Ntengwe for Community Development leads the way

Land is considered a major source of wealth, social status and power. In African countries where women are the major work force on agricultural land, the security of their rights over this key resource is often denied them.

This is what drove AWDF grantee partner, Ntengwe for Community Development to undertake this incredible initiative to improve access to land rights for women in four African countries: Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Nigeria.

The results have been phenomenal with life-changing impacts for some of the women in these countries. Click here to read the inspiring report on the Results and impacts of the “Pathways to Economic Justice on Women’s Land Rights”

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The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF), Fondo Mujeres del Sur (FMS), the International Indigenous Women’s Forum (FIMI), and Women’s Fund Asia (WFA) are excited to share that the Leading from the South (LFS) initiative, which they collectively conceptualised in 2016 to support feminist activism and movement-building in the Global South, has been renewed for another five years.

A unique partnership model, LFS is a feminist resource alliance that supports feminist activism and lobbying efforts by women, girls, and trans led organisations, movements, and networks at the regional, national, and grassroots levels in the Global South. Recognising that women, girls, and trans people are best placed to determine ways in which to address injustice and unequal power relations in their own communities, LFS resources and supports those who lead change and transform societies towards the full achievement of gender equality and human rights in the Global South. In addition to recognising the critical leadership of the South in guiding resources to address the experience of the Global South, it also values the impact of southern feminism in claiming resources on grounds of equality and non-discrimination to ensure women’s access to and enjoyment of human rights.

In its first phase, LFS was financed through a special grant of €42 million from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands over four years. By renewing their financial commitment and increasing it to €80 million over the next five years, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has demonstrated its commitment to leadership from the Global South in addressing women’s rights and gender equality. This strengthened relationship between the Dutch Government and the LFS Consortium also makes a vital contribution to the reframing of bilateral relationships with Southern-led feminist funders.

Leveraging the successes, lessons and reflections of the first phase of LFS, Leading from the South 2.0 will resource and support small, medium, and large feminist organisation in urban, rural, and regional contexts, advocating for the rights of women, girls, and trans people in the Global South. LFS 2.0 will operate across multiple regions, including Africa and the Middle East, Asia, the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean (with each fund determining the appropriate geographical and delivery mechanisms for their region), ensuring a global focus on the leadership of and advocacy by women, girls, and trans people. LFS 2.0 will start in early 2021 with calls for proposals from the member women’s funds.

Our present challenges are located in a context of the global COVID-19 pandemic, which has exposed and accelerated the breakdown of our social institutions. It has disproportionately impacted women, girls and trans people, combined with the shrinking of civic space and rise of regressive governmental and societal forces, has further pushed back progress on gender equality. The role of women’s funds has become even more critical in these times. By placing the resources in the hands of feminist leaders from across the Global South, LFS 2.0 contributes to creating an enabling environment that centres ethical leadership, justice, and equality for all.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH OUR ANIMATED VIDEO OF AN OVERVIEW OF LFS

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African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF), Fondo Mujeres del Sur (FMS), International Indigenous Women’s Forum (FIMI) et Women’s Fund Asia (WFA) sont heureux de vous annoncer que l’initiative “Le Sud aux Rênes du Leadership” (LFS), qu’elles ont collectivement conçue en 2016 pour soutenir le militantisme féministe et construire de mouvement dans le Sud, a été renouvelée pour cinq ans.

En tant qu’un modèle de partenariat unique, LFS est une initiative qui soutient non seulement le militantisme féministe mais aussi les efforts de lobbying des femmes, des filles, des organisations dirigées par les transgenres, les mouvements et les réseaux aux niveaux régional, national et local dans le Sud. Reconnaissant que les femmes, les filles et les personnes transgenres sont les mieux placées pour déterminer les moyens de lutter contre l’injustice et les relations de pouvoir inégales dans leurs propres communautés, LFS fournit des ressources ; soutient celles qui sont au-devant du changement et transforment les sociétés vers la pleine réalisation de l’égalité des sexes et la jouissance des droits fondamentaux dans le Sud. En plus de jouer un rôle déterminant dans l’orientation des ressources dans le Sud afin de répondre à leurs exigences, elle souligne également l’impact du féminisme dans le Sud tout en revendiquant des ressources pour promouvoir l’égalité, la non-discrimination des femmes et les permettre d’accéder et de jouir pleinement de leurs droits fondamentaux.

