Category: Blog

Today as I write this, I sit behind a computer, typing perkily away at my keyboard in my comfortable office environment that has, in the time I have been working here, empowered me very deeply. I feel strong, I believe in myself, I feel good, and I actually have for work-colleagues ‘sisters’ who project as wonderful a sense of warmth and self-confidence as I do. I am untroubled … and I am lucky.

Lucky. It is not particularly the most affirming word one will like to hear, but there it is. I am lucky to have been working in a time where the female actually has rights for work … employment … labour, call it what you will. A few decades earlier, I would have been working in a time where not only would I have swooned in joy for any odd job, domestic role or agricultural work thrown my way that actually put profits in my own savings, but would also have been shocked if I was noticed and appreciated as an actual worker who contributed to that venture in question. These would not have been extraordinary circumstances at all; I would only have been first a female, and secondly a black/African female. I was doubly ‘invisible’ and multiply discriminated against.

What makes me lucky is the fact that my predecessor, who lived these negative conditions, did not just ‘take for granted’ that it was her lot, but fought hard to change it for the better. They all fought hard to make it better. Now see us enjoying it … perkily playing the empowered little Missus, standing abreast with the best of the men and even leading them in the work-places; boldly ensuring our work is fairly remunerated; fighting for all possible allowances, leave-days, holidays, on-the-job training obligations, and indeed, salary increments when we believe our contribution is worth it; well, maybe not perky, but definitely bolder, stronger, and very much visible. A modern-day working woman.

At this point, a standing ovation for all the women who have gone before, in the fight for what we enjoy today; for those who continue to represent female needs in the ranks of the Trade Unions and Labour organizations world-wide; and those who ensured the improved rights of the African woman worker today. May Day for us here at AWDF, is not to take a jab at any sensitive aspects of labour issues, but to appreciate the role which black and African women played, and continue to play in improving the work and employment conditions of women, and to also review the long history behind it. We are therefore delighted to share with you, the story of Women on Farms Project (WFP) and Sikhula Sonke:

In November 2011, AWDF ‘shook hands’ with a South African NGO, and signed over, in confidence and trust, a grant of $US 25,000.00, targeted at helping over 3500 direct people and over 17,000 indirect beneficiaries. Today, we acknowledge the efforts of this grantee, whose work is an invaluable one that is impacting not just the approximately 3500 members, but their families too. This NGO, Women on Farms Project (WFP), won the grant under our Human Rights scheme, with the objective of training selected farm workers on their rights and provide them with legal assistance to defend their rights as well as actively participate in minimum wage negotiations.

What WFP does, is empower and support women who work and live on farms, and educate them on their human and labour rights, since they often work in very harsh conditions and have poor representation in most trade unions. “We do this through socio-economic rights-based and gender education, advocacy and lobbying, case work and support for the building of social movements of farmwomen”, Fatima Shabodien, the Executive Director says.

This is not a new project or concept for them. As far back as 1999, three years after their own formation, the WFP team were already concerned with the futures of the farmwomen they ‘looked after’ via their foundation, and wondering what would happen to them should it close down due to funding issues or other unforeseen challenges. This prompted them to begin work on finding solutions, and conversations and deliberations with the farm-women led to the formation and registration of a women-led, women-focused trade union for Southern Africa women farm-worker. This happened in 2004, after two years of planning and organization. They named it Sikhula Sonke (‘We grow together’ in isiXhosa).

To entrench the specialness of the achievement, and its fulfillment of a crucial need, Sikhula Sonke was constituted by WFP on 9^th August, 2004 which is South Africa’s National Women’s Day, and registered by the South African Trade Labour Commission as a legal Trade Union on 10^th December, 2004 – International Human Rights Day. As a Trade Union they were there not just to join the ranks of other pre-existing ones but to be the union that represented women’s labour issues, fought to end the neglect and exploitation of for women farm-workers, and to get them better wages and representation at the negotiation tables of ordering companies from outside the country. In addition, and importantly, Sikhula Sonke also empowered the women, helped them to improve themselves in all aspects, and helped them out of substance abuses and addicitions.

What AWDF’s grant to WFP makes possible includes a better life and work situation for South African women farmworkers like Sikhula Sonke cares for. Their work areas cover: Women’s Labour Rights, Farm Workers’ Living Wage, Women’s Land & Housing, Trade Justice, Social Security, Farm Workers’ Human Rights, Human Rights Awareness Workshops, and crucial international campaigns against unethical practices affecting the farm workers.

There is a strong, clear link between the values and objectives of both WFP and AWDF. Whilst AWDF’s values include “the personhood of the African woman and her rights as an inalienable, indivisible, and integral part of universal human rights; acknowledging, valuing and rewarding women’s paid and unpaid labour in the private and public sector”, WFP envisions “an engendered society that treats women who live and work on farms with dignity and respect in accordance with the constitutional rights guaranteed to all South African citizens, where women lead the restoration of the social fabric of rural and agricultural communities so that respect, tolerance and accountability prevail.” Furthermore, both have a similar vision for African women – AWDF empowering, educating, and bearing feminists, whilst WFP works towards an “alternative South African rural landscape in which women play active leadership roles within family, community, labour, economic, and government structures.”

