Blog

Leave for Change Program Highlighted at the CBIE 2013 Conference

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 09:30:00 -0500

The Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE)’s Annual Conference is one of the largest gatherings of universities and colleges in Canada. This year, the event will take place in Vancouver from November 17 to 20, 2013 and explore the following theme: Education for a Better World: Our Global Social Responsibility. The Leave for Change (L4C) Program (under Uniterra) will be in the spotlight at this event since it has recently been accepted to facilitate a presentation at this conference. With the support of Uniterra Staff and two L4C Canadian partners, University of Guelph and the Nova Scotia Community College, this session will explore an innovative and new approach towards global social responsibility and employee and organizational learning through the Leave for Change Program.

Leave for Change (L4C) is a corporate volunteerism program that brings the world to the workplace of universities, colleges and the private sector. The program enables employees from participating organizations to transform part of their annual vacation into a three or four week volunteer assignment in one of 12 developing countries in Africa, Asia or Latin America. L4C is part of Uniterra, Canada’s largest voluntary international development program, which seeks to reduce poverty and inequalities through capacity building and sectoral funding to over 140 partners overseas.

Two case studies will be presented by the Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC) and the University of Guelph of their involvement in this program. Through storytelling, these Canadian partners will share their L4C experience focusing on the individual, organizational and community impact of this program. Story-telling is increasingly used in organizations and communities for purposes of sharing and harvesting learning. NSCC will share how they have incorporated this program as an organizational learning tool for its employees while the University of Guelph will speak on how this contributes to their global social responsibility goals, the Better Planet Project. Through interactive sharing of practical tools, resources, and video clips from NSCC and the University of Guelph, participants will be able to consider how their institutions might integrate impactful international development focused opportunities for employees to facilitate learning and leadership through this type of collaboration while making a difference, one person at a time.

Save the Date: 2013 International Forum

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 09:30:00 -0500

Get ready for the 2013 International Forum

Do you have a passion for international development and global change? This is your chance to learn, network and exchange ideas with people just like you.
Join hundreds of development leaders, professionals, students and academics from around the world at the 3^rd Annual International Forum in Ottawa. This year’s theme will tackle the Great Development Debates of our time.

When: November 1-3, 2013
Where: Delta City Centre Hotel, Ottawa, ON Canada

forum.wusc.ca

forum@wusc.ca

TeAIDS Launch

Fri, 24 May 2013 09:30:00 -0500

One of many creative initiatives from TeAIDS

The Tertiary Education Council (TEC) of Botswana has launched a health and wellness program dubbed teAIDS. Developed with the help of Uniterra volunteers Melissa Godwalt, Anouk Bissonette, Antoinette Davis and David Aimé, the TeAIDS program was initiated in response to an increasing number of tertiary students engaging in risky sexual behavior. Dr Patrick Molutsi, TEC Executive Secretary, explains that the prevalence of HIV is high among youth aged between 19 and 24.

Alarmingly, a recent survey of tertiary students found that, while 83% of respondents are sexually active, 38.5% have never had condoms made available to them since arriving at tertiary school and 45% have had sex without a condom.

The teAIDS program aims to build necessary support systems and structures to assist tertiary education institutions in providing youth-friendly health services; strengthen the capacity of tertiary institutions to design and implement campus HIV prevention interventions; and build capacity of institutions to address key priorities in HIV and AIDS research, advocacy and sustainability. TEC Deputy Chairperson, Dr. Kegalale Gasennelwe, stresses the importance that teAIDS develops youth-relevant and innovative messages related to HIV that will encourage positive behavioural change.

TeAIDS has already proven itself to be innovative in its approach. A good example is the impressive flash mob organized by Uniterra volunteer, David Aimé, to raise students' awareness about HIV at the Tertiary Education Fair.

For further information about the TEC and teAIDS: TEC Article

Students Perform Flash Mob for HIV Awareness

Wed, 15 May 2013 11:04:20 -0500

During three extremely busy weeks, Uniterra volunteer David Aimé prepared an incredible flash mob at the Tertiary Education Fair to inspire university students to "Gear Up" to combat and take precautions to stop the spread of HIV. 100 talented and motivated students volunteered to dance in the flash mob from 8 institutions in Botswana's capital, Gaborone.

Two professional dancers, Julia and Andrew, led the choreography to create a dynamic and fun hip-hop mixed with traditional dance to Bob Sinclair’s "Rock this Party." Without a hall to practice, students used the parking lot of the Tertiary Education Council to rehearse energetic dance choreography during Saturday mornings. The flash mob had one objective: to "highjack" the official delegates by surprising them with a random and lively dance number during the official opening of the fair.

Watch the impressive results below!

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For more information, check out this interview with David Aimé about the Gear Up campaign.

I will marry when I want

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 10:08:24 -0500

The Girls Empowerment Network (GENET), a Uniterra Program Partner implemented a project to advocate for a change in the minimum marriage age for girls. Their organization worked with girls in primary schools in Blantyre to voice out their views on the minimum marriage age for a girl child. This was done by collecting articles of girls expressing their opinion on the age which they want to get married and compiling a publication dubbed “I will marry when I want”.

The girls stated that the minimum age should at least be raised from 16 to 18 years old. This is to ensure that girls are not exploited at a tender age. The publication was officially launch at Crossroads Hotel in Lilongwe on 28th February, 2013. There were also lobbying meetings with members of parliament to advocate for this legislation at national level.

News from the groundnut subsector

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:31:16 -0500

The following text was taken from the CCPA Newsletter of March 2013, Vol. 1, no 2.

Marketing campaign - 2012-2013 Review

With the market liberalisation and the huge influx of foreign buyers, the groundnut marketing campaign was a great success, at least for the producers, while it was a lesser success for SUNEOR, Senegal’s main oil producer. New Chinese traders, among others, bought a lot of groundnuts. These traders, taking advantage of the market’s opening, are seen as a nuisance to some, but make others happy. Indeed, the situation is totally different whether you are a groundnut producer or an oil producer. This year, famers found excellent buyers who paid quickly and well, even offering up to FCFA 270 the kilo, while the price set by the Comité National Interprofessionnel de l’arachide (CNIA) was FCFA 190. Obviously well-established everywhere in Senegal, Chinese buyers have processing plants and abundant labour, and they process groundnuts into oil and paste, thereby competing with local processing plants like Taïba Niassène or Thiakho Maty, both affiliated to the CCPA. According to an article published on March 29, 2013 in the magazine Jeune Afrique: “Last year, they exported 20,670 tons of shelled groundnuts. This year, the quantity is expected to increase over 50,000 tons”. Needless to say, these traders have gained control of a good part of Senegal’s groundnut stock.

Obviously, this “never seen before” situation is beneficial to groundnut producers who sell at a high price their merchandise, but it is important to ask a few basic questions on the long-term consequences of such practices. As Mamadou Cissokhol, Honorary President of the Conseil National de Concertation et de Coopération des Ruraux (CNCR) says: « Globally, we can say that the 2012-2013 campaign was good. But there are today fundamental questions which are not being discussed or thought about to find the best solution”. If the trend continues at the same rhythm, that is, if the Chinese and other buyers invade the market as they did this year, how are we to preserve the seed stock for the coming rainy season? Should we have a more restraining control to preserve the groundnut subsector? Let us hope that there will be numerous consultations on the subject in the coming months.

Bottom photo : Mamadou Cissokho, Honorary President and Founder of theConseil National de Concertation et de Coopération des Ruraux (CNCR)

Volunteers with CCPA

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 09:51:49 -0500

The following four volunteers have all worked with the CCCPA - Cadre de concertation des producteurs d'arachides, a Uniterra partner in Senegal. One of the volunteers on the list isstill in post until September 2013. The following information was taken from CCPA's Newsletter of March 2013, vol. 1 no 2.

Alice Siliki, Intern as Organisational Development Advisor (May-August 2012)

During her interneship, Alice amde new recommendations and delivered trainings on organisational development, trained women in EWM and in monitoring and evaluation, and developed management and activity tools. Alice is currently working as Organisation Capacity-Building Advisor with cocoa cooperatives in Cameroun for SOCODEVI Canada.

Raymond Auger, Micro-Enterprise Management Advisor (Leave for Change, September 2012)

Raymond's short mandate consisted of training women managers of processing units on quality management, as well as build their capacities on the subject. Raymond is back in Québec pursuing his career as Consultant Director at CGI.

Mélanie Derail, Communication Advisor (September 2012-September 2013)

Mélanie is inpost with the CCPA since last September and is presently working at implementing the communication plan, creating new communication tools, reviewing communication strategies, and delivering communication training to CCPA's staff and GIPA's administrators, as well as securing women's participation in all spheres of activities.

Gilles Montcalm, Organisational Management Advisor (September 2012-September 2013)

Gilles's mandate was to support the capacity-building of the CCPA's managing teams, implement the monitoring and evaluation of executed programs and proceed wit the business development. unfortuynately, Gilles had to leave before the end of his mandate for personal reasons.

Nominations are now open for the 2013 Lewis Perinbam Award for International Development

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 11:21:14 -0500

Honouring Canadians dedicated to improving people’s lives across the globe.

The Award Trustees and World University Service of Canada (WUSC) are pleased to announce that nominations are now open for the 2013 Lewis Perinbam Award for International Development.

