Year: 2015
Sarah Mukasa
Sarah Mukasa
[tp lang=”en” not_in=”fr”]Sarah Mukasa is a feminist activist with extensive experience in advocacy at international, regional, and national levels. Previously, she worked at Akina Mama wa Afrika as the Programmes Manager for Eastern Africa. She has participated in a number of key UN meetings, where she has coordinated advocacy strategies for various women’s interest groups, including the African Women’s Caucus, and the Solidarity for African Women’s Rights, a campaign for the ratification and implementation of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa. She is a member of the Working Group of the African Feminist Forum.[/tp]
[tp lang=”fr” not_in=”en”]Sarah Mukasa Sarah est une féministe activiste dotée de vastes expériences en plaidoyer aux niveaux international, régional, et national. Auparavant, elle a travaillé à Akina Mama wa Afrika en qualité de Directrice des programmes pour l’Afrique orientale. Elle a participé à de nombreuses réunions importantes des Nations Unies où elle a coordonné des stratégies de plaidoyer dans divers groupes d’intérêt y compris le groupe d’experts des femmes africaines et la Solidarité pour les Droits de la Femme africaine, une campagne pour la ratification et la mise en oeuvre du Protocole de la Charte africaine sur les droits de l’homme et des peuples sur les droits de la femme en Afrique. Elle est membre du Groupe de travail de l’African Feminist Forum (Forum féministe africain).[/tp]
Abigail BURGESSON
Abigail BURGESSON
[tp lang=”en” not_in=”fr”]Abigail is a passionate and influential advocate for women’s rights. She has over 20 years’ experience working in the non- profit sector on the African continent with extensive global outreach. Prior to joining AWDF Abigail worked in the area of Democratic Governance and social justice issues with the Institute of Economic Affairs, Africa leadership Forum and the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs in Ghana
The combination of her social justice philanthropy and feminist background, experience of women’s rights coupled with her International Relations experience in political economy, practice in negotiations, partnership management and democratic governance background gives her a unique and grounded ability to blend practice and theory of promoting African women’s rights, women’s leadership and development.
In 2008 she received the Feminist Leadership in Africa award from the Akina Mama Wa Africa (AMWA) Leadership Institute and in 2015 she represented CSO’s in Ghana at the African Growth and Opportunity Act meeting in Gabon having been recommended by the USA State Department and the United States Aid for International Development (USAID) to represent CSO’s in Ghana.
Abigail graduated from the University of Ghana with a Bachelor of Arts in English, and obtained an MA in International Relations from Boston University, European programme, UK. She has also received specialist training in International Negotiations from the Centre for Applied Studies in International Negotiations (CASIN), Geneva, Switzerland.[/tp]
[tp lang=”fr” not_in=”en”]Abigail est une défenseuse influente et passionnée par les droits de la femme. Elle a plus de 20 ans d’expérience professionnelle avec les organisations non-gouvernementales non seulement sur le continent africain mais aussi à l’échelle internationale. Avant de rejoindre AWDF, Abigail a travaillé dans le domaine de la gouvernance démocratique et la justice sociale avec l’Institut des affaires économiques; le Forum sur le leadership en Afrique et l’Institut national démocratique pour les affaires internationales au Ghana.
Sa philanthropie basée sur la justice sociale et son expérience en tant que féministe ; ses connaissances sur les droits de la femme associées à ses relations internationales dans l’économie politique, les négociations, la gestion des partenariats et la gouvernance démocratique lui donne une capacité unique de combiner la pratique et la théorie pour la promotion des droits de la femme africaine, le leadership des femmes et le développement.
En 2008, elle a reçu le prix pour le leadership féministe en Afrique de la part de l’Institut de Leadership d’Akina Mama (AMWA). En 2015, sur la recommandation du Ministère des Affaires Etrangères des Etats Unis et de l’Agence des Etats Unis pour le Développement International (USAID), Abigail a représenté les Organisations de la Sociéte Civile (OSC) du Ghana lors de la réunion « African Growth and Opportunity Act » au Gabon.
Abigail a étudié à l’université du Ghana et a eu son Master I en Art en Anglais. Elle a obtenu son Master II en relation internationales de l’Université de Boston, Programme Européen, en Angleterre. Elle a également eu une formation spécialisée en négociations internationales du Centre des Etudes appliquées en Négociations internationales (CASIN) à Genève en Suisse.[/tp]
Katswe Sistahood ‘V-Warriors Journal’ 2013
Katswe Sistahood ‘V-Warriors Journal’ 2013
[tp lang=”en” not_in=”fr”]The Katswe Sistahood, a Zimbabwean organisation founded in 2007, began as a loose network of dynamic young women concerned about the lack of access to sexual and reproductive health rights and services within their community. With support from AWDF, Katswe has worked to promote young women’s knowledge of sexual health and rights issues and develop a culture of encouraging self-protection against sexual gender based violence (SGBV) and HIV/AIDS infection.