Dans sa première phase, LFS a été financée par une subvention spéciale de 42 millions d’Euros du Ministère des Affaires Etrangères des Pays-Bas et s’étendait sur quatre ans. En renouvelant son engagement financier tout en augmentant cette subvention spéciale à 80 millions d’Euros sur les cinq prochaines années, le Ministère des Affaires Etrangères des Pays-Bas a démontré son engagement en faveur du leadership du Sud dans le domaine des droits des femmes et de l’égalité des sexes. Cette relation renforcée entre le gouvernement néerlandais et le consortium de LFS contribue également de manière significative au recadrage des relations bilatérales avec les bailleurs de fonds intéressés par le féminisme dans le Sud.

Se basant sur les succès, les leçons apprises et les réflexions de la première phase, l’initiative “Le Sud aux Rênes du Leadership phase 2 apportera des ressources et un soutien aux petites, moyennes et grandes organisations féministes dans les contextes urbains, ruraux et régionaux, tout en défendant les droits des femmes, des filles et des personnes transgenres dans le Sud. L’initiative LFS phase 2 sera mise en œuvre dans plusieurs régions, notamment en Afrique et au Moyen-Orient, en Asie, dans le Pacifique, en Amérique latine et dans les Caraïbes (chaque fonds déterminera les mécanismes géographiques et de mise en œuvre appropriés pour sa région) tout en veillant à ce que l’accent soit mis sur le leadership et le plaidoyer des femmes, des filles et des personnes transgenres. LFS phase 2 sera mise en œuvre début 2021 avec des appels à propositions de projets venant des quatre fonds de femmes.

Nos défis actuels se situent dans le contexte de la pandémie mondiale de COVID-19, qui a exposé et accéléré l’effondrement de nos institutions sociales. Elle a eu un impact démesuré sur les femmes, les filles et les personnes transgenres, et a contribué au rétrécissement de l’espace civique et à la montée en puissance des forces gouvernementales et sociétales régressives faisant ainsi reculer les progrès en matière d’égalité des sexes. Le rôle des fonds pour les femmes est devenu encore plus crucial en ces temps. En plaçant les ressources entre les mains des leaders féministes dans le Sud, LFS phase 2 contribuera à la création d’un environnement favorable centré sur le leadership éthique, la justice et l’égalité pour tous.

CLIQUEZ ICI POUR LA VIDEO SUR LFS

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Are you passionate about women’s rights in Africa, excited about African feminism, embrace African women’s diversity and are innovative?
Are you adept at assessing grants applications for funding and contributing in-depth knowledge to shape grants strategy in the context of women’s rights?
Do you have experience developing, coordinating, managing and implementing projects?
Are you ready to contribute to outreach and networking as well as fundraising activities as required to promote women’s rights in Africa?

We have an exciting position vacant and looking for a dynamic team player to join us as Programme Officer – Special Initiatives.The Programme Officer (P.O.) plays a critical role in the Grants Department with a primary responsibility for development, coordination, management and implementation of the Leading From the South (LFS) programme in particular, plus contributing to the other work of the Grants team in general. This includes outreach with the team to grow the grants portfolio, knowledge production in selected areas, and contributing to monitoring, learning and evaluation. The P.O. will work in close collaboration with other Grants Programme Officers and Assistants, and with staff in communications, knowledge management, resource mobilisation, finance, administration and overall management.

For more details about this position, please click here.

How to Apply:
Qualified and interested persons should send a cover letter indicating their relevant skills and experience and CV of not more than 3 pages by email to:

The Human Resources Manager at jobs@awdf.org with application for the position being applied for indicated as the subject line. The is a re-advertised post and previous applicants need not apply.

Applications for the vacancies should reach AWDF no later than 6th January, 2021. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for additional information and interviews.
In line with AWDF’s Mission, qualified African women are encouraged to apply

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What a year this has been! From a global pandemic to a series of economic, social, racial and political crises, 2020 has taken thousands of lives and exposed and deepened the inequalities and injustices which African feminists had been fighting tirelessly for decades. For us all as individuals, as organisations, and as movements, 2020 was at once sorrowful and hopeful.

