“Connect. Learn. Share. Build. Grow”
The Pass Ar Die Women Circle is held every Friday at Thimzy Empowerment Hub, SLMB School Compound, Berry Street, Freetown. Each session will bring together 10 women from different backgrounds for an interactive exchange of experiences, knowledge, and practical solutions to challenges affecting women’s everyday lives.
The Pass Ar Die Women Circle is designed as a safe, inclusive, and non-judgmental platform where women can openly explore personal, social, and economic challenges through shared experiences and collective problem-solving.
The Circle recognizes that every woman carries a story, every experience offers a lesson, and every participant has something valuable to contribute, regardless of her educational background, profession, age, or socioeconomic status.
Rather than relying on conventional lectures or expert-led presentations, the circle places women’s lived experiences at the center of learning. it creates opportunities for participants to reflect, question, challenge assumptions, and collectively identify practical solutions to real-life problems.
The Shukubly and the Circle’s Participatory Approach
One of the most distinctive features of the Pass Ar Die Women Circle is its confidential, participatory, and solution-oriented approach to discussion.
The process begins with participants discreetly writing down challenges, concerns, or situations they wish the circle to address. These submissions are privately presented to the shukubly, which serves as the facilitator of the circle.
The shukubly then presents the submitted issues to the wider group; the challenges will be drawn for discussion by the women in the group without identifying who raised them.
This approach allows participants to share sensitive experiences while protecting their identities and creating an environment where difficult issues can be discussed without fear of personal exposure, embarrassment or judgement
At the heart of the Circle is a simple but powerful principle:
No one is wrong for sharing her experiences or perspectives. Every voice deserves to be heard and respected.
Participants are encouraged to listen attentively, express their views respectfully and engage in constructive dialogue, even when their opinions differ.
The Circle does not seek to determine who is right or wrong, nor does it impose a single solution to every challenge. Instead, it recognises that women’s circumstances differ and that meaningful solutions often emerge through understanding, reflection and shared experiences.
Together, participants examine the issues presented, consider possible responses and identify practical lessons or solutions that may help women facing similar circumstances.
The Shukubly facilitates this process by guiding the conversation, encouraging balanced participation and maintaining an atmosphere of mutual respect, confidentiality and understanding.
Guiding Principles of the Circle
- Confidentiality: Personal challenges are submitted discreetly and presented without identifying their sources.
- Respectful dialogue: Every participant has the opportunity to contribute without ridicule, intimidation or judgement.
- Non-judgement: Experiences and perspectives are received with openness, recognizing that every woman has a unique journey.
- Equal participation: Every woman is both a learner and a contributor, regardless of her status or background.
- Collective problem-solving: Participants work together to explore possible solutions rather than assigning blame.
- Shared learning: Individual experiences become opportunities for collective knowledge, personal development, and empowerment.
Significance of the Approach
The methodology adopted by the Pass Ar Die Women Circle offers a practical model for community-based women’s empowerment.
By allowing participants to raise concerns anonymously, the Circle reduces some of the barriers that may prevent women from discussing sensitive personal, family, social and economic issues.
Its emphasis on respectful dialogue promotes understanding across different generations, educational backgrounds and life experiences.
The approach also shifts participants from being passive recipients of advice to active contributors in identifying solutions.
Most importantly, it reinforces the belief that women do not always need someone to provide every answer. Sometimes, what they need is a safe space to be heard, an opportunity to reflect, and the collective wisdom of other women who have encountered similar challenges.
The Circle therefore serves not only as a discussion platform but also as a space for confidence-building, peer learning, solidarity and personal transformation.
At the Pass Ar Die Women Circle, we do not gather to judge one another’s stories. We gather to understand them, learn from them, and collectively explore solutions that can help us move forward.