Through its work with young women over the years, Katswe identified SGBV as a critical issue around which young women could mobilize and began several projects to amplify the voices of women to raise awareness about the issue.
One example was the Pachoto study circles conducted in 10 communities within Harare in 2013. Through these study circles, women shared their uncensored experiences and stories on SGBV, facilitating a dialogue around SGBV and other issues related to women’s bodies, sexual and reproductive health and rights and general well-being. These stories were compiled into a publication dubbed the ‘V-Warriors journal.”
The journal served as a creative tool supporting the promotion and preservation of women’s sexualities, rights and over all livelihoods.
Read a copy of the journal here:
Katswe Pachoto Journal 2013[/tp]
[tp lang=”fr” not_in=”en”]Le Katswe Sistahood, une organisation zimbabwéenne fondée en 2007, a commencé comme un réseau ample de dynamiques jeunes femmes préoccupées par le manque d’accès aux droits et services de santé sexuelle et reproductive au sein de leur communauté. Avec le soutien d’AWDF, Katswe a travaillé à promouvoir les connaissances des jeunes femmes sur les questions de santé et de droits sexuels et de développer une culture de la promotion de l’auto-protection contre la violence sexuelle basée sur le genre (SGBV) et l’infection à VIH / sida.
Grâce à son travail avec les jeunes femmes au cours des années, Katswe a identifié la violence sexuelle basée sur le genre (SGBV) comme un problème critique autour duquel les jeunes femmes pourraient se mobiliser et a entamé plusieurs projets visant à amplifier la voix des femmes pour sensibiliser à la question.
Un exemple est les cercles d’études Pachoto menés dans 10 communautés au sein de Harare en 2013. Grâce à ces cercles d’étude, les femmes ont partagé leurs expériences non censurées et des histoires sur les violences sexuelles et sexistes, faciliter un dialogue autour de violence sexuelle et sexiste et d’autres questions liées au corps, la santé sexuelle et reproductive, les droits des femmes et leur bien-être en général. Ces histoires ont été compilées dans une publication surnommé le ‘Journal c-Warriors “.
Le journal a servi comme un outil créatif afin de soutenir la promotion et la préservation des sexualités, les droits des femmes et surtout les moyens de subsistance.
Lire une copie de la revue ici:
Arts, culture and sports
Arts, culture and sports
We focus on supporting organisations that create and share new, feminist narratives about African women through literature, sports, music, crafts, film, photography and visual art.
These organisations and groups use popular culture and art to build confidence in young women, take women’s rights issues to wider audiences, and strengthen positive narratives about African women.
These efforts may result in events and mediums with strong women’s rights themes, like film and music festivals, feature films and television, art exhibitions, and training and research. They may also support sports with positive messaging for women and girls.
In turn, these organisations will seek to achieve the following goals:
- Mobilise a new, younger demographic to champion women’s rights.
- Challenge negative stereotypes of women.
- Train new female African writers, artistes, and athletes.
- Create more narratives, music festivals, documentaries, and research projects that promote women’s rights.
- Create more activities organized around the AWDF’s Women In Film Forum.
- Document, popularise and share narratives of African women’s lives, and increase exhibitions of their contributions to culture and the arts.
Health and Reproductive Rights
Health and Reproductive Rights
We focus on supporting organisations that generate resources and training to support women’s mental, maternal, and reproductive health.
These organisations and groups strive to support advocacy, legislative and policy reform, research, care and support, education, and communication. These efforts should center on supporting and dispelling stigma from women’s mental, maternal, and reproductive health, including breast cancer and family planning.
In turn, these organisations will seek to achieve the following goals:
- Increased national spending on health (as agreed in the Abuja Declaration on Health), and increased health services for more individual countries.
- More people trained to provide reproductive health education and advocacy messages.
- More support for breast cancer and family planning through implementation of the Maputo Plan of Action.
- Improved service provisions, including more TBA and more health personnel.
- More education on women’s reproductive health rights.
- Improved awareness of health and well-being, and a reduction in stigma and discrimination on reproductive health issues.
Governance, peace and security
Governance, peace and security
We focus on supporting organisations that are mobilizing women towards greater participation and leadership in peaceful community-building.
These organisations encourage political participation and leadership, peace and security, and reform. This may include service provisions for women, peace negotiations, early-warning mechanisms, and post-conflict development.
These efforts may result in projects that support feminist thought leadership and networking, legal and policy development, and medical care.