Women sustain the community; they nurture, care for, pass on knowledge to the members of the community. Due to their child-bearing abilities, and their accommodating personalities, their approach to issues are different, but no less important than that of the men. It is for this reason that we find it necessary to highlight the efforts of women-founded, women-led, women-focused entities like WFP, who against much odds, have sustained their fight to ensure better living and working conditions for the farmwomen workers of the Southern Cape of (South) Africa, and did not just stop there, but went ahead to consider possible crucial needs for their collective futures, and added yet another responsibility to their heavy load – Sikhula Sonke – the Trade Union for women farm workers in SA, saving and impacting over 17,000 lives and growing every year.

This is what a woman is – a living link to many; aprogenitor, warrior, awesome being, and in teams like WFP, we see sisters and sororities not only worth cheering on, but worth promoting. Show your worth today. Support a sister find her way. Donate to AWDF’s grant schemes. Partner our programmes. Share your stories. Leave a mark.

Golda Addo. Communications Associate – AWDF.

Written in bold, large fonts at the top of their webpage is the declaration: “We Strive to be Champions of Better Health”, and that is exactly what Better Health Action Group Uganda is turning out to be. Better HAG is a non-profit initiative with focus on Reproductive and Sexual Health, and in September 2011, they were given an AWDF (African Women’s Development Fund) grant of USD $1000 in support of their big, hairy, audacious goal: “… seeking a world of better health with no cases of preventable maternal, newborn and child deaths, where people can access sexual and reproductive health (including HIV and AIDS) services as well as exercise their health rights, and where vulnerability to children in all angles is greatly reduced.”

They are not only bold about their goals and vision, they are physical about it too; having recently made Sports and Events – S & E’s as they call it – one of their means of reaching out to and empowering women, girls, and the people in the community. They saw in football and netball, an invaluable opportunity and ability to bring together people of all makes and ages for a period of fun, interaction, togetherness, and all sorts of possibilities. These sports not only mobilise a lot of people in the community for interaction and information, but also bring them together for education and capacity building. This occurs through their engagement in the planning and delivery of the sports events, and their actual participation in them.

It is through these mediums that Better HAG empowers the participants – girls, youth, and women – in capacity and skills, whiles the sports commentator of the event provides the educational points for reform or advocacy. This is done during the sport activities, where the commentator would educate the crowd and players on the details of a particular issue of concern, say HIV/AIDS prevention, gender equality, child protection, etc. The people are not only educated on these, but also on the best values of the sport that they are engaging in, such as team-work, cooperation, respect for team-mates and other players, and these lessons linked to life values such as leadership, discipline, and conflict resolution. By doing all these, Better HAG helps in grooming happier, healthier, more responsible and protected girls, women, and society … bringing themselves several steps closer to their fierce, audacious goals!

Started in October 2008, in Uganda, by human health rights and development activists, Better HAG is focused on “an advocacy for accelerated realization of women and girls’ health rights”. Not only have they worked hard to sustain this, but they have also given it a new and wider lease of life, by using sports as yet another platform for reaching and empowering the people on life-changing issues.

 

Here at AWDF, we are very proud of our grantee, Better HAG Uganda. Our belief in excellence and the capacities of females to reach great heights is highlighted in their achievements. We hold the deep belief that if women and women’s organizations are empowered with skills, information, sustainable livelihoods, opportunities to fulfill their potential, plus the capacity and space to make transformatory choices, then we will have vibrant, healthy, and inclusive communities. Without a doubt, a hard-working entity like Better HAG fits just right into what we here at AWDF, hold in value when thinking of grants, support, and progress on issues of Reproductive and Sexual Health for women in Africa.

AWDF says “Kudos” to Better HAG!

The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) in partnership with the African Feminist Forum (AFF) warmly invite you to a series of events organised for the AWID Forum 2012. It will be an opportunity to share our experiences as African feminists on some of the most pressing challenges on our continent. You are warmly invited to attend the African Feminist Forum (AFF) panel on:

Feminists and Questions of Political and Economic Power in Africa, 20645

Date: 21^st April 2012

Time: 11:30am – 1.30pm

Venue: Halic

 

Members of AFF will also participate in the following panels:

• Militarism, Conflict and Violence
• Changing World Geopolitics and Global Governance

(These sessions run more than once so please check the AWID programme for dates and times)

Other networking and learning opportunities are available by:

• Interacting with staff from the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) during our donor office hours at the Resource Mobilisation Hub which will be running throughout the AWID Forum.

 

• Joining us in celebrating the work of women’s funds at a reception for members and grantees of the International Network of Women’s Funds on:

Date: 19^th April 2012

Time: 19:00 – 23:00

Venue: Babylon Lodge

“What’s the point in celebrating International Women’s Day?” a journalist asked me earlier today. “If there was no point in celebrating International Women’s Day would you be interviewing me?” was my instinctive response. It’s easy to ‘rubbish’ events like International Women’s Day but in my opinion marking such occasions (as well as the other occasions in the women’s rights calendar – 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence and World Aids Day for e.g.) are significant because:

 

• It is a day when women’s rights organisations can collectively organise to celebrate women’s achievements whilst assessing what remains to be done in the struggle for gender equality and social justice.

