Debra Murray Oklahoma Business Owner Mentors Afghan Women

This fall five women entrepreneurs from Afghanistan participated in a five-week business basics program. Three of the women were matched with WIPP member, Debra Murray, Oklahoma City business owner of Blue Spring International, who served as their mentor.

Oklahoma City, OK (PRWEB) November 23, 2007 -- This fall five women entrepreneurs from Afghanistan participated in a five-week business basics program. Three of the women were matched with WIPP member, Debra Murray, Oklahoma City business owner of Blue Spring International, who served as their mentor.

The women came from various fields of interest. Qandi Amaki, is the head the Balkh Women's Business Association (WBA) that is a member of the Afghanistan Women's Business Federation with membership exceeding 1,600. The WBA has women members in fields such as handicrafts, tailoring embroidery and carpet weaving. Qandi has a thriving business selling hand made artisan goods. Farishtah Bakhteri, recognized the need for women to have a private place to shop and plans to open a shopping center for women only. In this environment, she would like to bring in a gymnasium for women, a tea shop with internet access, clothing stores, jewelry stores, and many other types of business offering a variety of products and services. The third entrepreneur was Amir Taj Sirat, who has a football and volleyball manufacturing business. She has 90 women (poor and widow women) employees and would like to expand her business by exporting to markets abroad. The employees are trained for six months and then provided raw materials and other necessities to make the balls and ultimately feed their families. They produce approximately 1200-1500 balls a month that are marketed in Kabul, Herat and Mazari-e-Sharif.

Experiencing OSU's spirit and interacting with students on campus will provide a wealth of information about Oklahoma's higher education system for these Afghan women

"The most rewarding part for me in mentoring these women is that they will go back to Afghanistan and teach other women what they've learned, so our efforts are multiplied many times over", Murray said.

During their time in Oklahoma City the women met with government officials such as Lt. Gov. Jari Askins and Senator Kathleen Wilcoxson to get a look at women in the political environment. They also participated in a panel discussion at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater.

"Experiencing OSU's spirit and interacting with students on campus will provide a wealth of information about Oklahoma's higher education system for these Afghan women," said Terry Neese, president and CEO of Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) Institute, co-sponsor for the Afghan women

The non-profit Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) Institute worked in partnership with the U. S. State Department and the U.S. Afghan Women's Council to bring these women business owners to the United States. The purpose of this partnership was to allow education and mentorship to occur with the long-term goal that both countries will gain from these interactions. The program was designed to share ideas and provide more instruction about entrepreneurship and democracy to the participants. WIPP is dedicated to the education for economic empowerment of women globally.

Blue Spring International is a comprehensive health and wellness company based in Oklahoma City, OK. With over 110 offerings, their product lines include nutrition and wellness, spa and salon, pain relief and muscle comfort, and pet products. Quality ingredients, outstanding customer service and guaranteed results all underscore Blue Spring's commitment to innovation and on-going improvements. Blue Spring's balanced health and wellness approach truly helps their customers 'rejuvenate, replenish, refresh and revive.' For additional information contact: Debra Murray at 405-879-5866 or dmurray(at)bluespringwellness.com or check our site http://www.bluespringwellness.com.

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