Category: Blog

Oi, (As we say in Mozambique).

I get the singular privilege of changing my identity every week for the next few weeks so this week I am Mozambican. Remember Samora Machel? Yes this is the beloved land of Samora Machel. Maputo is the capital of Mozambique and as Ghana is to the cedi and pesewa so is Mozambique to the meticais and centavos . I arrived in Maputo on the night of October 30th, 2008, expecting to have some communication difficulties but I was pleasantly surprised to find out that just about everybody speaks some amount of English. Do you know that Mozambicans are Portuguese speaking? Anyway, I go through immigration and customs with no incidence and was met on arrival by a host I had met over the net (He happens to be a man who speaks English better than the partner who I had asked to kindly coordinate the visit). Pedro my host is a very cordial and meticulous person and has done a good job of arranging all logistics, including translators, convenings, meetings with local authority officials and grantees.

My first point of call the next morning as early as 8.15am was the office of the Provincial Directorate of Women and Social Affairs, Angelina P. Lubrino, a very affable lady who warmly welcomes us and holds a long chat with us (I mean myself and my translator) on the situation of women organizing in Maputo. I then rush off to the convening, I had unfortunately kept the very busy women of Mozambique waiting for 15 minutes, because I spent too much time at the Provincial directorate for women’s office, well you can’t cut a “big” woman off you know. The meeting went very well and I was very fascinated about these three young articulate activists for sexual minority rights. Their message was simple, in their own words “we have come to the meeting to inform our mothers and grandmothers that we are” and had to be listened to.

After a one on one chat with a few organizations after the meeting (Remember organizations are always looking for exclusive scoops or contacts after such convenings), I rushed off again to visit the first grantee on my itinerary. The project had gone well and everything was in place. I was happy with myself, my only regret was my inability to visit some of the beneficiaries because the project was implemented up North about 8 hours ride away. I then proceeded to visit LAMBDA, an LGBT group, one of the groups I had volunteered to visit and had such an eye opening chat with these two young ladies who gladly gave me a tour of their offices and shared with me the plans they had for the place. I finally get to retire to my hotel room around 6.30pm. I did a lot of stairs climbing that day, I have noticed that most offices are in high rise buildings, and the pain in my tendons the day after made me resolve to stop being elusive with John our wellbeing consultant. Wearing slit (a traditional long Ghanaian skirt) and climbing stairs is not a past time for an ‘old school’ member you know. Anyway, thank God I had a good night sleep, I wished I could have slept the whole day but that was not to be. I had already agreed to visit a women’s HIV&AIDS network. I set off the next day thinking it was going to be a quick one, being a weekend. Apparently this group had something else in mind. After a lengthy chat in their offices with the aid of an interpreter (It prolongs the chat you know) they led the way to the field to visit some beneficiaries of their home based care project.

This project actually kept me thinking? Why are networks entangling themselves in direct service? I though networks were suppose to be coordinating and providing institutional and programmatic support to its members? As well as focusing on critical advocacy issues? Anyway, here we were after about 30 minutes drive to this community in Maputo with a very small driveway that we quickly navigated in order to park the car. Well we really did not have a choice, there was no way we could have driven around all the points of call. It was such a long winding walk through the sandy community. We entered the first house and my first shock, there were about 7 elderly women sitting on mats in the compound of the house eating their lunch. Wondering what is cooking for lunch? Salad and bread, very healthy, no wonder at their age they look so strong. We enter the common room, I guess, and I and the interpreter were offered a chair, all others had to sit on a mat on the floor of the room. So now I got the catch, it is their culture, they sit on mats with one or both legs of women bent to the side, and with the legs of men bent in a kind of squatting position in front of them. Unfortunately, the beneficiary had passed away the week before leaving behind 4 children in the care of their grand auntie who pleaded passionately with us to help her support the children through school, meanwhile all the children are boys. This sets me thinking again, can the AWDF funds be used to support the care giver to support the children who are all boys? I need some clarifications from my Director of Programmes. Well, the network will not let me be, till we had visited three families, it can be emotionally tiring and the expectations of those visitors are raised so that one wonders how one can personally be of help. Well it was another eye opener. At about 3.30pm I get a view of the city of Maputo, It is a very nice city with good road networks and some good cars, a beautiful coast line and they use platoons as well to get to other parts of the city. A few noticeable issues are the number of cars that have detachable trailers (you can easily hire them for use) which carry their goods and the way they carry their babies in the man made traditional kangaroo pooches. The way the women tie their wrappers is also worth noting.