 

• Branding days as ‘International Women’s Day’ for e.g. focuses the attention of the public, and the media on issues of concern to women. Because of the occasion I have received a number of unsolicited calls from the media wanting my opinion on everything from female genital mutilation to the justification for International Women’s Day. Under normal circumstances I am the one chasing the media to highlight issues of concern to women but the lead up to this day is one of the few occasions where I find the situation reversed.

 

• It is a day when feminists and our supporters can celebrate our sisterhood. Yesterday in a twitter exchange my African feminist sister @sheroxlox excitedly said she had a gift for her #Afrifem (#Afrifem is the tag that a number of African feminists have agreed to use as a tag to highlight tweets of interest to other African feminists) sisters on International Women’s Day. I in turn excitedly responded that I also had a gift for my #Afrifem sisters. It may seem a small thing to the wider world but as an African feminist I appreciate having a day where the world chooses to focus attention on the issues that I deal with on a day to day basis.

 

Happy International Women’s Day

 

Nana Sekyiamah

Communications Officer, AWDF

It is always a joy to come to the house of the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) This is because whenever we come, it is about something to do with women, particularly in terms of advancing our commitment to improving our own well-being and that of several generations of girls and women to come. Today is no exception: from 2006, AWDF obtained a grant from the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) to strengthen the institutional capacities of AWDF and many of our organizations that are grantees of AWDF. If we are here today to sign another contract under Phase II, which is about extending the facility once again over a four year period, then we can celebrate our success and affirm that AWDF has been able to do what it set out to do when it requested for the grant. And indeed that, it has been impactful, hence the decision to upscale.

We do not have to go far to speak about what the grant has meant for our organisations. A week ago today, I was with a number of community groups in Liberia organising a workshop. One of the participants from one of the counties came to me during one of the breaks and asked earnestly: “Do you know this organization called AWDF? It is based in Accra, you know”. I said “Yes, I know AWDF”. She continued, “Well my organization has benefitted from them. Infact they are the only organization that we have had funds from for two consecutive years. The funds have really helped us to reach out and build the capacity of women in our community”

Statements like this are reassuring in the context we find ourselves in as women’s organizations operating in a harsh neo-liberal economic policy framework and in the wake of a global economic and financial crisis. Growing inequalities and unregulated finances are affecting poor women and men everywhere from securing their fair share in the benefits of global prosperity. If this trend continues, our children in Africa will inherit the burden of the devastation we have created in this world. As such, the promise of universal dignity brought by human rights and women’s rights has to be enforced, and the rights of future generations need to be recognized and properly defended. That is where AWDF comes in through recognizing and supporting the creativity and energies of different classes of women in all countries of Africa. Women located in the remotest corners of our various countries in Africa, and who would never have had a chance to contribute to the well-being of other women, are now able to do so with the support of AWDF.

 

An essential element in ensuring the substantive implementation of any international agreement is adequate financial and political support. Despite globally agreed commitments, gender equality and women’s empowerment are rarely high priorities on national development plans. In these times of global economic crisis, state actors are steadily stepping back from international commitments to women’s rights and gender equality by citing the cost of meeting those commitments. In the face of such arguments that justice and equality are too expensive, it is important that women’s oganisations are able to hold governments accountable to their mandate and demand justice and equality even when those goals are seen by them as antagonistic to so-called market growth and productivity. This clearly underscores the importance of ACBF funds for credible institutions like the AWDF.

 

 

Recent research by AWID (2006) has provided in-depth insights into the experiences of local women’s organizations. Responses from over a thousand respondents worldwide show that, many women’s organizations are struggling to secure funds to sustain their core activities. Among the key findings of the research are the following:

• Most women’s organizations are small: two thirds of organizations sampled had an annual budget of less than 50,000 US dollars
• In 2005 a total of 729 women’s organizations had a total income of 79 million US dollars worldwide
• More than half the respondents surveyed are receiving less funding than in 2000: 67% of the respondents said they find it more difficult to raise funds than five years ago, with only 16% finding it easier, and over half of the organizations having to use more staff and resources for fundraising efforts
• On average many organizations also said they would need twice their budgets to be able to do all they wanted to in 2006. Unfortunately, many funders and organizations are usually locked in a vicious circle, as women’s groups are seen as not having the capacity to absorb additional finds, and are therefore not funded, even though additional funds could actually enhance their capacity to expand.

It is in this respect that we need to ensure the availability of funds for civil society and women’s organizations to continue to thrive. Advocating on behalf of women, the poor and excluded groups must continue and this requires a continued building of the capacity of our various institutions to engage effectively in policy dialogue, implementation and monitoring, as well as an understanding of the changing aid and policy making environment. We need to also seek opportunities for regional and international collaboration and obtain funds from a wide range of sources to support our activities so we can remain active, accountable and responsive to the constituents we have committed ourselves to representing.