In turn, these organisations will seek to achieve the following goals:
- Greater access to government employment for women at all levels, including political office and decision-making.
- Greater support among women for progressive values, women’s rights, and accountability in government and public programs.
- Implemented policy and provisions for women’s rights in peace and security.
Women’s Human Rights
Women’s Human Rights
We focus on supporting organisations that create safe spaces for African women to exercise their rights towards life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
These organisations and groups strive to eliminate religious, cultural, political, economic, legal and social fundamentalisms that restrict women’s agency and human rights. They may also strive to eliminate effects of these larger fundamentalisms, like violence against women, or property rights that restrict ownership, inheritance, access, control of assets, and citizenship.
These efforts may result in projects that support policy development and reform, feminist movement-building, research, or training. They may also seek to educate and dispel negative stereotypes of African women.
In turn, these organisations will seek to achieve the following goals:
- Increased ratification and domestication of women’s instruments, agreements, laws and protocols (like the Maputo Protocol and other International Standards).
- Strengthened feminist movements at national and regional levels, including more forums and education for women.
HIV and Aids
HIV and Aids
We focus on supporting organisations that provide critical community support for the prevention, treatment, and care of HIV and AIDS for women and their families.
These organisations and groups strive to protect the rights of women living with HIV and AIDS, and seek to reduce the stigma of against those living with these diseases. They encourage leadership among these people, and seek to achieve greater accountability from governments and policy makers in supporting them.
These efforts may result in projects that support HIV prevention, economic empowerment, training, advocacy, research, and care and support.
In turn, these organisations will seek to achieve the following goals:
- Better access to prevention, treatment and care services for HIV and AIDS. This may include increasing the numbers of people who receive HIV prevention messages, care, and support.
- More strong, visible female leaders living openly with HIV and AIDS, and stronger feminist movements and advocates within these communities.
- More support groups and networks for women living with HIV.
- A higher number of women living with HIV and AIDS who have received start-up capital to expand income-earning opportunities.
- A reduction in stigma against women living with HIV and AIDS, and increased incomes for women living with these diseases.
- Greater accountability on HIV issues from governments and policy makers.
Economic Empowerment and Livelihoods
Economic Empowerment and Livelihoods
[tp lang=”en not_in=”fr”]We focus on supporting organisations that are innovating new strategies around African womens’ economic and food security, environmental issues like agriculture, climate change, and economic justice.
These efforts may result in projects that support economic security, skills development and training, and positive legislative and policy frameworks for African women.
In turn, these organisations will seek to achieve the following goals:
- A measurable increase in women’s economic security.
- More women with entrepreneurial skills, start-up capital, micro-finance, and earning opportunities.
- Increased numbers of women with training on economic policy.
- More research papers, engagements with local and national duty bearers, and forums to ensure women’s rights are factored into economic policy issues.
- A stronger position for women to advocate for their human rights and political participation[/tp]
[tp lang=”fr not_in=”en”]Nous nous concentrons sur les organisations qui innovent de nouvelles stratégies autour de la sécurité économique et alimentaire de femmes africaines, les questions environnementales comme l’agriculture, le changement climatique, et de la justice économique à l’appui.
Ces efforts peuvent aboutir à des projets qui contribuent à la sécurité économique, le développement des compétences et la formation, et de cadres législatifs et politiques positives pour les femmes africaines.
À leur tour, ces organisations vont chercher à atteindre les objectifs suivants:
- Une augmentation mesurable de la sécurité économique des femmes.
- Plus de femmes avec des compétences entrepreneuriales, capital de démarrage, de micro-finance, et de possibilités de gagner.
- Nombre de femmes a augmenté avec la formation sur la politique économique.
- Plus de documents de recherche, des engagements avec les détenteurs de droits locaux et nationaux, et des forums pour assurer les droits des femmes sont pris en compte dans les questions de politique économique.
- Une position plus forte pour les femmes de faire valoir leurs droits de l’homme et la participation politique.[/tp]
Leadership, Participation & Peace
Leadership, Participation & Peace
Advancing African women’s political rights, building feminist leadership and amplifying activist voices and action
AWDF supports interventions that work to expand political space, sustain inclusive governance and full participation of women, including in contexts of conflict prevention, response and peace building. We focus on diversity and quality leadership and participation, and building inclusive feminist leadership for transformation.
- Advancing diverse women’s participation in governance and decision-making at all levels
- Reframing security and advocating for interventions to support women’s human security in all contexts
- Challenging the rise and impacts of religious and cultural fundamentalisms on women’s rights in communities and on the state.
- Growing individual and collective feminist leadership for social, political and economic change and justice
- Defending open operating space for women’s rights organisations and defenders