The next day saw me (and my translator of course) on a long ride (About 4 hours) to the city of Xai Xai (it is pronounce Shaishai). The ride to the district of Xai Xai in the Gaza Province was a smooth and awesome one. The scenery was simply breathtaking especially on entering the district of Xai Xai which has an amazing well developed beach, very good road networks, a lot of greeneries and fascinating developments. One cannot miss the presence of beach goers every where in the town and I had the privilege of staying in one of the lodges by the beach. The coast line is incredibly well developed with camp houses on stilts, cabins they are called l think, guest houses, hotels, restaurants, etc. Despite all these developments it is so obvious that great care had been taken to preserve the flora and fauna in the area. Later upon enquiry I was told that it was one of the conditions that go with being granted a license for development in the area. Maybe some of our cities and towns should learn a lesson or two from the city of Xai Xai. Another noticeable scene was the presence of families. A good number of the beach patrons were there with their families, another lesson to be learnt there. After a tour of the coast line which had considerable motor able roads I managed to have my dinner after some miss-communications had cost me some serious hard earned cash.

Monday is another day, an 8.30 am meeting with the Xai Xai Provincial Director of Women Affairs. Can you imagine? The provincial Director for Women’s Affairs was a man, (Well we have a similar case in our back door). A very pleasant man though who offered us the use of the District’s social centre for the convening without charge. The meeting with him went well and I proceed to the convening afterwards. Meeting community women can be so invigorating, clearly articulating their views, needs and solutions. Another great convening there raising issues of violence against women, HIV&AIDS and neglect by partners coupled with the perennial drought in that part of the country. Afterwards I visit a new grantee that has just been awarded a grant. ACTIVA is implementing a huge home based care project but appeared unprepared for our visit despite the fact that they were our key contacts to Mozambique. Come to think of it, this could have been as a result of communication problems.

Anyway we return to Maputo that night only for me to learn that my booking for my last night in Maputo has mysteriously disappeared on their system even though I had left my luggage in their storage and categorically asked for a reservation, but I had no papers to confirm this so had no case. The staff were however concerned enough to get me another hotel which was just excellent. I collected my luggage and headed for my new place of abode. The icing on the cake was, it was a very good hotel with very fast internet service in the rooms free of charge, just plug and surf. So here I sit at 12.00 midnight just hitting away at my lap top, I really do not want to sleep, such luxuries in the field is very rare you know. But as nature will have it I have to obey so this is to say bye and hope to link up again.

Ciao
Beatrice from Mozambique
(Acting Grants Manager)

Wow, today is truly an exciting day. So many of us thought that we will never in our lifetime see a Black person in the ‘White House’ and that day has arrived. The question for me is ‘if we thought that was impossible’ then what else is possible? Is it possible to have a Black woman in the White House? Is it possible to have a Feminist President? Is it possible to live in a world where all women live in peace, security and equity? I think the answer has to be ‘Yes it is!’

Personally the importance of an Obama victory in the US elections is significant because of the powerful symbolism he represents. I have to confess at the start of his campaign for the Democratic Party ticket I thought ‘he doesn’t have a chance!’ I thought even if he succeeds in winning the Democratic Party ticket he is highly unlikely to win the US elections. I thought Hilary Clinton was a safer bet for the Democrats and she was a strong woman candidate (a positive attribute in my opinion). Well, I been proved so wrong and I am thrilled about that. It is a great thing to be wrong when you have lost hope in humankind. It is a great thing to be wrong when you fail to anticipate that record numbers of young people, women and people of diverse ethnicities will turn out to vote for a mixed race male whom they perceive to symbolise hope, diversity and a new world.

