War is not a computer-generated missile that strikes a digital map on television. The images we see on TV do not accurately portray how individual lives are affected by conflict.

Across the globe, undeclared wars and internal armed conflicts have reached an unprecedented number. There have been more than 250 major wars since the end of World War II, resulting in over 23 million casualties. Modern warfare is no longer confined to battlefields.  Around the world, non-combatants are finding themselves in the direct line of fire, suffering greatly and becoming the anonymous and undercounted casualties of violent conflicts. In today’s wars, 90 percent of casualties are civilians, 75 percent of whom are women and children; a century ago, 90 percent of war casualties were male soldiers.

As never before, women are disproportionately affected by war and civil strife. Women are targeted for ethnic cleansing and subjected to rape as a tool of war. They lose male family members who leave to fight and are killed. Many are displaced from their own homes. When widowed by war, they are thrust into the role of sole provider, often without marketable skills or a viable means to earn an income and often in communities that do not value their place in society.

Women for Women International’s work begins when the basic human needs of women are still very great, but the seeds of stability can begin to be sown. Our work bridges a critical gap between humanitarian aid and long-term development and reconstruction. We are the only organization solely dedicated to women’s development needs that operates in the heart of conflict-afflicted areas in countries such as Congo and Iraq. Yet, our long-term commitment in post-conflict countries like Bosnia and Herzegovina and Rwanda is critical when emergency relief agencies, the media and public attention have long since moved to focus on the next crisis.