Nominations will be accepted until Wednesday, June 5th, 2013. This year’s winner will be announced at the International Forum, November 1-3, in Ottawa.

The award recognizes significant volunteer efforts that:

Improve people’s lives in the developing world
Engage and inspire Canadians to undertake volunteer action
Offer new ways of thinking and/or addressing development challenges

The monetary value of the award is $2,500, but its true value lies in bringing international development home to Canadians, by highlighting the dedication and accomplishments of its citizens.

The award commends individuals who make a noteworthy volunteer contribution to international development rather than paid professionals in this arena. However, paid professionals who make a significant voluntary effort are also eligible for the Lewis Perinbam Award.

Nomination Form

For further information,
please visit: http://wusc.ca/en/lewis-perinbam-award or
contact Carol Dolbel, at cdolbel@wusc.ca.

Nepal - Women and Youth: A Force for Change

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 14:56:10 -0500

Nepal - Women and Youth: A Force for Change

How skills training, small business development and women and youth empowerment is creating sustainable change in Nepal

To commemorate this year’s 103rd International Women’s Day, CECI-Nepal, through the Uniterra program (WUSC & CECI), hosted an event to celebrate the achievements of Nepali women, but also acknowledge the many challenges they face today. Focusing on the theme of sustainable economic growth among disadvantaged women and youth, the event drew Uniterra partners, volunteers, international and national non-governmental organizations, and private sector and government representatives to the Shankar Hotel in Kathmandu on March 11, 2013. Through networking, discussion and idea sharing, the forum demonstrated how skills training and small businesses are leading development approaches to build self-reliant, prosperous communities.

Watch the video prepared by CECI-Nepal for the International Women's Day

CECI’s and Uniterra’s Partners Amplify Efforts to Celebrate Women’s International Day

Across Nepal, a flood of activities, programs, performances and rallies took place to acknowledge the contributions and achievements of women to mark International Women’s Day. CECI and Uniterra partners were more active than previous years, organizing several events across the capital, Kathmandu.

The Federation of Women Entrepreneurs Association of Nepal (FWEAN) took to the streets on the morning of March 8th, inviting partners to join with them on a peace walk, followed by a small program and street drama about women's issues at Patan Durbar Square. Surya Bajrachaya, Gender Specialist and National Uniterra Volunteer made a short speech to congratulate them on their successes and shared her excitement to develop a partnership with them. The event was co-sponsered by CECI and Uniterra.

The Federation of community forest users of Nepal (FECOFUN), an umbrella organization representing over 1,600 community forestry user groups, participated in the USAID-funded Hariyo Ban Program. The program aims to reduce the adverse impacts of climate change and threats to biodiversity in Nepal. Sixteen district level female chiefs were recognized for their significant role in natural resource management.

In another program, the staff at Prerana, a local organization working to enhance the rights of women, and Gender Advisor and Uniterra Volunteer, Astrid Dier, joined a rally at Rani Pokhari organised by the National Women's Commission. The participants came from advocacy groups, NGOs and government departments and ministries. The main focus or theme was ending violence against women.

Read the entire article of CECI-Nepal

Innovative Internship Program Opening Doors for Dalit Youth

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 09:59:12 -0500

New initiative provides training, job placement and Canadian counterparts for professional development.

“I missed so many opportunities because of being a Dalit woman,” says 23 year old Anita Bhusal, who struggled to find a job because of her caste. That all changed when she was accepted in the Innovative Internship Program financed by the Uniterra Program, and delivered by the Professional Development and Research Center (PDRC). The initiative, which provided training in professional skills and a placement at a local non-governmental organization to gain practical work experience, is helping to break the cycle of discrimination against Dalits by enhancing their eligibility for employment.

The six month pilot program, designed specifically for newly graduates of the Dalit community, was divided into two phases. The first two months were intensive trainings in English language, computer essentials and administration skills. This was an essential part of the training as the selected seven interns spoke little English and lacked confidence to express themselves clearly. During the final four months, interns were placed with Uniterra's partners working in the sustainable forest management sector. Here they had the opportunity to work alongside Canadian interns from Students Without Borders, fostering exchange of ideas and transfer of skills among the youth from different cultural backgrounds.

“I am very proud of myself,” says Bhusal, who travelled to Dholoka to intern with the Federation of Community Forest Users of Nepal (FECOFUN), an organization dedicated to natural resource management. Hesitant at first to travel far from home, she found the new experience exciting, especially working with her Canadian counterpart. “I have changed. Before I didn’t know office work or administration tasks and I didn’t speak much English. Now I can talk to foreigners and talk in front of large groups of people.” As the only woman at her new job as a computer operator at a prison in Parsa, she attributes her improved public speaking skills and boosted self-confidence as reasons she stood out among the other applicants. Two other graduates have also secured employment after completing the program as a result of acquiring new skills and competencies. Others are preparing to write the test for government candidacy.

Sagun Bista, Senior Program Manager for Uniterra/CECI is very pleased with the outcome of the program and would like it to continue. “The internship program is an effective way to break the cycle of discrimination towards Dalits”, she says. “The connection with the Canadian volunteers also helped the Dalit interns learn about career development. Both the Nepali and Canadians befitted from learning more about each other’s approaches to work and society. ”

Canadian volunteers and Nepali interns at Annual General Meeting

About PDRC: Professional Development and Research Center (PDRC) is a not-profit social organization established in 2005 with the vision to help create a discrimination free society. PRDC primarily works to increase the access of Dalit and other underprivileged youth’s to quality higher education and equip them with professional skills and competencies to enhance their employability potential in this highly competitive job market, including and not limited to the government jobs. PDRC contributes to the educational endeavors and career development of Dalit community, who were forbidden from gaining access to education for centuries.

For more information, please visit : www.pdrc.org.np

Improvements to Girls Clubs in Ghana

Mon, 01 Apr 2013 13:37:06 -0500

The following text is an example of the work done by a Student without Borders intern. During her mandate, Bianca Staltari was to, among other responsibilities, assist with Girls’ Clubs, namely with the reading clinics and clubs, as well as with homework help. The article presents her observations and recommendations to improve the results of these various activities.

During the course of her three-month mandate, Bianca Staltari, had the opportunity to observe the effectiveness and efficiency of the Girls Clubs, within the West Gonja District in the Northern Region of Ghana, noting down improvements that the Girls Education Unit and the Ghana Education Service, both under the Ministry of Education of Ghana, could bring.

More and more organisations are adapting Girls Clubs to develop the girls’ leadership competencies. Around 500 clubs were created throughout the country - including 50 in the intervention area of Uniterra partners - and there are 12,000 girl members. These clubs promote education for girls and have succeeded in increasing the school registration rate above the national average in the areas where they exists.

Created to encourage the participation of girls in both primary and junior high schools, the Girls Clubs exist in several schools across Ghana. They focus on academic activities that build an individual’s self-esteem as well as build their capacity. Some activities include spelling bees, reading clinics, debates, excursions, health talks, etc., through which young girls are expected to have enhanced learning abilities and leadership skills.

The Girls Education Unit is responsible for the activities carried out by the Girls Clubs as well as for the training of the Coordinators and monitoring their activities. However, the Ghana Education Service is also responsible for the Girls Education Unit. The Girls Clubs’ coordinators are directly held accountable for the activities that occur during the meeting times; however, it is the Girls Education Unit that needs to strictly monitor the clubs to ensure that appropriate activities are going on and that coordinators are following through with their roles and responsibilities. To strengthen the concerned person’s accountability, the report considers it essential to stipulate precisely each person’s responsibilities at the different levels of intervention, to ensure efficiency and effectiveness within the system.

A few recommendations

According to the report, a number of activities in the Girls Clubs, for example spelling bees, reading clinics, debates, need improvements. In general, these activities are done in large groups with a small core of people participating while the others watch in silence. The report suggest that the group be reduced in size, with all members equally participating and letting peers to correct one another. Also, the coordinators should not use negative words when when students make a mistake, but also use encouraging positive remarks. More time should be given to explanations and questions of understanding, to the respect of every member’s ideas, to topics the young girls can relate to, to pairing up older students with younger ones and to free speech for all.

To improve the GEU’ organisation and the activities realised, the report suggest solutions dealing both with the training of the coordinators and the development of management tools. It seems that the Clubs coordinators, mostly volunteers, are unmotivated and uninterested at running the Clubs. It is therefore essential to improve the coordinators’ training, namely on the importance of their role, their motivation and beliefs in the value of education, as well as on an effective management of the Clubs. Also, the coordinator-girls ratio should drop from 1 to 60 at 1 for 20 girls.

Regarding the tools, it would be necessary to have a Guidebook with a list and explanation of activities, including more fun and interactive activities, as well as hygiene education activities. Comments and suggestions boxes should be placed in each Club have the input the young girls in an anonymous way, enabling even the girls who are shy and quiet to participate and therefore covering topics important to them.

Finally, the implementation of a monitoring and evaluation system is a must to monitor the Clubs’ results. A document should be created where the club coordinator needs to describe the day’s activities and handed in at the end of every month for review of the progress by the GEU. The Girls Education Officers (GEO) should once a month go to each club to have an open forum, without the Coordinator, to have the girls express their concerns and for the GEO to understand what goes on in the Club.