Our effectiveness as women’s organizations is premised on how we are able to deliver on critical issues of concern to our constituents, women; and to have thriving independent funding institutions such as the AWDF which can support such initiatives that can hold our governments accountable to their mandates.

Support from the ACBF to the AWDF is therefore invaluable and we are looking forward to Phase III, four years on, when we will return here to celebrate our success and sign another contract for more funds to strengthen our capacities further! We know the ACBF recognizes that women’s rights and gender equality work is long term, and that they are committed to being with us for as long as it takes to achieve justice, fairness and equality in Africa.

Thank you.

It really is a great pleasure to be here for the signing of the ACBF/AWDF phase 2 grant agreement. AWDF is delighted with this opportunity to continue our relationship with ACBF – and for many reasons. Of course we welcome the grant from ACBF to AWDF of 2.7 million dollars over a four year period… but what we appreciate more is the way in which that grant is framed. ACBF is giving AWDF the opportunity to both strengthen our core capacity and to reach out to the various women’s organisations we partner with to strengthen their capacities. This is a wonderful opportunity and one for which ACBF should be praised. Only too often, donors focus on projects, wanting organisations to deliver results on the ground without taking into consideration the need for organisations to be strong and sustainable themselves, if they are to deliver on results. ACBF recognises this and makes its funding available in such a way as to strengthen organisational capacity, sustainability and therefore strengthen the impact of programmes on the ground. This allows organisations and activists to look beyond the immediate and be more innovative and strategic in planning and implementing for both the short and long term.

When AWDF was first being planned, there were some people who were sceptical about whether African women could establish an organisation that would raise funds and make grants to African women’s organisations working on women’s rights, gender equity and social justice. They thought it was some crazy dream… well they should have known better because for centuries African women have known how to make things happen. We may dream big dreams – especially on behalf of our families and nations – but we also know how to work hard to make those dreams become real.

AWDF celebrated its tenth anniversary last year… and it’s wonderful that a grantmaking organisation that was founded by three African women, whose whole motivation can be summed up as ‘with, by and for’ African women, can stand here today and tell you that we have made grants worth more than 19 million dollars to more than 800 women’s organisations in 42 African states.

And relationships with organisations such as the ACBF have helped us achieve that success. In the first phase of the ACBF/AWDF project, AWDF was able to strengthen our internal systems and policies, study and learn from other Grantmakers and begin to strengthen some of our partner organisations. In phase two, we will do more. We will continue to strengthen and develop our systems; we will work at improving our monitoring and evaluation, our documentation and knowledge management and we will strengthen our sustainability. Just as importantly, we will increase the capacity building work undertaken with our grantees and develop new and exciting ways of working with our partners to make the most of their ideas, capacity and impact.

That may sound a little boring, but the impact on the ground is not. Take for example the CEO forum that AWDF runs for the leaders of women’s rights organisations across the continent. These gatherings have provided technical support and information to the leadership of some of Africa’s most crucial women’s rights organisations… they have provided a space to think, to plan, to test ideas and to strengthen the ethical and motivational core of leadership that is needed to bring change in often challenging circumstances. We look forward to more of this, but also to making the CEO forum a hub where we can also develop intellectual leadership on some of the key challenges facing the continent’s women. And another example is the way in which our work with individual organisations sets them up for even greater impact: whether it’s the small group on the ground in Sierra Leone doing excellent work on livelihoods with women but unable to raise sufficient funds to scale up its work, who used the small funds received from AWDF to leverage more money from other donors and extend its work substantially; or whether its funding a network like NETRIGHT in Ghana so that a range of different organisations could come together to produce the ‘Women’s Manifesto’ as the base of advocacy on women’s rights issues across all political parties; or whether its funding leadership training for women, the alumni of which include various Ministers in African countries, a range of heads of organisations and key activists across the continent. And we have been able to work with other funding bodies as well, building the capacity of women’s funds in Tanzania and South Africa for example and establishing partnerships with organisations like the NaDef in Ghana.

As AWDF has grown, so have our partner organisations. We thank the ACBF for its support and belief in our capacities and vision. We look forward to an exciting Phase II partnership in which the work of AWDF expands, the rights of women in Africa are recognised and better implemented and the women of Africa are supported to play their full role in the economic, social and political development of our continent.

Thank you

According to an old Chinese proverb, “women hold up half the sky”. In the battle against hunger and poverty, women, and especially rural women, most certainly hold up the heavier half.

 

In order to ensure food security at the household level it is important to realise the critical role women play, and to include them in all development processes towards the achievement of food security. Throughout the world, women are the principal guarantors of nutrition, food safety and quality at household and community levels. They are the ones who often produce, purchase, handle, prepare and serve food to families and community institutions. Therefore the different rights, responsibilities and decision-making abilities of women and men need to be understood to improve food security and nutrition.

 

Development interventions aiming to improve access to food often bypass women. They give little attention to designing programmes that suit woman’s needs, education, and cultural backgrounds, or their aspirations for improving their economic and social conditions. Whereas many governments, international donor agencies and NGOs have embraced the MDGs as one of the ways to eradicate extreme poverty in the world, not much has been done to support the majority of the population affected by poverty and hunger in Africa. We are just 4 years away from 2015, and in order to achieve goal one; eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, special efforts must be devoted to promoting rural development and fostering better living conditions for rural marginalised poor women. There is a need for strong specific focus on rural women through addressing key gender disparities at various levels in the distribution and access to productive resources, information and technology.

