Despite their crucial role in peacebuilding, women in conflict-affected areas like Sulu face numerous challenges such as:

Many widows in Sulu were pressured to remarry combatants within the same extremist group after their husbands were killed to ensure economic security. This pressure to remarry is deeply ingrained in many communities and can be difficult to resist without external support. Through GMWI’s empowerment programs, these women gained the confidence and resources to resist such pressures and make decisions that prioritize their own and their children’s well-being​.

The economic dependency on combatant groups is a significant challenge. Women, especially those with children, often rely on the financial support of extremist networks after the death of their husbands. This dependency can be the reason for the cycle of violence as it ties the family’s survival to the extremist group’s resources. GMWI’s program helped women break this cycle by providing them with access to education and skills training. By teaching women how to manage their own finances and start businesses, the program ensured that they would no longer need to depend on extremist networks for survival​