The Obama victory reminds me that the feminist battle may not take as long as we think it might. The Obama victory reminds me of Malcolm Gladwell’s Tipping Point, which emphasises that the right context, a few key individuals and creativity can result in change occurring within a very short period of time.

Nana Sekyiamah
Programme Officer (Fundraising & Communications)

Hello Sisters,

For the next few weeks you will be reading from me from Southern Africa. I give you a peep into my diary for the week ending October 31st, 2008. I write from the city of Lilongwe (Are you wondering where the hell that city is?) Wonder no more, it is the capital of Malawi in Southern Africa. A city that appears to be lightly populated with virtually no traffic, if you compare it to the city of Accra not to mention the city of Lagos, you are virtually in heaven. I arrived in the afternoon of the 27th of October, after about 6.5 hours flight to the city of Jo’burg and a wait of about 4 hours in transit. I could not help but soak in my first impression of Malawi, a dry and low densely populated land (At least from my impression on the long stretch of the highway leading from the airport to the city centre). I was also caught off guard with the left hand drive system in the country. I can never get over the fact that some countries drive on the left, I always get the impression that the vehicle in which I am riding will be involved in a headon collision with oncoming cars. And how do they manage to change gears with their left hand especially for right handed people? Anyway it all has to do with diversities of culture and systems.

I go straight into a meeting with one of the partners after I have managed a quick shower and eventually get to enjoy my hotel room at about 7.00pm dead tired, not before I have had a brush with a young Indian guy with an attitude, whose vehicle I was hiring for the next day’s trip to another city, Blantyre. It was one of the times I regret not taking lessons from Bisi on how to do the “dance”. Questioning me as if I was highly out of his league of customers or that I had the trait of somebody who was going to escape without settling the bill. It was only after I had retorted sharply to him that I was paying in cash that he changed his attitude. Malawi has a large Indian population and they appear to dominate the business landscape in Lilongwe. I had earlier tried to fly to Blantyre only to be told by Air Malawi that they had unilaterally decided that there was not going to be a flight to Blantyre the next day. I guess they are not really different from our very own dear erratic Ghana Airways or Virgin Nigeria; it must be a kind of virus on the continent.

Malawi really stands up to its slogan “Warm heart of Africa” the place is warm in all senses of the word. The weather is actually hot and the people friendly. The city of Lilongwe is very well set out into sectors with clearly demarcated areas and well numbered and named streets, there is no way a visitor will miss her way around the city (Remember it is a comparatively new city built after independence).

The next day is another marathon for me rushing to the Mozambican embassy to put in an application for an urgent visa (There is no Mozambican consulate in Ghana) through to attending a convening with some very dynamic women which was quite refreshing, to meeting with another grantee in her office immediately after. I finally picked up the Mozambican visa and headed for the city of Blantyre which used to house the capital of Malawi during the colonial era. By the time I arrived in Blantyre after 6.00pm I was ready to collapse. The trip to Blantyre was however eventful for me. Just outside the city of Lilongwe in the Dedza district are these awe inspiring, very nicely arranged and cultured range of mountains as if a gardener has the task of keeping them prim and proper with clusters of huts beneath their base. As usual, traveling along country roads you do not miss the quest of man to be seen and heard. I saw the ingenuity of (wo) man with product adverts carved into the hill sides and huge boulders, as well as all kind of billboards. Some interesting ones that caught my attention include “herbalist of the century” and “Beerman cave” you can imagine what happens in those two places with its resultant effect on women.

I also saw some of the effects of colonialism when in the town of Nhyehox, my self- imposed tour guide points out to me that the right side of the road is Mozambican while the left side belongs to the people of Malawi. But wait a minute, if you want to fly from Malawi to Mozambique, you will have to fly for two hours first to Johannesburg before connecting to a flight to Mozambique which is likely to take about one hour and ten minutes, that is Africa for you.