 

Understanding poverty, the hunger cycle, and survival strategies is important for finding the best ways of supporting rural women’s productive activities. As several studies have shown, farming households adopt ‘safety first’ behaviour, including coping strategies to deal with external climatic shocks. A common early strategy that has been observed is the reduction in food intake, or change in diet. Women may switch to cheaper, less desirable and perhaps less nutritious foods or they may reduce the number of meals they take.

Women are increasing their contribution to household food security either by growing food or by earning income to purchase food. Women usually try to do both because of urgent needs. Since the agricultural crops produced by households rarely provide all the requirements of the family, cash income is necessary to meet the other basic needs. Hence women engage in off farm activities to earn extra income for food to feed their families.

 

The rights of women to land need to be given attention because of the continued importance of land to incomes, employment and food security. The important roles women play in agricultural production, the weakness of women’s formal claims over land, and their apparent vulnerability to loss as land becomes scarce are some areas that require urgent attention. Therefore, gender systems that only guarantee rights of access to resources, rather than offer opportunities of control and ownership of those resources to recipients perpetuate gender inequality.

 

Lack of women’s access to credit is a serious obstacle to improving women’s agricultural productivity, as without credit women farmers are unable to buy inputs such as seeds, fertilizers and improved technologies, or are unable to hire labour. Women’s limited autonomy implies that they control far fewer marketable assets and thus may lack the opportunity to build independent reputations for creditworthiness.

From food production to control over income, indications are that the position of women within subsistence economies is growing increasingly insecure despite their undisputedly critical roles in child bearing, rearing and feeding of families. Income in the hands of women tends to be associated with an enhancement in the family, particularly children’s, welfare. Income in the hands of men appears to increase the share of household expenditure on items consumed mainly by men.

 

Women’s inability to participate and influence critical decisions around household livelihoods is having a dire consequence on their ability to be effective in providing food for the household. Given the traditionally limited role of women in decision-making processes at the household, village and national levels in most cultures, their needs, interests and constraints are often not reflected in policymaking processes and laws which are important for poverty reduction, food security and environmental sustainability

 

Neglecting women as agricultural producers and resource managers inhibits the attainment of food security especially amongst poor households. Thus, if goal one of the MDG’s has to be achieved, marginalised rural women need greater access to education, information, credit, appropriate technology, and other resources that will ease their existing labour burden, and ensure the welfare of their families and themselves. If women are to be fully effective in contributing to food and nutrition security, discrimination against women must be eliminated and the value of their role promoted. This further requires policy reform in support of an equal playing field for both men and women. Gender inequality is deeply rooted in entrenched attitudes, societal institutions, and market forces, political commitment at the highest international and national levels is essential to institute the policies that can trigger social change and to allocate the resources necessary to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment for food security.

 

Nafi Chinery

Capacity Building Officer

AWDF

“I’m really excited that Leymah Gbowee alongside President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Tawakkul Karman have been jointly awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Award. There seems no better time to publish the interview I held with her in 2008 on the sidelines of the 2nd African Feminist Forum” Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah, Communications Officer, AWDF

NS: Who is Leymah Gbowee?

LG: How do I describe who Leymah is? Usually I will start with my children because that is one identity I really love (I have 4 biological and 1 adopted child) but I think I am a person who from a really young age has been looking for answers to life and this was reinforced during the early years of the Liberian war. I am a helper and a woman who loves herself. I am an activist at every level. Everything that touches a woman’s life, a girl-child’s life and a child’s life touches my being. I have a lot of compassion and a lot of energy. I find it difficult to relax. I was brought up in a home and was the fourth child of five girls. I had a mother who was an only child and a father who is sympathetic to feminism. It was my father who resisted us being subjected to female genital mutilation. I come from a family of activists. My grandmother got divorced thrice and taught us that if a husband brought in the charcoal or rice you should be able to bring the salt. I will also describe myself as a politician; I have a head for politics.

 

NS: I only became aware of your work through ‘Pray the devil back to Hell’…

LG: (wry smile) that’s funny because that is not what I focus most on. What I pride myself on the most is starting WIPSEN – Liberia from scratch and bringing it to international standards and through that making progress in the lives of women and children. While I celebrate ‘Pray the devil back to Hell’ I celebrate WIPSEN, which was founded by Thelma Ekiyor and myself.

 

NS: What is WIPSEN about?

LG: The co-founder of WIPSEN, Thelma was also the founder of a previous organization WIPNET, which focused on grassroots activism and what we realized, was missing was the links between policy and grassroots activism. Some of these grassroots women who were very good mediators were not being called up to serve as mediators at an international level. Good initiatives like resolution 1325 were also not filtering down to the grassroots. WIPSEN however focuses on peace and security governance, which allows us to fill in those gaps so at the moment for example we are working with the army in Liberia to ensure that women’s issues are reflected in policy.

