Year: 2017
NIGER
NIGER
Put your money where your heart is.
The first level of giving is the Niger. For a gift of 100 USD, you will receive this gift of limited edition compilation of Art, Music and Poetry and support the work of Women’s Human Rights Activists across the country. Anyone can contribute to furthering the movement– and the Niger level of giving allows everyone to be a part of supporting great art by African women as well as to be part of AWDF’s philanthropic history. It is important to continue to support Women who c transform lives and communities with their amazing work . This gift will allow us to further our support for Women’s groups on the continent who are changing lives in their communities.
To donate now, click on the express pay link below, find the AWDF giving icon on the express pay platform and donate the specified amount.
NILE
NILE
Put your money where your heart is.
The highest level of giving is the Nile. For a gift of 10,000 USD or more, you will receive this gift of limited edition compilation of Art, Music and Poetry and support the work of Women’s Human Rights Activists across the country. Women who continue to transform lives daily with their amazing work . This gift will allow us to further our support for Women’s groups on the continent who are changing lives in their communities.
To donate now, click on the express pay link below, find the AWDF giving icon on the express pay platform and donate the specified amount.
SHEROES
SHEROES
Follow the steps below:
Reserve a copy by emailing hamda@africlub.net/awdf
Click HERE to go to Expresspay, click the AWDF icon, and make a donation of the required amount.
E-mail hamda@africlub.net/awdf with the receipt of payment, along with your shipping address if you live in Europe or USA, your copy will be shipped to you.
If you live in the African region, pick up will be done through live pop up events. When members of AWDF staff visit an African country, we will bring copies of Sheroes with us. Upon reserving a copy we will let you know the next available pick up date within your region.
If you’re in Accra, feel free to pass by our offices and pick up your copy!
Faith, Feminisms and Fundamentalisms: A Search for Balance.
Faith, Feminisms and Fundamentalisms: A Search for Balance.
International Women’s Day at AWDF has often been a day to reflect on the larger themes of the feminist movement, and promote conversations and engagement around topics that feminists around the continent are grappling with. This year, our conversation focused on Faith, Feminisms and Fundamentalisms, and examined their various points of convergence and divergence. The panelists and audience members discussed what it means to be a woman of faith, a feminist and how to deal with the growing wave of fundamentalism on the continent.
The panelists were a varied group of women, with differing faith backgrounds and varying fields of endeavour. Professor Mercy Oduyoye is Africa’s first female theologian, Angela Dwamena-Aboage is the founder of the Ark Foundation, Roslyn Mould is a Humanist and President of the Humanist Society of Ghana and Ms Kauthar Khamis is an Assistant Lecturer at the Islamic University College.
One of the most interesting topics for discussion was the growing wave of Fundamentalism which Professor Mercy Oduyoye defined as “Being unable to have a conversation with other people who think differently simply because they do not follow your own interpretation” According to Prof. Oduyoye, religious fundamentalists believe and insist that their practices remain unchanged.
The conversation generated a considerable amount of interest, both from the venue and live on Twitter and Facebook, and it was clear that it was a discussion that desperately needs to be continued throughout feminist spaces on the continent.
‘Faith, Feminisms, and Fundamentalisms’: Reflections on IWD 2017
‘Faith, Feminisms, and Fundamentalisms’: Reflections on IWD 2017
Submitted Piece by: Titilope F Ajayi
In commemoration of International Women’s Day 2017 under the theme #BeBoldForChange, I was privileged to partake in a conversation entitled ‘Faith, Feminisms, and Fundamentalisms’ under the auspices of the African Women’s Development Fund. I was there as a woman, a feminist, an African, and a scholar of gender and international affairs. The exchanges at this well-attended event were so rich and profound that it would be hard to do justice to them and my piece makes no such pretensions. What follows is a collage, for the sakes of feminists everywhere of what were, for me, the most poignant takeaways.
Feminism is not a dirty word. All that it means, at its element, to quote Professor Mercy Oduyoye, is a person—irrespective of sex—who sees women as human beings and responds to us accordingly.