University of Guelph Computers Reboot Literacy Goals in Ghana

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 08:02:21 -0500

Guelph faculty, staff team up to benefit adult literacy program

University of Guelph professor Jacqueline Murray, second from left, poses with a group of Ghanaian musicians during her Leave for Change® placement in the Non-Formal Education Division of Ghana’s ministry of education.

In the year 2000, the adult literacy rate in Ghana was only 57.9 per cent. Almost half the adults in the country couldn’t read or write. In that year, the World Bank began funding a division within Ghana’s ministry of education to provide literacy training for citizens over 15 years of age.

By 2003, the adult literacy rate had climbed to 74.8 per cent.

Then the World Bank dropped its funding, and the percentage of adults in Ghana who could read started to falter again: in 2010, it had fallen to 67.3 per cent.

Teaching people to read and write in Ghana is challenging, says Prof. Jacqueline Murray, director of University of Guelph’s first-year seminars program. She has volunteered in Ghana twice through the Leave for Change® program. During one visit, she discovered that the adult literacy program was still being run by the country’s education ministry, despite the loss of World Bank funding. There were still plenty of dedicated staff members; what they lacked were the resources to do their jobs.

“The organization has an astonishing track record,” says Murray. “Most of the staff are highly educated and have postsecondary degrees or diplomas, and they are completely dedicated to the mission.”

The lack of equipment is a serious impediment, however. In one office, Murray found seven people sharing a single computer. The public relations section had no computers at all.

“Ghana is rapidly hurtling forward in development,” says Murray, “but without literacy, the people are missing out in fundamental ways. I’ve heard it said that literacy is essential for democracy. Increasingly, jobs in Ghana require literacy, but it’s also needed in people’s day-to-day lives: being able to read the directions on products, being able to read prices and descriptions in the marketplace, being able to help children with school work.”

Eager to help, Murray got in touch with Rebecca Graham, University of Guelph’s chief information officer and chief librarian, to ask for suggestions. Graham went beyond suggesting; within two days she returned to Murray and offered 125 computers with power cords, mice and keyboards.

“It was serendipity and timing,” says Graham. The library was in the process of replacing the computers used in public workstations, so she was able to arrange for these to be donated. University of Guelph staff checked over each one to make sure they were in good working condition and reset them to factory settings.

Of course, getting the computers donated was only the beginning; getting them to Ghana was the next challenge. “I’d done logistics when I worked for the air force,” says Graham, “so I knew we’d need a container to ship the computers.” Murray was able to find a shipping company in Milton – Allegro Freight – to take on the task and offer a charitable rate. The Zonta Club made a generous donation that covered a large part of the shipping costs to Ghana. Murray’s request for help was facilitated by Michelle Fach, director of the University’s Centre for Open Learning and Educational Support, who is involved with Zonta.

“We had to do a lot of co-ordination and go back and forth to make sure the correct documents were filled out so that the computers could be received without paying taxes and duty,” adds Murray. Shipping the 125 computers cost about the same as buying two new computers in Ghana.

Will the computers help? Graham points out that they did not ship any monitors, so the equipment will have to be matched to monitors in Ghana. Murray adds that internet access is generally available there using plug-in wireless cards. “Just as there aren’t many land lines for phones, there aren’t many networks where you plug your computer in,” she says. If monitors can be acquired, she believes the donated computers will make a huge difference.

While 125 computers were sent to Ghana, the University of Guelph library replaced almost twice that number; the rest went elsewhere on campus.

“For me, this is a different way for the library to contribute to the larger mission of the University,” says Graham. “It’s part of our commitment to community. Technology doesn’t solve problems, but it enables people to find solutions.”

Murray calls it “a true University of Guelph story. It’s what we’re about: changing lives and improving life.” She’s hoping to return to Ghana to see what progress has been made with these new resources and knows she’ll be welcomed. “This is such a phenomenal group of people.”

From: http://atguelph.uoguelph.ca/2013/01/outdated-u-of-g-computers-reboot-literacy-goals-in-ghana/

Travel Diary

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 12:59:42 -0500

If travelling broadens the mind, volunteer cooperation certainly forms our perceptions about humanitarian action. That is the observation I made on my trip home from Senegal. I would like to share some thoughts I jotted down in my travel diary during my trip.

Dakar 2012 — Episode I

I have arrived safe and sound, delivered to my hotel doorstep by Alpha, driver for the Centre for International Studies and Cooperation (CECI). A kind and youthful man – courteous, helpful and thoughtful. On the way, I couldn’t help thinking of Jean-Marie De Koninck: there is a lot of awareness-building to be done on driving here! In Dakar, people drive fast! Not to mention all the drivers with cell phones in hand, the rarity of traffic lights and the incessant honking – a bit of an obsession that seems the natural way of warning other drivers we’re coming through.

At the reception desk of the place I’ll call home for two weeks, an employee tells me that I have “family” waiting. Mariame, regional EWM program officer for CECI in Dakar, and Fatou, coordinator for Réseau Siggil Jigeen, are, indeed, waiting, calm and smiling, to welcome me.

I have to tell you about Marianne, the woman who sat next to me on my flight to Dakar. She saw me reading So Long a Letter, a novel by Mariama Bâ, an important Senegalese literary figure. In fact, the book is on the required reading list for primary students in Senegal. She’s said to be the first novelist to have accurately described the living conditions of Senegalese women, and I would add with sensitivity. A must read. The fact remains that Marianne, my neighbour, asks: “Isn’t that a great book?” A faithful portrait of Senegalese society, women and men.” And then she goes into a description of the relationships between women and men, the conflicts that polygamy sparks, the pressure families put on wives, the power of money, the force of traditions and mindsets that men wear on their sleeve like a bar code, which she goes so far as to pantomime so that the truth of her declaration sinks in.

My new friend is referring here to taking a second wife, which is sometimes done in secret, behind the first wife’s back, even when the couple outwardly live in an environment of equality. For example, for some couples who leave to live in France, exile is not a guarantee mindsets will change: even there, Senegalese men go so far as to take a second wife, have children with her and allow her to take up residence in the couple’s home. A home often bought together, a nest egg for old age.

The woman in the seat next to me has a heavy heart. I listen, ask questions, analyse. We switch email addresses. Then it’s time to get off the plane. Because of my aisle seat, I am standing first. I offer to get her heavy suitcase out of the overhead storage. “Oh no. Don’t worry about that Natalie. I’ll ask a man for help!” But… I try to object, I am strong, independent and able! Marianne insists. Without another word, she signals of the “brothers”, as she calls them. I let it go. Over 24 hours in the plane and waiting in airports will soften your convictions! I let the Senegalese traditional code win this time. And our brother carries out his orders. I have to admit, it’s practical!

Dakar 2012 — Episode II

Today is my first day at CECI’s office. The sun beating down on the road reflects the city’s chaos, which seems, in spite of it all, to obey a quasi established order: pedestrians and cars share the road with ease, people in wheelchairs weave in and out of the brouhaha, while street vendors (who sell hangers, fabric, cellular telephone cards, etc.) attempt to cut a pathway through it all. Nobody seems surprised. I conclude that this is par for the course in Dakar. Through my eyes, the eyes of Westerner living in Quebec, a small and clean, even “Disney-like” city, it’s like an earthquake just occurred… and the city is just recovering.

Lunch with Jamie, a volunteer who has come to work in Dakar with her young family: two boys under age 5, and a husband. Jamie is American, married to a Frenchman and is living in Africa on an over-a-year-long mandate. She’s got guts! Jamie took me to Madam Coulibaly’s eatery, where we had a local dish: rice slow cooked with fish. Which one? Dunno… but it was really good!

The end of the day is difficult for Mariame, my co-worker at CECI, who has put all her heart into organizing a meeting that will take place later this week. She has just learned that a representative from an important West African political organization will no longer be attending. “It’s awful!” she tells me. “It could compromise the chance of success for ratification of the draft protocol for equality between the sexes.” I get a better understanding of the fragility of relationships, the constant perseverance it takes to make things change. And sometimes, winning factors do not all align.

Nevertheless, the show must go on. “The road ahead is difficult. And tomorrow is another day,” says Safietou Diop, the president of Réseau Siggil Jigeen, who has come her to chat with Mariame and ease her sorrow.

Trip home by taxi with a driver who barely speaks French – his language is Wolof-, is listening to Quranic prayers on a tape deck… and doesn’t know my hotel. “Don’t worry,” he tells me, “we’ll ask a passerby on the way.” Really? I got there… after a few discussions between pedestrians and the taxi driver, and several more minutes than would normally be required. And not without an apparently unwarranted, but nagging little fear in my side.

Dakar 2012 — Episode III

This morning, a presentation before the women who head African organizations dedicated to defending human rights, and more specifically women’s rights. We quickly run through my career path and a few more personal achievements, like bringing two children into the world. As I pronounce those words – the ones about my children -, all the women start applauding. Out of joy, I imagine. And pride, too, and solidarity between mothers, because most of them are.

The introduction borrows heavily from a mini-biography that I wrote myself at CECI’s request, and that was practically the same one I provided to organizers of the 2012 summer feminist university (UFÉ, Université féministe d’été) for a conference I would give in Québec. The only difference was that the passage about “bringing two children into the world” was omitted by the UFÉ workshop host.