 

NS: Where do you get your strength from?

LG: I get my strength from my faith in God. Pain has a way of moving people to 2 levels. When you are in pain you want revenge or you want the pain to go away. From the age of 17 till I turned 31 all I saw was different versions of pain. The situation went from bad to worse to ridiculous. It’s almost like you are sinking and you can see no end. I experienced this personally and this was also the experience of other women in Liberia. This is how I started working to build peace in Liberia and I was grateful when the women said ‘we trust you, guide this process”. Daytime was the time for action and night-time was when I would do my strategic thinking and planning. During the war it was the pain that gave me the most energy. There is a scene in ‘Pray the devil back to Hell’ when we barricaded the men in the venue where the peace talks were being held. That was the time when I was most angry; I wanted to grab an AK47. I started stripping like I had threatened to do (The documentary ‘Pray the devil back to Hell’ explains that it is a taboo for African men to see the naked bodies of their Mothers so stripping in front of men is an act of defiance)

 

NS: How did you meet Abigail Disney? (Abigail Disney is producer of ‘Pray the devil back to Hell’)

LG: That was a weird one. I had gone to the US to attend university in Virginia; no one knew I was there. I got invited to speak at the 5^th anniversary of 1325 and Swanee Hunt told me that ‘Someone is looking for you – Abby of Disney world’. So Abby and I had a meeting and she asked me about the work I had done and told me that she wanted to explore this as a movie. We went back to Liberia and set up a meeting with key people and Abigail’s team interviewed lots of people, took tons of footage and images of film. When I saw the final piece I thought they had done a good piece.

 

NS: What kinds of support do women working in peace building need?

LG: One of the things I firmly believe in is giving the support that is needed. Never underestimate work anyone has done. Validate and show confidence in what women do. When we started it was a lonely road. We started our activism with $10 from a woman’s handbag. For two months we were fundraising. We had no support from NGOs and initially had a church help us with fundraising. When we went to Accra for the peace talks we thought we would be there for three weeks but we ended up being there for twice that time. AWDF gave us support, which enabled us to stay, and women from Northern Ghana gave us support. They sent us 5 women who sat down and cried with us. When the press asked the women why they were there, they said, ‘When our time comes, the Liberian women will help us’. That’s the kind of support we need. Technical, financial and moral support – it makes you feel good. At the same time we also heard that Nigerian women had presented a statement on our behalf. That’s what we need to do. When we hear something has happened women all over Africa need to start mobilising.

 

NS: How have you found the AFF so far?[1]

LG: Spaces like AFF is where I come to rejuvenate. Over the past year I have been mellow and quiet. Yesterday during the trial (As part of the AFF a ‘Feminists on Trial’ session was held which explored through a mock trial critical issues that feminists need to address) I was jumping about and people said, ‘This is the old Leymah’. You are able to rejuvenate when you are with women who share the same challenges…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Stephanie Glover 612.424.3634, usawdf@gmail.com

 

 

Jackie Copeland-Carson, Ph.D. Named to Head

African Women’s Development Fund USA

The African Women’s Development Fund USA (AWDF USA) has selected Dr. Jackie Copeland-Carson as its first USA Executive Director. Her appointment is effective September 15, 2011. Presently she is the president of Copeland Carson & Associates, a global philanthropy consulting firm providing services in the US, Africa, Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America. Dr. Copeland-Carson is founder and chair of the Pan-African Women’s Philanthropy Network, a diverse and growing coalition of Pan-African women leaders and their allies devoted to African and African diaspora development. PAWPNet, an AWDF USA partner, is the convener of the innovative Pan-African Women’s Action Summit, a bi-annual leadership conference recently held in Minneapolis, Minnesota from August 10^th-14^th, 2011.

An independent public charity and start-up foundation, AWDF USA was created as the US sister organization of the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) based in Ghana. It shares AWDF’s mission to empower women to lead African development. AWDF, created by Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, Dr. Hilda Tadria and Joanna Foster more than 10 years ago, is the first foundation created by Africans to support women-led nonprofit organizations throughout the continent. A recipient of many international awards, AWDF has made over $US17 million in grants to support more than 800 nonprofit organizations in 42 African countries.

A recent study by the World Bank and African Bank reports that African migrants worldwide gave more than $40 billion to their home countries to support extended family members and community projects in 2010. AWDF USA will mobilize support for African development from the US African diaspora and others committed to African development.

According to Her Excellency Adeleye-Fayemi, who is also AWDF’s president and First Lady of Ekiti State, Nigeria, “AWDF recognizes that there is a worldwide community of Africans living in the diaspora and others who want to support African development—especially through women’s leadership. AWDF USA will be an accessible means for the US-based African diaspora and all Americans to advance women’s leadership for development.” Reflecting the priorities of African women, AWDF USA will support women’s rights, reproductive health, economic security, governance and peace, as well as arts and culture.

Dr. Abena P.A. Busia, chair of the AWDF USA search committee and its board secretary, notes that “After a search and review of almost 100 candidates, we could not find anyone more knowledgeable of both philanthropy in the African diaspora and on African continent to lead AWDF USA. Dr. Copeland-Carson has the expertise and the hands-on technical skills to ensure AWDF USA’s success.”