There is no single superlative way to ‘do’ feminism. I say this in response to the sister who said she doesn’t call herself feminist because she’s unsure that she’s been faithful to its tenets. Because women have different standpoints, it stands to reason that there is a diversity of feminisms informed by race, age, social status, religion, location, and many more intersections of life. What unites all feminists everywhere is our shared quest for greater ‘humanism’ toward women.
Fundamentalism is not the preserve of any faith; feminism can be fundamentalist too when it won’t accommodate alternative feminist views. And there are many.
Feminism is not incompatible with faith. As one wise woman said, that we masculinise God does not make men gods. Women’s religious subordination, voluntary and imposed, is often the outcome of distorted interpretations of sacred texts, fed as much by our prevailing (in this case, African) cultural contexts as by complex gendered power plays, and a blindness to the historical and social contexts in which many holy books were written. The solution? Feminists of faith need to start and keep changing the narratives and reframing the frames that have occluded women’s equitable integration into faith spaces and invisibilised our contributions therein.
Agency is a many-sided thing. Within the strictures of what have long been and remain fundamentally male-dominated faith spaces, women of faith are exercising their agencies for change in different ways and at different levels, whether as women of faith or as social or professional personalities. What appears to be a tacit acceptance of male leadership in faith spaces by some women could also be viewed as pragmatism, as one woman said, that enables women to manoeuvre within tight spaces in ways that don’t dampen our activism. On another hand, some women, like Catholic women priests, are fighting religious patriarchy by creating parallel faith spaces that are more open to gender equality. Yet more needs to change. Is ‘realist’ feminism enough to make various faiths feminist? Whatever your views, there is a clear need, as one woman voiced, to engage directly and consistently with the gatekeepers of faith on this matter.
There is value in women talking to themselves. One of very few men besides the media who were present queried the utility of “women talking to women”, as he put it. I didn’t get the chance to engage with him, but I will use this opportunity to say that the solution to feminist struggles doesn’t lie with one space, or sex, or strategy. Conversations among women are safe, useful spaces to reflect, to connect, to share, to learn, and to coalesce around our diversities. The outcomes of such engagements can then more easily translate into the gendered spaces that we feminists seek to change in ways that are more likely to be conducive to our cause.
There was much more to say than time permitted at the event—an indication that the conversation was timely, the topic apt, and the environment conducive. It also shows that the correlations among faith, feminisms, and fundamentalism(s) have not been discussed enough. For this reason, I end with the MC’s admonition that the learnings and conversations need to continue. As members of the women’s movement, we must keep interrogating critically what we think we know and what we take for granted in order to consolidate the gains made thus far and maximise the prospect of lasting change.
Maame Akua Kyerewaa Marfo
Maame Akua Kyerewaa Marfo
[tp lang=”en” not_in=”fr”] Maame Akua Kyerewaa Marfo is a singer, a feminist and a writer. She is passionate about social change, progressive feminist thought and using the arts to effect social change. She is an avid reader and continues to broaden her knowledge on feminist thought and development whenever she can. She holds a B.A in Political Science from Dickinson College.[/tp]
[tp lang=”fr” not_in=”en”] Maame Akua Kyerewaa Marfo est une chanteuse, une féministe et un écrivain. Elle est passionnée par le changement social, le progrès du féminisme et l’utilisation de l’art pour influer sur le changement social. Elle aime la lecture et continue d’approfondir ses connaissances sur le féminisme et le développement. Elle est Titulaire d’une Maîtrise en Sciences Politiques du Collège Dickinson. [/tp]
Recognizing Women as Custodians of Seed and Change
Recognizing Women as Custodians of Seed and Change
In Africa, majority of the rural women work as small scale farmers who work to feed their families and the growing population. Seed for them is key and is at the heart of the African communities. As such seed diversity thus lies in their hands. Recognizing and celebrating rural women is a key thrust issue for the African Biodiversity Network (ABN).
This year’s International Women’s Day will be marked on Wednesday 8th March, 2017. Globally, this is the day dedicated to celebrate women’s achievements throughout history and across nations. The theme for the International Women’s Day, focuses on “Women in the Changing World of Work: Planet 50-50 by 2030”. The world of work is changing, and with significant implications for women. On one hand, we have globalization, technological and digital revolution and on the other hand, the growing informality of labour, unstable livelihoods and incomes, new fiscal and trade policies and environmental impacts—all of which must be addressed in the context of women’s socio- cultural and economic empowerment.