And yet, we thrived together. Despite all the challenges that came their way, our amazing AWDF grantee partners have found innovative ways to maintain the momentum in their advocacy, activism and solidarity. Right from the onset of the pandemic, you went straight to the frontline, providing solace and comfort to your communities, protecting the lives of fellow African women and girls, and challenging patriarchal systems of oppression.

The AWDF team’s priority was to continue to support you in all the creative and flexible ways the circumstances warranted, and we have learned invaluable lessons that will continue to shape our work moving forward. As we work with our grantee partners, other women’s funds, and the entire African feminist community, our contribution to the post-COVID world will be grounded in an actualisation of our feminist values and a prioritisation of self-care and wellness.

For us, 2020 has been a year of joyous transitions. We successfully closed phase one of Leading from the South and looking to moving to the next phase. We also saw a number of our colleagues transition out of the organisation and moving on to new chapters in their lives. Notable among these were our Director of Programmes Jessica Horn (read her reflection here), and now imminently, our indomitable CEO, Theo Sowa, who is bidding farewell to AWDF after nine years at its helm.

As Theo explained in this brief podcast, leadership transitions must be celebrated, not feared, for they contribute to the vibrancy of feminist movements. We are excited to welcome Françoise Moudouthe as our new CEO. Françoise is a passionate advocate for women’s rights and says she’s looking forward to working with the AWDF team to nurture and support dynamic feminist activism in Africa and beyond.

To end the year, we are heeding the advice of our sister Hope Chigudu on the importance of servicing our bodies like vehicles and taking a much-needed step in self-care: rest. We will therefore be going on a break from 18 December 2020 until 6 January 2021. We hope that you too will get a chance to rest, and we look forward to standing alongside you in the New Year as you work to defend and protect the lives of African women and girls.

Here’s to entering 2021 in the spirit of solidarity and sisterhood! We wish you all the happiest of holidays, and a marvellous New Year!

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Quelle année! D’une pandémie mondiale à une série de crises économiques, sociales, raciales et politiques, l’année 2020 a fait des milliers de victimes et a exposé et approfondi les inégalités et les injustices que les féministes africaines combattaient inlassablement depuis des décennies. En tant qu’individus, organisations et mouvements, 2020 a été pour nous tous à la fois une année de tristesse et d’espoir.

Et pourtant, nous avons progressé ensemble. Malgré tous les défis qui se sont présentés, nos formidables partenaires bénéficiaires de subventions ont trouvé des moyens innovants pour maintenir l’élan de leur plaidoyer, de leur activisme et de leur solidarité. Vous avez été en première ligne dès le début de la pandémie, apportant soulagement et réconfort à vos communautés, protégeant la vie des autres femmes et filles africaines et remettant en question les systèmes patriarcaux d’oppression.

Notre priorité était de continuer à vous soutenir de toutes les manières créatives et flexibles que les circonstances justifiaient, et nous avons tiré des leçons importantes qui guideront notre travail à l’avenir. En travaillant avec nos partenaires bénéficiaires de subventions, d’autres fonds pour les femmes et l’ensemble de la communauté féministe africaine, notre apport au monde après le COVID-19 sera fondé sur une actualisation de nos valeurs féministes et sur la priorisation des autosoins et du bien-être.

Pour nous, 2020 a été une année de transitions joyeuses. Nous avons conclu avec succès la première phase du projet Le Sud Aux Rênes de Leadership (LFS) et nous nous réjouissons de passer à la phase suivante. Un certain nombre de nos collègues ont également quitté l’organisation et sont passés à de nouveaux chapitres de leur vie. Notamment notre directrice des programmes, Jessica Horn (lire sa réflexion ici), et bientôt notre indomptable PDG, Theo Sowa, qui fait ses adieux à l’AWDF après neuf ans de direction.

Comme Theo l’a expliqué dans ce bref podcast, les transitions de leadership doivent être fêtées, et non pas redoutées, car elles renforcent la vitalité des mouvements féministes. Nous sommes ravis d’accueillir Françoise Moudouthe comme notre nouvelle directrice générale. Françoise est une avocate passionnée des droits de la femme et se dit impatiente de travailler avec l’équipe de l’AWDF pour nourrir et soutenir le dynamisme du mouvement féministe en Afrique et au-delà.

