Amira

Amira is a women’s fashion business, that works with Ghanaian fashion designers, tailors and seamstresses to produce beautiful fashion accessories full of Australian style and Ghanaian flare. Amira is a business that enables women to come together across international borders to create and design beautiful women's fashion products. The accessories, including handbags, clutches and shoes, are hand

crafted in Ghana will be sold online through the Amira website. A percentage of the profits from each item sold will go into the Amira Trust and assist with the costs associated with obstetric fistula surgeries and treatment for women in Ghana. Amira aims to establish the Amira Training Centre in approximately 2 years time. This centre will be for the women who have been repaired, so they can develop skills as fashion designers and seamstresses. The beautiful and quality products they then create, will be proudly sold through Amira, supporting the women to become financially independent. What is obstetric fistula? Obstetric fistula is a hole in the birth canal (between the bladder and birth canal or bowel and birth canal) caused by prolonged and obstructed labour that leaves the woman incontinent and in pain. This condition leaves many women incontinent and abandoned by their communities, their husbands usually leave them and the women are left to suffer on their own, as many in remote communities associate the condition with witchcraft or 'dark magic'

Where did the idea come from? The name Amira is Carla's married Ghanaian name given to her by her husband Rauf and it means 'princess' in Arabic. The business idea came about as a result of Carla's work in Ghana in 2014 when she moved there to work with Australian Volunteers for International Development. As part of her assignment there, she established Ghana's first NGO and volunteer led campaign to educate remote communities about the causes, prevention and treatment methods of obstetric fistula. Since her return to Australia, Carla and her Ghanaian husband Rauf have been working together to establish a long term business venture that goes one step further to assist these women living with obstetric fistula. So together they have created 'Amira: your inner princess' - because no matter which country you are from or what life has thrown at you, every woman deserves to feel like a princess.