A random occurrence? An intentional gloss over? Well, I had expected it. At the time, I was in the midst of preparing the edition “Stay-at-Home Moms 2.0”. I was running an experiment. Bringing other human beings into the world is something only a woman can do and should be acknowledged socially. Meaning given recognition, and therefore likely to appear in a mini-biography meant to trace a women’s path when among other women, in the same right as a doctoral thesis. Even more so because the years we dedicate to motherhood take precious sums off our retirement checks, push back our opportunities for professional upward mobility, and sometimes even destroy them. Bringing a child into the world is a contribution to humanity, no? Have we hid maternity away because we so wanted to be free? Our autonomy must not be put into question, of course. But can we also give recognition to other facets of femininity?

Dakar 2012 — Episode IV

Dakar beats to an effervescent rhythm. On the weekend, I took the time to move around more freely. I saw poverty, of course. The country is in the throws of high unemployment rate, and you can feel economic slowdown, a few Senegalese women told me. The situation puts a lot of pressure on citizens who have to eat, get around, pay their water and electricity bills, in addition to the rent, when they have one. This is so true that as soon as you step into a local market, you are assailed without end. Here, it’s not a question of mean-spiritedness, but one of survival. My head gets it, but I have to spend a lot of energy turning people down in addition to keeping an eye on the traffic, remaining aware of my surroundings and looking for the streets I need to take to get to my destination.

I have also had a taste of Senegalese hospitality – the colour of my skin combined with my accent quickly indicates to my Senegalese brothers and sisters where I am from. “Hey Canadian, how are you doing?” they ask me. Some more discerning individuals rap off a “Quebecois! Don’t walk in the middle of the street!” Ah, so quickly unmasked! And so I feel obliged to pay tribute to my origins… So much the better! Because that brings me into contact with “real” Senegalese people! They have a sense of humour so we have common ground to stand on. After some chitchat, some of them dub me “Senegalese”. Now I am one of them. We laugh, we shake hands and I continue on my way.

I’ve seen African pride and got a glimpse of hope for better days. Invited to dinner at home by Maymouma, vice-president du Réseau Siggil Jigeen, who lives in one of Dakar’s working class neighbourhoods, we celebrate the Muslim New Year with her family and a friend named Daniel. In the distance resonate the religious chants, the tam tams, the cries of children dressed up for the occasion. In Maymouna’s kitchen, Daniel, a retired school principal, converses with me about African “communicativity”, about the social sense of Africans. For Daniel, as well as for Maymouna, the 2011 Arab Spring is a sign of an awareness being raised within the African population. The multiplication of private media, social networks, mobile telephones, and so forth contribute to ownership of these social issues within the population, even if the population remains predominately illiterate. And if civil society in eight or nine States stands up and demands government accountability, my new friends affirm, a movement for a new Africa will sweep the continent!

Millions of women, men and children left Africa for America through the Door of No Return at one of the slave houses located on Gorée Island.

Finally I was given a chance to observe forgiveness and reconciliation while visiting Gorée Island, which is reached by “longboat” (don’t panic, it’s actually a ferry), with Mariame, one of the members of WiLDAF (Women in Law and Development in Africa). On this plot of land off Dakar’s coast, 15 to 20 million Africans were channelled to America, over three centuries. An estimated 6 million of them died. They waited for boarding day in despicable, inhumane conditions. Then came the day they had to leave, separated from their families, branded and chained like livestock. They left the building through an opening that gave onto the sea, surrounded by armed soldiers, so as to end any attempt to flee. That is the Door of No Return. Impossible to stand in the doorway without shivering, without crying.

The question then is, concludes the guide at the House of Slave, how did the Europeans (men engaged in the trade who lived on the floor of the house above) live alongside the women, men and children left in such miserable conditions? I tell myself that forgiveness and reconciliation seem to be the only humanly possible answer.

Dakar 2012 — Episode V

Friday, the final day of my mission. Dakar is windy, so much so that the dirt from the street stings the skin on my face. Winter is coming in Senegal, and the temperature has dropped over the last few days. I am starting to find the heat bearable while the people here are beginning to shiver…

This mission has made me think about our life habits as humans. No matter where we go on the planet, we are almost certain to recreate a certain number of habits, a kind of routine. I have noticed this in my fellow volunteers at CECI who are here on longer mandates, ranging from a few months to over a year. They create ties with people, often Westerners, who share their tastes or their social standing, or who have young children, for example.

In just the space of two weeks, I have acquired a taste for certain habits. The receptionist, Dieudonné – handsome as the day is long –, greets me each evening with a charming smile: “How was your day, Nathalie?” I tell him about my experiences, he gives me advice, directions to go into the city, to the market, etc. He even invited me to a movie. I refused, I’ll admit, with some difficulty! Over the last few days, even the telephone card vendors kindly greet me as I leave the hotel.

Same thing at CECI’s offices: Assam, the guardian, greets me each morning, asks me if I slept well and very courteously opens the door for me. I will miss this kindness, this friendliness toward others. Awareness of others is often lacking in our society, where productivity trumps conviviality, where the individual takes precedence over the community.

In the neighbourhood around CECI, I found a supermarket where I buy groceries for lunch. Like I do near my office on Saint-Jean Street.

Do we really change? The surrounding environment may well be radically transformed, we are what we are: social beings whose desire is to be as happy as possible, in the best living conditions and surrounded by people we love and who love us. We live according to X cultural code, determined by the country and the society in which we were born - whether we are Quebecois, Canadian or African, Muslim or Christian, black or white. And just as opportunities to for merry-making, celebration, rest and sharing exist everywhere, so does the desire to make things better. That will to live better finds many different expressions. Accepting that is one step down the road to tolerance, and surely one step toward greater awareness of others.

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Feature issue:

This feature issue is a collection of articles on the condition of women living in West Africa. They are the fruit of a partnership forged between the Uniterra program and the Conseil du statut de la femme du Québec. The partnership included a North-South mandate to build the capacities of coalitions campaigning for the rights and citizenship of women in West Africa, specifically with regard to communications approaches they will use to facilitate the adoption of a draft protocol on equality of rights between women and men for sustainable development in West Africa. We hope you’ll enjoy the issue!

SOURCE : HTTP://WWW.GAZETTEDESFEMMES.CA/DOSSIER/81/

Real rights for African women

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 12:58:52 -0500

Making it easier for women to access water and land and fostering their legal, moral and economic autonomy are just some of the objectives set out by a draft protocol on equality that is mobilizing hundreds of people, mostly women, in West Africa. So that, from one generation to the next, the fate of African women will be emancipated from the authority of a father, a husband or a brother. Taking stock of a collective work in progress.

Gathered together in Dakar, Senegal, on November 22 and 23, representatives from several West African countries, all members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), revisited the preliminary version of a draft protocol on the equality of rights between women and men for sustainable development. Advocates, women and men alike, from human rights organisations, and more specifically women’s rights organizations, carefully studied the draft and made improvements they believed necessary to reflect the reality of women across West Africa, in all its dimensions. These include marital and family rights, health, violence, governance, education and training, access to productive resources, information and employment, and the consequences of environmental changes on living conditions.

These committed women and men want an additional and, more importantly, innovative legal instrument that is complementary to those already available in West African countries*, as these instruments have been deemed ineffective owing to lack of rigorous enforcement and monitoring. This pragmatic new protocol aims at compelling States to honour their commitments to ensure effective enforcement of equality of rights between women and men and harmonization of national legislations with African and international measures protecting and promoting women’s rights in West Africa. Le Conseil du statut de la femme is doing its small part to support African activists to see this project through.

A far cry from equality

In spite of gains made, one observation remains the same: women in West Africa do not always enjoy the same rights and the same living conditions as men. Efforts put forth by humanitarian organizations and the women’s movement produce uneven results – progress and setbacks, depending upon the political context, the level of security and conflicts in a given country.

According to a study carried out by the ECOWAS Gender Development Centre (EGDC) in August 2009, West African women produce 70 % of food, but do not control the factors of production, like land and credit, and do not reap the economic benefits of their labour. In spite of their vital economic contributions, women still suffer most from poverty. In education, statistics regarding primary school enrolment are encouraging (60 % of girls are enrolled in school, compared to 71 % of boys), whereas enrolment rates in secondary school and in post-secondary education among women are rather alarming: in Benin, for example, the rate is 22 %, and in Burkina Faso, 14.6 %.

The MDG Report 2012, which measures progress in Africa toward the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (eight in total, the goals were adopted at the Millennium Summit held in 2000 at the United Nations headquarters in New York, with a view to improving human wellbeing), also remarks persisting feminisation of poverty: “The second insight is that many countries have “feminized” poverty: relative to men, women are disproportionately affected […] Several factors may account for this. Women’s work in the home often prevents them from having wage employment. And when they do earn wages, their work tends to be undervalued. Women work mostly in low-wage jobs and in poor conditions. Restricted access to economic resources and lack of education are also important in feminizing poverty.”