The city of Blantyre appears more densely populated and bursting with activity than Lilongwe. After a radio interview and a convening with women’s groups the next day, I go to visit one grantee and I noticed that the elevators in Malawi appear to work better than those in Accra, perhaps they do not have the power problems Ghana perennially experiences. After, I endure the long drive back to Lilongwe (About 4 hours) that afternoon and for the first time after arriving in Malawi I appear to have some respite, your guess is very right this is about 7pm. I recheck into the hotel Cresta Cross Roads, collect my luggage from storage and decide to take a stroll around the vicinity of the hotel which is within a huge complex of other businesses (Malawi is a comparatively safe city). The next morning I get an anti climax when I visit a grantee in Lilongwe who has over under performed, I just could not keep myself in check, well God was good as usual, He helped me to control my disappointment and after a lengthy discussion in their office I request to see the shop AWDF is suppose to be supporting. The shop has been so abandoned, infact it has never been put to use, and after wasting time and fuel to go to the place they could not open the doors to the shop so mission unaccomplished, remember this is a live grant. After this anti climax I had to rush to the airport enroute to my next destination.

The next time you read from me I am probably going to have another identity, till then hold the fort tightly.

With all the warmth I can gather in Malawi,
Beatrice

I can’t tell you the number of times I have had conversations (read arguments) with people (read men) about why Feminists focus on women. A few days ago a friend said to me ‘ Why don’t feminists work with humans…soon the script will flip…‘

Well guess what I found when I was sorting through my files from my days at LSE’s Gender Institute? Answers to this very question in the form of fantastic quotes which I will share below:

‘ What women are challenging is something everyone can see. Men’s grievances, by contrast seem hyperbolic, almost hysterical; so many men seem to be doing battle with phantoms and witches that exist only in their own overheated imaginations. Women see men as guarding the fort, so they don’t see how the culture shapes men. Men don’t see how they are influenced by the culture either; in fact, they prefer not to. If they did, they would have to let go of the illusion of control.’ (Susan Faludi, Stiffed: The Betrayal of the Modern Man, p.14)

‘(I)t has become commonplace to see powerful and successful men weeping in public – Ronald Reagan shedding a tear at the funeral of slain U.S. soldiers, basketball player Michael Jordan openly crying after winning the NBA championship. Most recent, the easy manner in which the media lauded U.S. General Schwartzkopf as a New Man for shedding a public tear for the U.S. casualties in the Gulf War is indicative of the importance placed on styles of masculine gender display rather than the institutional position of power that men such as Schwartzkopf.'(Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo and Michael A.Messner ‘Gender Displays and Men’s Power: The ‘New Man’ and the Mexican Immigrant Man,’ in Theorizing Masculinities)

‘There has also been, alongside the survival of what we might call routine popular misogyny, evidence of the partial reversal of the traditional evaluation of stereotypical masculine and feminine traits…This is not evidence of the arrival of sexual equality in material or ideological terms, but it is evidence of dramatic change…This suggests that popular discussion of the ‘crisis’ in masculinity and changes in the prospects that face men, or the popularity of appeals to rediscover ‘the deep masculine’ proferred by Robert Bly(1991) are more than anti-feminist backlash. They are evidence of the material and ideological weakening and collapse of patriarchy. It is a bad time to be a man, compared to the supremacy men have enjoyed in the past – and this is a thoroughly good thing. (John mcInnes, The End of Masculinity, p. 55)

‘ The feminine mystique’s collapse a generation earlier was not just a crisis but a historical opportunity for women. Women responded to their ‘problem with no name’ by naming it and founding a political movement, by beginning the process of freeing themselves. Why haven’t men done the same? This seems to me to be the real question that lurks behind the ‘masculinity crisis’ facing American society; not that men are fighting against women’s liberation, but that they have refused to mobilize for their own-or their society’s-liberation. Not that traditional male roles are endangered, but that men are in danger of not acting.’ (Susan Faludi, Stiffed: The Betrayal of the Modern Man, p.41)

What are your thoughts on the quotes?