For Dr. Jackie Copeland-Carson, “I have long admired AWDF’s pioneering work on African women’s issues. It is at the forefront of an African philanthropic renaissance, blending the best of traditional and global giving to create an entirely new development model that puts women at the center. I am honored to be the first executive director of AWDF USA and look forward to raising public awareness and support in the US for African women’s development.”

A respected African diaspora philanthropy scholar and advocate, Dr. Copeland-Carson, trained as an anthropologist and urban planner, has almost 30 years of experience in the foundation field. She has been an executive, evaluator, trainer or researcher with numerous philanthropies, including global or African-focused private foundations such as the Ford Foundation, Kellogg Foundation, Bertelsmann Foundation and TY Danjuma Foundation among others. She has worked with some of the US’s largest community foundations, including the Philadelphia and Hartford foundations. Also, she has been a consultant on evaluation and strategic planning with philanthropy associations, including, for example, the Women’s Funding Network and Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees. As founding managing director for philanthropic services at US Bank’s Private Client Group, she had sales, regulatory and grantmaking responsibility for foundations clients throughout the US.

International human rights activist, Naomi Tutu, notes that “Jackie is the right leader at the right time for AWDF USA. She brings the vision, passion and know how needed to increase support for our Motherland throughout the US.”

Dr. Copeland-Carson’s writings are influencing trends in multiple fields. For example, “Pan-Africanizing Philanthropy” (Palgrave, 2012); “Kenyan Diaspora Philanthropy” (TPI/Harvard University, 2007); “Promoting Diversity in Contemporary Black Philanthropy” (Indiana University, 2004); Creating Africa in America (University of Pennsylvania, 2004) examine various issues in the African diaspora, community development and women’s leadership.

A recipient of the Bush Foundation’s prestigious Leadership Fellowship recognizing her contributions to community leadership, she has been on the boards of more than 20 nonprofit organizations, including the Association of Black Foundation Executives.

Dr. Copeland-Carson holds two masters degrees, one in urban planning and the other in cultural anthropology, with a Ph.D. in anthropology (African/African diaspora and South Asian concentration) all from the University of Pennsylvania. Her undergraduate degrees are from Georgetown University in literature with a certificate in African studies from its School for Foreign Service with studies at Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria.

For information about AWDF USA, contact Stephanie Glover, AWDF USA Publicist, at 612.424.3634 or usawdf@gmail.com

 

On the 4^th of August 2011, I attended the ‘Adventurers in the Diaspora Series’ at Accra’s Golden Tulip. The topic for discussion was “Revitalising Ghana’s National Museum of Arts”, and judging by the huge turnout the subject was clearly of interest to a large number of people. There were several ‘distinguished’[1] persons on the panel. This is how members of the panel were described in the event posted on Facebook:

 

“Mrs. Frances Ademola -artist and owner of Ghana’s first private art gallery, the LOOM

Mr. Seth Dei—Ghana’s largest collector of contemporary art and whose Dei foundation supports various Ghanaian artists and indigenous high-tech initiatives. He is also a partner at Blue Skies industry, a pre-eminent agro-business based in several countries around the world.

Hon. Fritz Baffour, MP- Chairman of the Museum board

Hon. J.S. Annan (MP)- Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry and ex-Minister for Education

Prof, Atukwei Okai- Secretary General of Pan African Writers Association (PAWA) and professor of African literature

David Adjaye- principal of Adjaye Associates, a world-leading architecture firm based in London and New York.

Kofi Setordji- reknowned artist and sculptor, co-director of Nubuke Art Gallery”

 

I feel like there were a lot more panelists at the actual event than described above, and I cannot remember Professor Okai being there (but I could be mistaken).

 

A couple of the panelists struck me for diverse reasons. Frances Ademola struck me, because she is a woman artist, the founder of an Art gallery and was credited by many members of the panel as the one who had nurtured their appreciation of Art, yet I had no prior knowledge of the existence of either her or her art gallery. David Adjaye because I have heard so much, and read so much about this award winning Ghanaian British architect yet I had no idea that he even visited Ghana or was in any way active here[2] and finally Kofi Setordjii because he gave a compelling call to action when he spoke.

 

At the end of the evening I was having a drink with one of my artist friends – he’s a photographer, likes to strum the guitar, writes and has an amazing eye for fashion and style.

 

Me: I want to go and check out the Museum of Arts, I had no idea one even existed.

 

Him: Yes, let me know when you want to go and we’ll make a trip of it.

 

Me: I want to see what potential there could be for AWDF to work with the Museum. We want to build an African Women’s Museum but we’re putting that on the backburner for now. Maybe we can fund an exhibition of women artists.

 

Him: [laughing] Which women artists?