Advantages of the Protocol

Mariame Coulibaly, a long-time rights advocate and Uniterra Regional Program Officer for Equality between Women and Men, is convinced of the protocol’s added value: “In terms of the law, we have made significant progress. But at a practical level, it is as if heads of State sign and ratify as an automatic reflex. They demonstrate political will, but it goes unheeded. Texts must be enforced to honour commitments made to human wellbeing.”

The Uniterra Regional Program Officer for Equality between Women and Men, Mariame Coulibaly, is convinced that the draft protocol will ensure laws are enforced to respect commitments made to human well-being and to equality of rights between the sexes in particular.

The Head of Gender Policy and Programs at EGDC, Salimata Thiam, feels that the women’s movement is on the verge of passing a new milestone: “Instruments available up to this point have been thematic (gender policy, immigration policy regarding women) and do not include everyone. We are very happy to see the binding character that has been built into the protocol. And I believe that this is as much about human development as it is about women’s development. We’ll be able to make an impact on sectors that contribute to the development of the community, like agriculture, security and peacekeeping.”

Salimata Thiam, Head of Gender Policy and Programmes at EGDC, feels the women’s movement is on the verge of passing a new milestone with this protocol, because it will have an impact on all sectors that contribute to development of the community, like agriculture, security and peacekeeping.

The future looks bright for the process. The ECOWAS Commissioner for human development and gender, Adrienne Diop, has even given her official assent to the initiative. A symbolic gesture, but one that carries the heavy weight of the dominant political power. Not to mention that in the initiators’ eyes, the context is favourable, with the inauguration of the African Women’s Decade (2010-2020), creation of UN Women and pursuance of the UN Millennium Development Goals, which are set to be achieved by 2015. The most optimistic among them claim the legal document could be validated by the institution as early as 2013 and submitted to heads of States for ratification before the end of the same year.

Born out of cooperation

Work on the protocol on equality began in 2008. Since then, the project has been shouldered by rights advocates and supported by Uniterra, a volunteer cooperation program that was developed and is implemented by the Centre for International Studies and Cooperation (CECI) and the World University Service of Canada (WUSC).

In the field, policy dialogue was set in motion in 2008 by the Coalition nationale de Guinée pour les droits et la citoyenneté des femmes (CONAG-DCF), which played the role of a catalyser. After a few workshops, the project went into a period of lethargy that lasted over a year due to lack of coordination. When the Program Officer for Equality between Women and Men assumed her functions, activities resumed and coalitions of organizations campaigning for women’s rights and citizenship in Burkina Faso, Guinea Conakry, Mali, Niger and Senegal were remobilized. Other regional networks were also brought on board, like WiLDAF (Women in Law and Development in Africa) West Africa, the World March of Women and the ECOWAS Gender Development Centre. Activists in each country were called to establish national priorities to be incorporated into the draft protocol. Representatives from Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau and the Gambia have also recently joined the ranks of advocates. Coalitions in 5 Uniterra program countries concentrated their efforts to draft the preliminary version of the protocol. Now Réseau Siggil Jigeen, a Senegalese umbrella group that brings together several community-based organizations dedicated to human rights, specifically women’s rights, has taken over coordination of the project.

Filling a legal vacuum

The draft protocol aims to empower and improve the living conditions of women. To do so, the legal framework must be solid enough to defend women’s rights and to force heads of States to honour their commitments, affirm rights advocates. They’ll be able to “call it a day” when women can, for example, access credit and own the land they work. When they are automatically awarded custody of their children after the death of their spouse and are guaranteed minimum wage for farm or domestic labour. These are just some of the many indicators that will determine if African women have reached economic empowerment, if they enjoy the rights of full-fledged humans.

Yet that reality is still a long way off. On the continent, there is much disregard for, and often abuse of women’s rights. Traditional values aren’t easily giving way to enforcement of equality between the sexes. But Mariame Coulibaly from the Uniterra program, a trained legal expert, is convinced that this document will receive a warm welcome within the ECOWAS parliament “simply because it meets the expectations of ECOWAS. There is currently a legal vacuum because no instrument like this exists. The South African Development Community has one. As matter of harmonization, of parallelism of forms, why not West Africa?”

The SADC Protocol on Gender and Development was indeed adopted by senior officials in charge of women’s issues in 2008 in Livingstone, Zambia. States parties agreed to harmonize national, regional and international policies, strategies and programs aimed at ensuring gender equality and equity and empowering women and girls in all areas outlined in the protocol.

This protocol served as the inspiration for the West African initiative. “I have spoken with the initiators,” explained Ms. Coulibaly. “I learned that their biggest pitfall was that they did not set out clear and precise indicators in the legal text so as to measure which caps had been reached. They also did not incorporate sanctions for non-enforcement the document. We used the lessons learned from these errors to improve the protocol on equality of rights in the ECOWAS space.”

The Programme Officer also draws confidence from the fact that ECOWAS advocates community law. That means law that is close to the people and acts as a barometer, measuring the degree of satisfaction and the expectations of citizens. “This protocol will constitute a legal instrument with an added value, namely very clear indicators.”

Mr. Alioune Sall, legal counsel at the International Court of Justice in The Hague and the Courts of Justice of the ECOWAS community and the West African Economic and Monetary Union, and tenured professor in constitutional law of Dakar’s Université Cheikh Anta Diop, shares that opinion. “This is a modern text that bears the mark of its era,” the well-known law professor commented when asked to give a critical analysis of the text at a policy dialogue workshop held in Dakar. “It’s the first legal document that deals with human rights within ECOWAS’ political framework.” The professor’s analysis highlighted the innovative nature of the text, specifically the binding obligations taken by States that will ratify the document. They will be compelled to develop policies and implement actions to encourage enforcement of principles laid out in the document.

The ECOWAS Commissioner of Human Development and Gender is waiting to receive a proposal from the second draft. A committee of legal experts will closely examine the text and adapt it to comply with ECOWAS principles and directives. The document will then be channelled to ECOWAS parliamentarians who will examine it before finally presenting it to the Council of Ministers. The Council will submit it to the Summit of Heads of States, the highest ECOWAS institution, for adoption. Summits are held in June and in December of each year.

In the meantime, the challenge will be to maintain mobilisation of the advocates who will have to promote the draft protocol among stakeholders. If ratification is to be the end goal, the people have to take ownership of the process and believe in its necessity. Funding will also be needed to support the mobilization of largely volunteer efforts. When the time comes, will the results live up to expectations? One thing is sure, African women will be there, living up to theirs!

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* Texts on gender equality and equity and women’s empowerment adopted by African States:

Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979)
African Platform for Action (1994)
Beijing Platform for Action (1995)
ECOWAS Gender Policy (2002)
Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (The Maputo Protocol) (2003)
Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa (2004)
African Union Gender Policy (2008)

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Notes:

ECOWAS is an intergovernmental group of 15 countries created in 1975. Its mission is to promote economic integration in all sectors. ECOWAS is made up of 4 institutions: the Commission, the Parliament, the Court of Justice and the Bank for Investment and Development. The Commission and the Bank are responsible for implementing policies, undertaking a limited number of programs and executing development projects in Member States.

SOURCE : HTTP://WWW.GAZETTEDESFEMMES.CA/DOSSIER/81/

It's all about the people you meet

Mon, 11 Mar 2013 11:49:54 -0500

The most enriching part of working abroad is coming into contact with new people. Meet Hamidou and Marie.

Hamidou, volunteer community organizer for the Coalition nationale de Guinée pour les droits et la citoyenneté des femmes^* (CONAG-DCF), has a master’s degree in socio-cultural work.

On our way to a meeting, Hamidou and I shared the front bench seat of the car. We laughed about being “stuffed in like sardines”, most likely to get over the uneasiness that such closeness created between strangers. I quickly took an interest in Hamidou, the only man among the many women activists from national women’s rights and citizenship coalitions in West.

Was it hard, I asked him, to make a place for yourself in an organization that defends women’s rights and brings together many women’s groups? “No. When I joined, I accepted management by women. And it didn’t stop with volunteering; I worked on our social bonds. They taught me everything they knew and shared their experience, and today, I work in a friendly environment. We have a good understanding. The proof is that, in January 2012, CONAG-DCF’s governance changed with the election of nine new members. I am the secretary-treasurer of the board, which is headed by a woman and made up of five women and four men.”

Hamidou’s upbringing no doubt contributed to this successful integration. The Guinean grew up in a family of all women. “They were mothers, aunts, and sisters. I had a maternal uncle that had only daughters. He asked my father if he could raise me in his home to have a boy around the house. So my uncle “took me in” when I was six years old. It was a big family. Little by little, I learned to live with the women. I even learned things that men are not normally supposed to do - sweep the house, draw water from the well.” A rare situation in a place where the heavy burden of tradition still dictates that domestic work is the responsibility of women and girls, Hamidou confirmed. He explained that his uncle was an intellectual, a university professor, who truly wanted and knew how to reconcile customs and traditions with modernity. Chores around the house were divided evenly between the girls and the boy.

When he graduated from university, it was logical that Hamidou accept a job offered to him by a CONAG-DCF member NGO fighting against female genital mutilation. “I cut my teeth in that organization, and I got interested in the work.”