Nana Sekyiamah
Programme Officer
Fundraising & Communication

I was reading through some of the notes I took at the 2nd African Feminist Forum recently held in Kampala, Uganda and just have to share some of the great quotes which struck me (some funny, some spot on, some simply controversial…’ Enjoy!

‘Feminism is like Christianity, you have to convert people.’ Hope Chigudu quoted by Dr Hilda Tadria

‘Retired, still not tired’ Dr Hilda Tadria

‘Many of us have learnt to settle for the world as it is, not the world that ought to be’ Michelle Obama quoted by Dr Hilda Tadria

‘Integrity is what you do when no one is watching’ Rotary speaker quoted by Dr Hilda Tadria

‘Have you ever heard of inviting your oppressor to join you? In every sense of the word they have screwed us up’. Solome Nakaweesi Kimbugwe

‘If someone hasn’t felt how it feels to eat last, to work more and to earn less how do you expect them to support you…’ Solome Nakaweesi Kimbugwe

‘Arguments below the waist beads…a kick in the ovum’s’ Zeedah

‘Patriarchy is a system so men are not the enemy’ Pregs Govender

Nana Sekyiamah
Programme Officer
Fundraising & Communications

Part of what I have enjoyed the most at this year’s AFF has been the sheer creativity unleashed. Jessica Horn who is a member of the AFF working group has kindly agreed that I can reproduce this poem which she wrote in honour of Lovetta Warner and read during one of the workshops I attended:

Call her love

is going to do it today

Nana Sekyiamah
Programme Officer
Fundraising & Communications

AWDF in association with our partners Akina Mama wa Afrika are currently convening the 2nd African Feminist Forum in Uganda. At the opening ceremony this morning Dr Susan Kiguli, a lecturer at the Institute of Languages, University of Makarere shared a powerful poem which she wrote specifically for this occasion.

NO LONGER A VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS

together a vision of the times
spreading revolution
creating change

We refuse you to take
more than we are able to supply
together a vision of the times
spreading revolution
creating change

My question to you here is ‘Will you continue to be a voice in the wilderness?’

Nana Sekyiamah
Programme Officer
Fundraising & Communications

One of the things I had promised to do this week is to blog about my experiences at the ‘Women Raising Millions’ training course being held in San Francisco by the Women’s Funding Network. Part of what has been great about this course has been the opportunity to learn from all the other women who lead and work for women’s funds across the world. I found myself yesterday starting to make a note of ‘What do you need to be a successful fundraiser?‘ and compiled my list based on what people were saying and ideas that struck me during the day. Part of what I think is really interesting at this point in time is that AWDF in association with Resource Alliance(UK) and the Ghana Institute of Management and Professional Association (GIMPA) is currently running in Ghana a fundraising course with trainers including Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, Executive Director of AWDF, Abigail Burgesson, Senior Program Manager for Special Programs and Joan Koomson, Donor Liason Officer.

So here is my list so far:

To be a successful fundraiser you need to :

* Be passionate about your cause
* Have an extensive network of friends and supporters
* Be knowledgeable about your organisation and have key figures and facts about your organisations to hand
* Have a compelling story about why your organisation should be funded
* Research your prosepctive donors
* Ask for advice not money ( I think I will need to write a separate blog about this)
* Understand that ‘No’ only means ‘Hello’
* Track the impact of your work and be prepared to show the results of your work
* Think of innovative ways to raise money
* Work hard to establish connections and good relationships with your funders
* Cultivate your prospects (this could be a separate blog too!)
* Find opportunities to learn more about your prospective donors
* Not worry about making mistakes – see mistakes as learning opportunities
* Dedicate time and resources to fundraising
* Find out what issues your prospects emotionally connect with

