have chosen to give back to society as role models, teachers and nurses.

As mother and daughter, wife and sister, a woman’s unique perspective is itself valuable. Global Press Institute taps on this strength by training women with only basic literacy to become professional, ethical journalists. Their stories bring balance and context to global issues. Syndicated across a network of 180 news agencies, including NPR, BBC and The Guardian, their stories are read by some 20 million people each month. With the income earned through their reporting, over 70 per cent of Global Press journalists are now the primary breadwinner in their families.

Despite significant progress over the last 15 years, there is still much to be done. Goal 5 of the Sustainable Development Goals calls for gender equality not only as a basic human right, but also as a critical factor in accelerating sustainable development. At COMO Foundation, we are grateful for the opportunity to have partnered with over 57 organisations working to this shared goal. They, and the communities they serve, are our reason for being.