Hamidou’s education also has an influence in his family life. “I do a lot around the house. When I come home from work, for example, if my wife is asleep, I leave her alone. In Africa, it is rare that men come home without waking up their spouses, to ask them for a plate, a spoon, some rice. On weekends, I take care of the baby - I feed him, I change his diapers, etc. I think I can free my wife from certain chores on the weekend. I make an effort to contribute something.”

Hamidou’s wife received training in boiler-making (manufacturing industrial units) at a vocational school, thanks to a project funded by the Canadian International Development Agency which supports Guinea’s Ministry of Vocational Training efforts to promote training for young women in technical industries. “Unfortunately, she doesn’t have a job yet. The job market is difficult in our country.”

Marie, president of the Réseau des jeunes filles et des jeunes femmes leaders du Sénégal* (RENAJELF, The Network of Young Women and Girl Leaders in Senegal) and city councillor in Kaolack is finishing her undergraduate studies in accounting.

I liked Marie from the get go. This committed young woman was invited to participate in a policy dialogue workshop held in November to improve the first draft of a protocol proposal on equality of rights between women and men for sustainable development in West Africa. During group sessions, we worked on the same team.

Eloquent, confident, charming, Marie has what it takes to get her ideas across. She heads a national network that is present in each of the fifteen countries of the Economic Community of West African Sates (ECOWAS) and brings together mixed-sex youth organizations. Young women members of these organizations are invited to join Marie’s network to see their concerns reflected. RENAJELF’s mission is to support young women so they find their place in society and participate in the political arena on issues like reproductive health or asserting rights.

“We try to build leadership capacity among young girls,” Marie explains, “and to help them understand that they have the right to participate, that they can do so as much as the boys they brush elbows with in youth organizations or the activists in women’s organizations where, sooner or later, they will take over the leadership.”

Marie regrets the lack of receptivity and the lukewarm welcome in many women’s organizations. “Yet,” she tells me with conviction, “we aren’t there to take their place, but rather to work with them, to ensure we understand the women’s movement. When we are with them, we learn little by little. In an organization of 100 women, something is wrong when one young woman represents youth. It’s inadequate. We have to be invited to participate in these organizations and to assert ourselves. For example, why wouldn’t a women’s organization have a youth group with the same prerogatives, the same number of members?” For their part, several senior activists condemn young women’s low rate of participation in the quest for equality between the sexes. But Marie assures me that young women are committing themselves to the cause.

No surprises here: Marie aspires to work within the highest levels of her country’s government. “I count on working in politics, because we live in a country where politics alone bring change. Civil society still doesn’t have enough weight.” City councillor in her commune, she is also president of the commission for finances, development and planning in her city, for which she prepares the financial statements.

Marie draws her motivation from the society she lives in and would like to change. “In our society, people say that women don’t know anything… And young women – let’s not even get into that. We would like to change this perception. We want to show that just like men, women can work and take an active role in society. The challenge for all young people, and for young women in particular, is to show that they can do anything if you give them the means.

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^*CONAG-DCF, or the National Coalition for Women’s Rights and Citizenship in Guinea, brings together 12 women’s and mixed-sex NGOs as well as teachers’ and researchers’ unions in Guinea. It works on three major issues :

furthering equality between women and men and girls and boys;
ending all forms violence against women and girls;
promotion of women’s participation in decision-making bodies and women’s access to citizenship.

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Note / Feature issue:

This feature issue is a collection of articles on the condition of women living in West Africa. They are the fruit of a partnership forged between the Uniterra program and the Conseil du statut de la femme du Québec. The partnership included a North-South mandate to build the capacities of coalitions campaigning for the rights and citizenship of women in West Africa, specifically with regard to communications approaches they will use to facilitate the adoption of a draft protocol on equality of rights between women and men for sustainable development in West Africa. We hope you’ll enjoy the issue!

SOURCE : HTTP://WWW.GAZETTEDESFEMMES.CA/DOSSIER/81/

A difficult birth

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 11:58:13 -0600

Caught between the weight of tradition, radicalizing Islam and Western feminism they find distasteful, Senegalese women are having a difficult time inventing a feminism in their image.

The district of Yoff, a stone’s through from the airport of Dakar, the Senegalese capital. Souleymane, the taxi driver, is taking me to L’Océan, a seaside hotel with an immense patio that practically extends into the ocean. “Women go to school too long. That’s no good for us,” he says with verve. “Afterwards they do whatever they please.”

Senegalese feminist Fatou sow is convinced that emancipation of women in her country is tied to questioning male domination.

I smile to myself because I am meeting one of the country’s most celebrated feminists on L’Océan’s terrace. Fatou Sow. Bedecked with diplomas, beaming with the vitality of her 70 springs, her white hair blowing in the sea breeze. An icon of local feminism. Both feared and admired by Senegal’s many activists, intellectuals and politicians.

Feared because she is seen by her sisters as a “hardcore” feminist who was trained in gender studies in American universities and who, according to her detractors, is the bearer of an arrogant message.

Admired for her life’s work: sociologist, professor at University of Dakar, researcher at France’s Centre national de la recherche scientifique (National Scientific Research Centre), executive director of Women Living Under Muslim Laws, an international organization based in London that is concerned with the fate of women in Muslim countries. Admired because, married and mother of four children, she dared to keep her maiden name and leave her head uncovered - no wrap - in a country where that simply isn’t done. “I’m now confident enough that being called a Westerner doesn’t bother me,” she confided, sitting with a glass of juice in front of her on the patio at the L’Océan.

To each culture its feminism

The cat is out of the bag: “Westerner” as in western women. A dirty word here for many activists working to better the fate of Senegalese women in particular and African women in general. A horror to many men who accuse feminists of being paid by Western lobbies to contaminate their women.

“I refuse to assimilate African feminism with Western feminism,” declares Odile Faye, director of the Association of African Women for Research and Development. She believes feminism in developed countries is too radical and has turned against men. “Let’s not forget that as women we perpetuate the patriarchal system. We take part in it. We have to convince women as well as men that change is necessary.”

“Every struggle has its context,” adds legal expert and researcher Fatou Kiné Camara, who claims she never makes reference to Western feminists before listeners and has never read Simone de Beauvoir. “We are the products of a past of slavery and colonialism that sets us apart,” continues the researcher, whose work focuses on Black African tradition, a tradition that, according to her, treated women better before colonization. “Drawing on tradition is a strategy that goes over better here than feminism that accuses men.”

“Feminism that draws on Black African tradition, which treated women better before colonization, is a strategy that goes over better here than feminism that accuses men.” — Fatou Kiné Camara

Back on the terrace at L’Océan, in the muggy, salty air, Fatou Sow doesn’t share Camara’s vision rooted in tradition. “Current discourse that holds traditional African cultural was more egalitarian and only colonizers subjugated women has to be deconstructed. It’s untrue.” She has no qualms about calling such ideas a front to avoid questioning male domination. “Most women in this country who claim to be feminists do not question male domination.”

Moreover, the word man seems to have been banned from women’s groups, giving precedence to the word gender. “And gender studies programs in Africa do not claim to be feminist,” she specifies.

Different priorities, other needs

The UN Decade for Women (1976-1985) was an opportunity for many feminists on the African continent to assert their right to be heard, a right they felt had been completely drowned out by Western feminists, and their right to difference in expressing their priorities and needs. “Women’s organizations and feminists in Senegal, and across Africa, continue to work more toward financial autonomy and better day-to-day living conditions for women than on their role or status in society,” explains Odile Faye. “When women are dying because they don’t have soap to wash themselves after giving birth, you understand that education and access to work for women are basic needs. Women’s freedom begins with their financial independence.”

In such a context, sexual freedom is not really a topic for discussion. “Women want access to contraception, but talk of sexual freedom repulses them,” explains Fatou Sow. “They say: ‘The right to contraception, yes. The right to control my body, non!’” On this subject, Odile Faye likes to quote a widely-used saying among African feminists: “We speak from deep within, Western feminists speak from down there.”

“African women are very modest,” suggests Ami Kiné Camara, mother of legal expert Fatou Kiné Camara. She proudly tells the tale of how, unbeknownst to her husband, she managed to get her hands on the pill in the 1970s. “We don’t like to talk that stuff,” she carries on.

Abortion, sexual freedom and pleasure are still taboo, or nearly taboo, on the African continent. The same thing goes for sexual orientation. “No lesbians in Africa? My foot!” rails Fatou Sow. “Today,” she adds, “the hardest debate within women’s groups is on sexuality.”

The hurdle of radical Islam

In a constitutionally secular and majority Muslim country, another stumbling block along the road to women’s liberation is becoming clearer every day: a politicized Islam that is turning radical. “Senegalese Islam has been corrupted by the influence of Salafists [author’s note: followers of Salafism, a fundamentalist school of Islam] and Arab Muslim countries,” states Fatou Sow straightforwardly. On University of Dakar’s campus, the number of veiled women is multiplying. “And many discussions end with ‘It’s in the Koran!’” she deplores.

Senegalese feminists agree on one thing: they have to keep dialogue open with a very religious society if they are going to get their message across. “In Senegal, you can’t say that God doesn’t have anything to do with it. No one would listen to you!” exclaims Fatou Sow. “We can’t preach in the desert. We have to be heard,” insists Odile Faye. “We can’t get too far ahead of our society.”