Nana Sekyiamah
Programme Officer
Fundraising & Communications

My flight left Accra, Ghana at about 22.30pm GMT and finally arrived in San Francisco, California at about 15.00(about 20.00 GMT) the following day. It took at least an hour to get through immigration…going through US immigration is probably one of the things I hate most about travelling to the US. I always find that I get asked the most inane questions (maybe the questions are not inane and I just hate being quizzed). One of the questions I got asked this time was ‘You’ve been to Turkey?‘. I had a Turkish stamp in my passport from a holiday there a year ago and ‘Have you been to the US before?‘. My answer, ‘several times‘ and the follow up question from the Immigration Officer was ‘ Was this on this passport or your previous passport‘. I guess it was in my previous passport as my current passport was issued in 2006 and I had no US stamps in there. Actually I just realised I probably have it easy when it comes to US immigration.I have dual nationality and carry a British passport…I can only imagine what life would be like if I travelled on a Ghanaian passport.

I am in San Francisco to participate in the ‘Women Raising Millions‘ training program which seeks to enable women’s funds to leverage millions. I have been looking forward to this course but also slightly concerned about the fact that the majority of participants are Executive Directors of their own organisations whereas I am a programme officer. After Day 1 of this course, that concern has gone. I still think the other participants have an advantage over me because they are the primary decision makers in their own organisations but the good thing is I haven’t felt out of my league at all which was one of my concerns. Part of what I want to do on this blog this week is to share some of my key learnings from this course.

Key learning for me today has been:

* A reminder about the importance of ‘story-telling’. When you tell a donor or potential donor about your fund you are able to connect with them at a deeper level than when you state what your mission is.

* Some of the most exciting results we get from the work we fund are ‘unexpected’ and may not always come across in grantee reports. A good way to get this information is to ask ‘ What were your unexpected results?’

* Do not ask potential donors for money straightaway. Ask instead for advice. A useful quote that the guest presenter Tuti shared is ‘ When you ask for money you get advice. When you ask for advice, you get money‘.

If you are a fundraiser reading this blog I am really curious to find out what you have learnt about leveraging major funding from individuals? What has had to be in place for you to raise major gifts from individuals?

Nana Sekyiamah
Programme Officer
Fundraising & Communications

The Northern Region of Ghana has seen so much violence in recent times. The Bawku conflict has been the most prominent but now there appears to be new conflicts as a result of politics. For a relatively peaceful nation like Ghana this is a tragedy!

Political campaigns should be focused on issues which are developmental and should not result in the destruction of meager developmental gains chalked over a rather long period. At the end of the day which group of people suffers most from conflict? Your guess is as good as mine – the grandmothers, the mothers, and the children. No wonder the Regional Minister wept after visiting the scene of chaos, burnt houses and destruction as a result of fighting between supporters of Ghana’s largest political parties. (As depicted by September 4, 2008 edition of the Daily Graphic, one of the major newspapers in Ghana).

That reminds me of a visit Hilda Gorlluh (Program Assistant, Grants) and I carried out in October 2007 when we visited a widows group, ‘Winampang Widows group’ near Bawku, the capital city of the Upper-East Region of Ghana. We broke down and wept after we visited the group. Why did we weep? We were simply overwhelmed with the poverty, misery, agony, disease, food insecurity and all the other challenges facing widows in the group. It is my sincere hope that despite the challenges of living in conflict affected zones, the recent grant provided to ‘Winampang Widows group’ group by AWDF for economic empowerment activities will enable beneficiaries to make a better life for themselves.

People of the Northern Region of Ghana, People of West Africa and people of the African continent, let us give peace a chance. Let us acknowledge the fact that we are all one people with a common destiny. There is no doubt that our continent, countries and regions are very rich in natural and human resources. Let us direct our resources and concert our efforts to development instead of destruction and the vehicle for such a process is nothing, but PEACE.

Grace Amenyogbeli
Administration Manager