Preliminary research carried out by the African Biodiversity Network and the Gaia Foundation in collaboration with the African Women’s Development Fund showed the alarming lack of information and awareness about the knowledge and practices of the African rural women in agriculture. Women are not only the custodians of seed and food but play a role in rebuilding community cohesion, identity, meaning, inclusive governance, dignity and joy. Together with all our partners across the 12 African countries, we call for both practical and policy support for the rural women, their communities and social movements in Africa and for profound shift in agricultural and investments policies across the continent as a matter of urgency. Africa’s rural women, the custodians of seed and food, and their traditional diversity based seed, farming and knowledge systems, can make an essential contribution to regenerating the viability of our planet. Africa’s rural women need our respect and support now in order to turn the tide before it is too late.
It is these women that we celebrate on this auspicious occasion to mark the International Women’s Day in Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya on 8th March 2017. We recognize them as ‘Custodians of Seed, Food and Traditional Knowledge for Climate Change Resilience’ wherever they are. And by so doing we do acknowledge the critical role they play in evolving and maintaining the continent’s diverse and resilient agricultural systems. A role they do so admirably as custodians of food, medicine and biodiversity, and as spiritual, cultural and community leaders.
In 2015, world leaders adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, placing gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls at the heart of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Achievement of the goals, including ending poverty, promoting inclusive and sustainable economic growth, reducing inequalities within and between countries, and achieving gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls, rests upon unlocking the full potential of women in the world of work.
For more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview please contact Simon Mitambo, the General Coordinator of the ABN on abnsecretariat@africanbiodiversity.org or smitambo@yahoo.com; +254 (0)202675043
International Women’s Day: Faith, Feminisms and Fundamentalisms
International Women’s Day: Faith, Feminisms and Fundamentalisms
To Commemorate International Women’s Day, AWDF is hosting a conversation about the many intersections and challenges around Faith Feminisms and Fundamentalisms. Join AWDF in a virtual conversation on March 8th, and watch the live stream of the event from our periscope account.
A Tribute to Buchi Emecheta
A Tribute to Buchi Emecheta
Bisi Adeleye- Fayemi penned a tribute to Buchi Emecheta, renowned African Woman Writer.
To read it please click the link to The African Feminist Forum Post below.
http://www.africanfeministforum.com/buchi-emecheta/
Stories from the Field: Grantee Highlights
Stories from the Field: Grantee Highlights
Public health Ambassadors Uganda (PHAU) has taken HIV prevention campaigns to previously unreached areas in Wakiso district.
On August 29, 2015 the residents of Nansana East II B in Nansana Town Council were delighted to access HIV counseling and testing (HCT) services right in their village, during an outreach conducted by PHAU at Nansana Market place. This outreach also comprised of educational activities that engaged the community members through targeted flash mobs, short skits, drama and dance narratives. Previously, the residents had to travel a long distance to Nansana Health Center II to seek HCT services due to the negative attitudes of health workers and poor quality services.
Public Health Ambassadors Uganda (PHAU) implemented the activity with support from the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF). The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) is a grant making foundation that supports local, national and regional women’s organizations working towards the empowerment of African women and the promotion and realization of their rights. PHAU with support from the community leaders and VHTs mobilized members of 185 households for the activity. The outreach team, which comprised staff from the Kiyita Family Alliance for Development (KIFAD), was overwhelmed by the big number of children, youth, and adults who waited eagerly to be attended to. One hundred and eighty fifty people were tested that day, including 66 women and 119 men.
The team provided integrated services ranging from HCT, IEC material distribution, sexual and reproductive health, and Family Planning service information provision.
The Nansana Town Council – Senior Community Development officer, Ms.Ndagire Lilian, who was also in attendance and planning process, was grateful to PHAU and AWDF for the initiative. “The clients felt highly regarded and expressed gratitude to PHAU and the health providers for making this service accessible to them,” she said.
Ms. Ndagire asked PHAU and AWDF to organize similar activities in schools and other underserved communities.