“The secular state is more important now than ever,” bellows Fatou Sow. Maybe that will be the ground on which the fate of Senegalese women is played out in the decades to come. “I leave my head uncovered as provocation!” she cries out against the whispering waves of L’Ocean’s patio.

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Note / Feature issue:

SOURCE : HTTP://WWW.GAZETTEDESFEMMES.CA/DOSSIER/81/

How to work with a local partner in an intercultural context?

Tue, 26 Feb 2013 13:01:19 -0600

As Beyonce sings, it “could be a sweet dream or a beautiful nightmare!”

There are days that pass just like a sweet dream. Plans have been made… executed nicely… expected outputs as one had hoped are achieved. Then are other days that can only be described as a beautiful nightmare. These days go on forever and you find yourself questioning what you are doing in Vietnam and wondering if giving up that plush job you had was worth it.

I won’t lie and tell you that it’s smooth sailing all the time. It isn’t. Working with local partners is easy. Working effectively with local partners is a different matter. For me the key has been to meet them where they are at, yet also knowing when to encourage, aka push or remind, them to do something in order to achieve what it is that they have identified.

My experience has been that, for the most part, the local partners want to learn and want to develop their capacity. The cause of frustration is often not the local partner’s lack of desire or want, but rather the system that we all work within. Sometimes we forget that our partners have their hands tied. The system is hierarchical in nature so everything takes time, a lot of time, and often the people we work with are not the ones that dictate/decide policy and procedures so their hands are also tied. It can be frustrating at times. You can choose to let the frustration build and boil over so that you become negative and allow that negative energy to fester so that you complain about everything or you can choose to accept and understand the limitations that you and your local partner both face and then try to see what potential options are available to you to move forward.

Having a farming background as a child, I look at what I do as planting seeds. All the presentations that I do, the training sessions that I deliver, the mentoring that I engage in etc are all merely seeds that I plant. Under the right conditions they will grow and flourish. Some seeds are planted and you see the fruits of your labour almost immediately, others take longer and others yet you may never see bloom. You need faith to believe that they will bloom when the time is right.

To work effectively with local partners, I have also learned to rejoice in the small achievements. As much as I’d love to be the next Gandhi or the next Mother Teresa, I’m not delusional in thinking that what I do is going to change the world or that my local partner is going to take all that I share and immediately change their entire way of working to implement this new knowledge. Just as a parent is proud when his/her child graduates… or an actor/actress is pleased when he/she is nominated for an Academy award… I am as proud as a peacock when I see even the smallest of improvements and capacity being built.

I seriously thought I was Superwoman and could leap over a skyscraper in a single bound the day I only had to wait 30 minutes for colleagues to come to a scheduled training session. 30 minutes may seem long to wait for some, but compared to the 90 minutes that I have waited before on numerous occasions, 30 minutes was nothing. Imagine how much I rejoice now that my wait time is down to only 10-15 minutes or the mini-heart attacks I have when they come on time. Try to find something to rejoice in everyday.

I think that it’s easy to forget sometimes that we’re working in a cross-cultural setting. You may think that may seem silly and wonder how that can be when everyone around you is Vietnamese, speaking Vietnamese and you’re dripping sweat because you’re working in 30+C environs without A/C. However, sometimes our culture, our beliefs, our expectations are so ingrained in us that unless you truly make the effort to see how they have influenced you and what you bring to the table in any interaction, it can cause frustration as our local partner’s culture, beliefs and expectations are different and they are just as ingrained in them and the way they interact, as well as what they bring to the table. What you may think is common sense and a given may not be for the other party.

To work effectively with our local partners, I have learned that it’s more important to listen than it is to talk. Often it’s not what’s said that’s important, but what is not said. Cultivating your patience, flexibility and tolerance are also key factors. The power of observation is often understated. Having a good sense of humour and the ability to laugh at yourself is a good characteristic; just as being able to let it slide when others laugh at you is important! Being open minded, being able to see the big picture and being able to see the positive in a situation are always a plus. Of course, being humble also doesn’t hurt. That said, there are times when all the understanding, patience, flexibility and tolerance you have just isn’t enough and you have to exhibit what I call tough love. Sometimes you just have to be firm in order to push them out of their comfort zone and help them develop their capacity. It’s a balance of knowing just how much and when to push to receive results, yet also knowing when to pull back when you’ve pushed too far.

Working with a local partner can be draining at times so it’s important to make time for yourself to reflect, relax and recharge. Remember to focus on the journey and the relationships while keeping an eye on expected outputs.

So sweet dream or a beautiful nightmare? Thankfully, sweet dreams outweigh the beautiful nightmares!

In Senegal, governance gets a make over

Mon, 25 Feb 2013 13:42:44 -0600

Thanks to the Gender Parity Law, adopted in 2010, Senegalese women have a legislative tool in their arsenal that should enable them take their place on the political stage - if the law is taken seriously and properly enforced. That responsibility falls on the recently founded Observatoire national de la parité (ONP, National Observatory on Gender Parity). Interview with ONP president Fatou Kiné Diop.

Senegal’s Gender Parity Law was adopted in 2010 under the former president, Abdoulaye Wade, who first took office in 2000 and was defeated in the 2012 presidential elections by then candidate Macky Sall. The law, which establishes absolute gender parity on candidate lists, promotes greater representation of women in totally and partially elective institutions, whether at the local, municipal or rural levels.

The Gender Parity Law enabled 65 women to take office in the Senegal’s National Assembly last July.

Though enforcement is still imperfect and the law regularly comes under fire from male elected leaders, the country is already reaping the benefits. On July 1, 2012, 65 women elected to the National Assembly during legislative elections took office. A major achievement obtained in large part due to the relentless struggle of politically active African women. Because between the time the 2005 campaign “Together, let’s strengthen democracy with gender parity!” was launched and the adoption of the law, six years passed. But as Fatou Kiné Diop, president of both the Observatoire national de la parité (ONP, National Observatory on Gender Parity) and the Conseil sénégalais des femmes (COSEF, Senegalese Counsel of Women) would say, each milestone in the process was a victory. “We always kept our eye on the prize: a law that would establish gender parity in politics.”

With such great efforts spent and their goal achieved, it was logical that women would demand a monitoring, alert and planning mechanism. And so the Observatoire national de la parité was born. The ONP’s mission is, among other things, to promote gender parity between men and women in public policy, and to identify obstacles to implementation of parity. Unfortunately, hurdles continue to litter the road ahead: lack of an operating budget and elected officials who would like to have the law struck down. This does not even take into consideration the fact that the president works sitting on a mat on the floor … in her empty offices!

Ms Diop is not out of the woods yet, but she is determined to render the agency she runs operational, an agency to help women take their place in the Senegalese political game. Because to change the face of political power, it will take more than a law!

Gazette des femmes: Can you tell us about the context in which the Gender Parity Law was adopted in Senegal?
Fatou Kiné Diop: Two converging factors contributed favourably to the emergence of the law: women’s political activism and political will. African women have been fighting for decades. Each generation lays out its demands according to the context and the concerns of the day. Gains kept building up and would spur other kinds of demands. Since 1995, the Conseil sénégalais des femmes, which brings together women in politics and women in civil society, has been promoting women’s political participation. In 1998, the organization raised the issue of quotas within political parties using an approach that combined negotiation with and awareness building among political leaders for greater representation of women on party lists. At the time, political parties were morally committed to applying the quotas. After reviewing the commitment following the 1998 elections, COSEF realized that it hadn’t been respected. Representation of women on party lists improved slightly, but the number of women elected stagnated. We could no longer count on moral commitment. We needed a legal instrument.

What arguments did COSEF use to convince the State it was necessary to adopt a binding law?
The political climate was favourable. In 2000, Senegal went through a political change in the head of government. For the first time since the country’s independence in 1958, a new political party came to power with the election of president Abdoulaye Wade. Before he assumed office, he had had to express his positions on questions of gender parity and women’s representation on several occasions, here in Senegal, but also at the African Union Commission *. COSEF seized the opportunity to take action, even if the parity issue had long been in our sights.

In 2004, Senegal also ratified the Protocol to the African Charter of Rights on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (commonly referred to as the Maputo Protocol), in which Article 9 is very explicit about gender parity – signatory States commit to attaining it. Senegal went a little further by adding the Maputo Protocol to its own Constitution. And when a protocol or a convention is part of a Constitution, it has constitutional value. From that moment on, we knew that we had good legal and political arguments to revive the debate on parity in government. After two years of discussions at COSEF to establish our strategy, we decided to launch the “Together, let’s strengthen democracy with gender parity!” campaign, which aimed to incite public authorities to legislate parity.

What strategy did COSEF use to make it happen?
The three things to bear in mind about the campaign are the irrefutable legal argument supported by the Constitution, the suggestion that the Electoral Code be modified to entrench gender parity and the mobilisation of civil society.

To back up our position on entrenching gender parity in the Electoral Code, we consulted renowned legal specialists and constitutional experts. When the work was finished, we agreed with the Minister of Women at the time to hold a march to submit our proposal to the President of the Republic. The Parity March was held on March 27, 2007. We all dressed in white because white was the only colour we felt would transcend all the others, which were already associated with political parties. In terms of mobilization, we quickly came to the conclusion that we had to forge partnerships between women themselves, as negotiations with male leaders were sterile. We asked all women’s political movements to get behind the campaign. The Gender Parity Law was adopted in May 2012.