Pour terminer l’année, nous suivons le conseil de notre soeur Hope Chigudu sur l’importance de prendre soin de notre corps comme un véhicule et de faire un pas nécessaire dans l’autosoin : le repos. Nous allons donc faire une pause du 18 décembre 2020 au 6 janvier 2021. Nous espérons que vous aurez vous aussi l’occasion de vous reposer et nous nous réjouissons de vous rejoindre au cours de la nouvelle année pour défendre et protéger la vie des femmes et des filles africaines.

Entrons en 2021 en toute solidarité et sororité ! Tous nos vœux de bonheur pour les congés et une merveilleuse nouvelle année !

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Written by: Dinnah Nabwire, Knowledge Management Specialist, AWDF

Brief following the launch of the report Women and NCDs in Africa: Mapping the scale, actors and extent of rights-based work to address the impact of NCDs on African women.

Many people think that non-communicable diseases (NCDs) disproportionately affect men and richer populations especially those in the Global North. However, research shows that NCDs are increasingly becoming a leading cause for death and disability among women in low- and middle-income countries, disproportionately affecting those in the lowest socioeconomic groups, with direct negative implications to development, human rights and social justice.

Professor Ana Mocumbi, the co-chair of The Lancet Commission on NCDs and injuries, made these observations during her keynote address at the AWDF launch of the report Women and NCDs in Africa: Mapping the scale, actors and extent of rights-based work to address the impact of NCDs on African women during a virtual event at the Women and Girls Africa Summit.The report which is available in both English and French is a compilation of findings from a continent-wide study in all 54 countries to assess the scale and key gendered concerns around NCDs with a focus on cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and mental health. It also maps key actors and the extent of rights-based work on NCDs in Africa. An executive summary of the report is also available in both English and French and provides a synthesis of the key findings.

Click here to read the post-session article.

AWDF is honoured to be sponsoring the Women and Girls Summit (WAGS), which takes place virtually from November 16-18, 2020, and aims to prepare women and girls as leaders in key industries to ensure that Africa realises its full potential on issues ranging from entrepreneurship to the impact of climate change, to reproductive health, to developing socially responsible enterprises.

The AWDF session, Non-communicable diseases and African women’s health futures: A feminist research-based call to invest in sustainable solutions will examine the scale and key gendered concerns around NCDs with a focus on cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and mental health; the key actors and extent of rights-based work on NCDs on the continent.

Our Director of Programmes, Pontso Mafethe is one of the speakers at the summit under AWDF’s co-hosted session to launch findings of research on Women and Noncommunicable diseases in Africa. The session will be moderated by Global Health Council Executive Director and President, Loyce Pace and joined by key speakers; Dr. Ana Mocumbi (Lancet NCDI Poverty Commission), Dr. Beatrice Wiafe (Ghana NCD Alliance and CEO Breast Care International) and Dr. Johanna Riha (Epidemiologist, Researcher).

The session speakers were carefully selected to draw on their rich experience and expertise in utilising these research and current context to inform debate and investments for the sustainable futures of women’s health in Africa.

This transformational event will create a group of change agents in their own communities, passionate about driving and implementing actions that will help countries in Africa across the development continuum.

Click here to register for the Women and Girls Africa Summit 2020

And here to attend AWDF’s session on Women and NCDs in Africa.

Note: You have to register for the summit first to be able to join the side event.

There has been growing concern across Africa by activists and policymakersalike around the question of land rushes (especially after the 2007-2008 land rush) often framed as “land grabs” (see Oya 2013b, Dieng 2017), and their implications for local communities. This “global land rush”n,emerged in the turbulent context of socioeconomic and political transformations. While the drivers, scale and actors in this renewed interest in land (and labour) are still contested, a body of knowledge interested in its differentiated impact and outcomes, as well as political reactions to these deals, is still growing (Hall et al 2015). It is important for us to consider however that land deals “do not occur in a socio-economic or political vacuum” (Oya 2013b: 1550). They are interventions connecting capital with labour with previous and ongoing dynamics of place-making resulting in uneven, unfinished processes of social change. Not only do land deals re-shape the places in which they
occur, they are also an expression of capitalist expansion across the globe. Feminist, postcolonial and decolonial scholars have contributed to acknowledging that mainstream models with their limited interpretation of ‘the economic’ are grounded in gendered cultural values and norms, though the recognition of this has been late and partial (Barker et al 2003, Pollard et al 2011, Zein-Elabdin 2016).