 

Me: Yeah, that’s the point isn’t it? I am sure there are women artists everywhere but we don’t know about them. And it depends how you think about art – there is photography, fashion, writing…

 

Him: True. A lot of the time people do not think of photography as art…

Our conversation got me thinking. Who are the African women artists and where are they? I am especially interested in African women artists who use their art as a tool to provoke social consciousness. I started to create a mental list of African women artists that I know are doing this and then I thought, “I should blog about this and ask people to add to the list”. So that’s what I’m doing. My list is only going to comprise of people that I know in some way, and for the sake of brevity I will highlight only 10 African women artists. Either I have read their books, watched them perform, heard them speak, seen a trailer for their movie or engaged with them in some way – even if it’s only been via twitter 🙂

 

Do me a favour and add on to this list in the comments box. Let’s track who the African women artists are, what they do, and where they are.

 

Here’s my list:

 

• Frances Ademola? – I’m a bit confused as to whether to add her to the list. Is she an art gallery owner or an artist? Is the owner of an art gallery also an artist because they have an artistic eye or does an artist always create? AiD’s programme described her as an artist but in googling her I have come across this interview, which quoted her as saying, “I’m the eye of the buyer. It’s a good thing that I’m not an artist”[3]

 

• Nneka – Nigerian/German songstress who sings in English and Pidgin about the need for Africans to take responsibility for the problems we face on the continent (The Uncomfortable Truth), jogs our collective memory on the issues confronting Nigerian society whilst reminding us of the importance of remembering Ken Saro Wiwa and the causes for which the prominent environmental activist died , (Soul is Heavy) and the need for us all to recognize our inherent beauty (Beautiful). Nneka agreed in 2010 to work as an Arts Ambassador for AWDF and I’m really looking forward to exciting collaborations between her and AWDF

 

• Yvonne Chaka Chaka – One of Africa’s most powerful voices who also lends her support to many admirable initiatives. Yvonne Chaka Chaka sits on the AWDF South Africa board, is a member of the African Women Leaders Network for Reproductive Health, serves as a UN Goodwill Ambassador for Malaria and also has her own NGO, The Princess of Africa Foundation. I personally met Yvonne when she attended AWDF’s 10^th anniversary celebrations in November 2010 and I was struck by how nice Yvonne was as a person. Sometimes when you meet huge stars you’re disappointed because they act like divas but Yvonne is niceness personified.

 

• Wanuri Kahiu –I get most of my updates on Wanuri via her twitter handle @wanuri . I have seen the trailer for her film Pumzi and unfortunately missed an opportunity to see the full length film at the last Environmental Film Festival of Accra yet what I have seen of her trailer has been enough to convince me that this is the type of work that organizations like AWDF need to fund if we are going to use the arts as a tool for gender empowerment. In researching Wanuri further I came across her blog and it looks like she is not only nifty with the camera but with words too.

 

• Ama Ata Aidoo – Where do I start from when it comes to this doyenne of African literature? Like many people in Ghana, I first came across Ama Ata Aidoo in secondary school as “Dilemma of a Ghost” and “Anowa” were on our reading list. At university I decided to write my dissertation on the concept of ‘home’ as seen through the works of Ama Ata Aidoo and Buchi Emecheta (another stalwart of African women’s literature). In 2008, I met Auntie Ama face to face and was thrilled to be able to interview her for AWDF’s very first e-newsletter.

 

• Asa – I have been told Asa is my lookalike but that’s not why I have included her on this list 🙂 Recently I’ve heard one of her songs, which touches on the issue of sexual abuse. Please let me know what the title is if you know the song I’m describing – she sings about a young girl who has been abused and somehow the girl’s Father is involved.

 

• Jessica Horn – Jessica is a personal friend, poet and an all round inspiration to me. She’s the author of “Speaking in tongues” and a dynamic member of the African Feminist Forum’s steering committee. Jessica is also a women’s rights consultant focusing on issues of health, women’s rights and social change

 

• Leila Djansi – I first heard of Leila when her film “Sinking Sands” came out. I eventually watched ‘Sinking Sands’ with a friend and immediately afterwards was interviewed by Joy Fm for our perspectives on the film. Although we liked many aspects of the film we both felt that it’s a shame the male lead had what many may perceive as an excuse to be violent to his wife, especially as domestic violence is such an every day occurrence all over the word. Despite this, and upon continued reflection on the film I feel that ‘Sinking Sands’ is an important milestone in the Ghanaian film industry. The lead actress Ama K Abebrese did an amazing job and was well rewarded with an African Movie Award for Best Actress in a lead role. Kudos to Leila for highlighting the issue of domestic violence.

 

• Yaba Badoe – ‘The Witches of Gambaga’ is a powerful documentary, which brings us the real life stories of women condemned to live as witches at the Gambaga camp in Northern Ghana. I first saw this documentary at the 3^rd African Feminist Forum in Dakar, Senegal, and subsequently at its premiere in Ghana. ‘The Witches of Gambaga’ always provokes a variety of reactions in the audience – shock, disbelief that women are accused of witchcraft in this day and age, and a strong desire to change the status quo. It is my hope that this documentary remains a powerful tool for creating a more just world for women and men.

 

So in your opinion where all the African women artists who use their art as a tool for social justice and the empowerment of women?

 

Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah

Programme Officer for Fundraising & Communications

AWDF