Adopted, but not fully enforced. In response to persistent demands from activists, the Senegalese State set up the ONP to monitor enforcement of the law. What is the mission of the institution you head?
The ONP is responsible for monitoring implementation of the law, as well as policies dealing with equity between women and men. The president, appointed by decree for a term of 5 years, is supported by a board of 34 individuals chosen from a variety of spheres - government, university, community organizations, unions and politics. Our organization enjoys a fair amount of independence because it is not a part of the Ministry of Women — that was one of women’s demands. The ONP has been placed under the authority of the President of the Republic. Our role is to make proposals, recommendations to him after collecting and analysing data from the field. We work with civilian organizations to collect information efficiently. The ONP’s mission is then to centralize the information and process it before redistributing to organizations that work with women, so that everyone can take action.

Does the new government support the ONP?
If I can judge by the reaction of the President of the Republic, Macky Sall, when we met, we have his support. Going back on gains made by women is out of the question for him, he told me. Most importantly, he wanted women in rural areas to be able to enjoy the fruits of development. And if the President of Senegal understands that development cannot happen without working at the grassroots level, I am thrilled. What that means is really getting a handle on reality and setting down the path to solutions. Because no matter what the women’s movement or human rights advocates have done, problems must be tackled at the grassroots level.

Moreover, the ONP isn’t functional yet, for lack of funding. Public administration is cumbersome, very slow and dominated by men that are not necessarily receptive to equality issues. Government institutions don’t really understand what the ONP is, and have a hard time accepting its existence. For example, the ONP’s operating budget has yet to be approved by the Ministry of Finance **. So we have no staff. And even though we obtained funding from UN Women to do strategic planning, it’s impossible to truly begin the work. But the ideas are there.

Wouldn’t it be useful to spend time changing those mentalities?
Completely. The law doesn’t change everything, especially not mentalities. So, there has to be sensitization, but also a lot of concrete actions in women’s favour so they can escape poverty, too. You can’t build awareness when people have real and daily practical problems for survival. I think it’s a holistic movement, and you’ve got to be all on fronts at the same time to progressively move forward.

Do development partners play a role in changing mindsets?
I think they have to take a political stance so as to secure the gains we’ve made. We know there are a lot of political leaders who do not want this law. Conservative forces remain a reality. Women are going to continue to organize for the struggle to protect the gains we’ve made, but it’s always good to have support from the outside. That is why, whenever an occasion comes up, I stop and question donor agencies so that the Gender Parity Law is included in conditions for partnership with Senegal.

When will Senegal have a woman for president?
It can’t be very far off. Mentalities are changing relatively quickly, in urban areas, for example. During the presidential campaigns in 2012, 2 candidates (out of 17 total) were women who pursued their campaigns to the end and outpaced certain men by raking in quite a few votes. I am referring to Amsatou Sow Sidibé, a university professor, and Diouma Dieng, a fashion designer. What’s important is that there weren’t negative reactions to female candidates. For me, that’s extremely positive.

What’s more, thanks to the Gender Parity Law, 65 women were elected members of the National Assembly during legislative elections last July, during which the Gender Parity Law was enforced. As for mentalities, it’s extremely important issue, especially when it comes to questions of power. The perpetuation of male dominance in seats of power prevents mentalities from changing. And then in 2012, all the sudden, the National Assembly changed. The issue is not just a question of numbers, but also of what reaction the number is going to produce. In rural areas, for example, when a woman sits down to watch TV and sees that at the National Assembly, there are a lot head wraps, she is going to say to herself that women can be people of power. And if awareness building is done properly in preparation for local elections, maybe we’ll have a little less work to do to get her on the list of candidates.

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*The African Union was created at an Extraordinary Session of the OAU Assembly of Heads of States and of Government held in Sirte, Libya in 1999. Its goal is to accelerate integration processes across the continent to enable Africa to play its rightful role in the world economy. It also deploys efforts to solve multidimensional social, economic and political problems faced by Africa, problems accentuated by some of the negative effects of globalisation.

**During the interview, Ms Diop received a telephone call informing her that a budget committed to the ONP for the 2012 financial year would be deposited into the State’s coffers, as it had not been approved in time. The ONP’s direction is, therefore, waiting for the 2013 financial year to see its budget approved… and to have access to it.

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Note / Feature issue:

SOURCE : HTTP://WWW.GAZETTEDESFEMMES.CA/DOSSIER/81/

Protection and Promotion of Women’s Rights in ECOWAS Countries

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 13:26:36 -0600

In December 2012, a delegation of women from West Africa came to Canada to exchange with the Conseil du statut de la femme (CSF) on the project of a “Protocol for the Equality of Rights between Women and Men, for a Sustainable Development in West Africa”.

This visit took place as part of the Uniterra Program, more specifically in relation to its regional project in equality between women and men. The Protocol is a legal instrument which seeks to reinforce the application of legislation and policies on the protection and promotion of women’s rights, for the entire Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region, i.e. 16 countries. This project is championed by Coalitions of Women Organisations, Uniterra partners, in five countries of West Africa, in collaboration with the Ecowas Gender Development Center (EGDC) and supported by the Conseil du statut de la femme du Québec.

The delegation was made up of Mrs Aminata Dibba, EGDC Director, Salimata Thiam, EGDC Gender Programs and Policies Officer, Fatou Kiné Diop, President of the Observatoire national de la parité du Sénégal, and Mariame Coulibaly, Equality between Women and Men Specialist for the Uniterra Program. They were accompanied by Mrs Louise Camiré, Officer in charge of coordinating and implementing equality between women and men projects for CECI.

From December 3-5, 2012, the delegation members met with the President of the Conseil du statut de la femme du Québec, Mrs Julie Miville-Dechêne, to learn about the organisation’s mission, fields of action, philosophy and structures. They were also able to discuss with organisation representatives from the Québec region, namely the Regroupement des groupes de femmes de la région de la Capitale-Nationale, the Intervention Prostitution Québec Project, the Chaire de recherche Claire-Bonenfant de l’Université Laval and the Group Femmes, Politique et Démocratie. Finally, they were able to greet Mrs. Pauline Marois, Québec’s Prime Minister, and Agnès Maltais, Minister in charge of women’s conditions.

The approach toward a Protocol on the Equality between Women and Men of ACOWAS is unique in the sense that civil society organisations were involved and have a right of inspection on the application of the Protocol. The Protocol also has a real added value as it takes into accounts the new challenges facing the countries (such as climate change issues); it includes concrete and constraining monitoring mechanisms (with performance indicators) and foresees sanctions in case of non-respect of the Protocol.

Even though Uniterra plays an accompanying role in the development, promotion and implementation of the Protocol, once ratified, ECOWAS will be in charge of monitoring its implementation and application, as well as sharing its best practices. At the time, ECOWAS will particularly need the support of its partners to ensure the Protocol’s efficient implementation. “Together, we can go further”, emphasized Mrs Aminata Dibba, EGDC Director.

Of social economy.. a definition and a new site

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 16:02:54 -0600

The following text, written by Ether Cote, Pratitioner in Collective Enterprise Development, anounces a new virtual bulletin and a new website on social economy.

"You may be part of a social enterprise or a social economy enterprise and you are proud of it! Or maybe, you simply don't know if your organisation ia a social enterprise .... !"

Every day, thousands of women and men of all ages engage fully in creating and developing social enterprises in Canada's provinces and territories, and in the world. However, social enterprises (expression used in Canada and in English-speaking communities, or social economy enterprises (expression used in the French-speaking world) are worth gaining recognition. They create jobs, encourage the socioeconomic intergration of people, facilitate the financial diversification of non-profit organisations, support the local economy, etc.

They are rea l"enterprises", producing goods and services and selling them on the market; they are managed collectively and democratically; they put the people at the heart of development and they reinvest they gains and profits in their social mission!!!

A social/social economy enterprise is:

A theatre center renting spaces and producing shows;
A cooperative daycare selling childcare services to families;
A coffe shop made into a non-profit organisation, creating jobs, and with a social and economic mission;
An enterprise encourage socioeconomic reinsertion of marginalised people;
A health cooperative;
A non-profit organisation owning a building and renting the space and/or offering services and selling products to the community;
A cooperative with no social capital;
A non-profit organisation with an income generating program or project;
A community center, an econmuseum, a festival, etc.

The affirmative action enterprises of the CONVEX Group, Insertech Angus, EcoEquitable, Franco-Présence, Éco-Huronie, Coopérative Mokonzi, les Jardins du REFIF and Sofifran, the Dépanneur Sylvestre, and Nouvelle Scène are all social enterprises. Over 1000 social economy enterprises can be found in the greater Montreal's directory, over 7,000 in Quebec, thousands in Canada... and as of yet a still unknown number of social economyu enterprises in Ontario - French or English!

NEW WEBSITE (IN fRENCH ONLY) - CARREFOUR DE L'INFORMATION EN FRANÇAIS SUR LES ENTREPRISES D'ÉCONOMIE SOCIALE

Various information on funding, availables consultancy services, stories, profiles, rssources, training and much more!

www.entreprisesociale.ca