This article compares two case studies¹: an export horticulture estate and a scheme funded by an international financial institution in communities based in the delta of the river, in Northern Senegal. These communities are experiencing the boom of commercial horticultural farming and rural labour markets after the 2007-2008 land rush whose effects sediment with and build on previous dynamics of social differentiation. In this article, I challenge the tendency to over-focus on either narratives emphasizing dualisms such as ‘insiders vs outsiders’ or prioritising economic (and gendered) outcomes of ‘land grabs’.

“Read the full article here

Women’s ways lead us to the solutions the planet and the people need

Peasant and working-class women in Africa bear the brunt of climate-destroying ‘development’ projects which grab, pollute and destroy their natural resources, undermine cultural and historical ties to territories, exploit their labour (paid and unpaid), and violate their bodies and health. And women form the core of struggles to defend the land, lives, livelihoods and future of their families and communities. Their struggle is one that defends a way of life and an existence that cannot be replaced. This is their development alternative. Yet, women have limited voice and authority in decision- making about development at all levels of society. We note the ways in which African peasant and working-class women care for, replenish and reproduce nature and humans.

This article by Margaret Mapondera, Trusha Reddy and Samantha Hargreaves examines the ecological and climate crisis as a critical dimension of the manifold threats facing the planet and most of its peoples today.

Read the article here

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We are hiring to fill vacancies for the under-listed positions with persons who are innovative, passionate about women’s rights in Africa, excited about African feminism and embrace African women’s diversity.

1. Programme Officer – Special Initiatives (Download Terms of Reference here)
2. Communications & Fundraising Assistant (Download Terms of Reference here)
3. Knowledge Management Assistant (Download Terms of Reference here)
4. Capacity Building Officer – Maternity Cover (Download Terms of Reference here)

If this is you, please download the attached TOR’s and send in your application.

How to Apply: Qualified and interested persons should send a cover letter indicating their relevant skills and experience and CV of not more than 3 pages by email to:

The Human Resources Manager at jobs@awdf.org with application for the position being applied for indicated as the subject line.

Closing Date: 6 November 2020

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for additional information and interviews.

In line with AWDF’s Mission, qualified African women are encouraged to apply.

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Nous invitons des personnes innovantes, passionnées par les droits des femmes en Afrique, le féminisme africain et croyant en la diversité des femmes africaines à poser leurs candidatures pour les postes ci-après :

1. Administratrice de Programmes – Initiatives spéciales (Téléchargez les termes de référence ici )
2. Assistante en Communications et Mobilisation des ressources (Téléchargez les termes de référence ici)
3. Assistante Gestion des Connaissances (Téléchargez les termes de référence ici)
4. Officier – renforcement des capacités – Contrat à courte durée (Téléchargez les termes de référence ici)

Intéressez? Veuillez télécharger les termes de référence et envoyez–nous votre demande.

Comment postulez : Les personnes qualifiées et intéressées doivent envoyer une lettre de motivation indiquant leurs compétences et expériences ainsi qu’un CV de 3 pages maximum par e-mail au responsable des ressources humaines à l’adresse jobs@awdf.org en indiquant comme objet la candidature pour le poste à pourvoir.

Date de clôture : 6 novembre 2020

Seuls(es) les candidats(es) présélectionnés(es) seront contactés(es) pour des informations complémentaires et des entretiens.

Conformément à la mission de l’AWDF, les femmes africaines qualifiées sont encouragées à postuler

NB : Les Termes de Reference ne sont disponibles qu’en Anglais.

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The concept of land is one that has been described as the cornerstone of economic development. According to Odeny (2013), land is one asset that farmers, pastoralists and other communities base their livelihoods. Land is also a significant component of business assets, which play significant role in business investment strategies. Thus, securing land rights can have a profound impact on economic development of any group of people.

This study situates land located in rural areas as both a means of agricultural production, livestock rearing and a place for gathering natural products that play an important role in local economies such as woodcutting, wild harvesting, grazing, fishing and hunting inter alia. In most cases, particularly among indigenous people, land is a source of identity and cultural heritage.

Read the second article in the second series here:

Legal Literacy as Integral to Rural Women’s Land Rights