Category: News

AWID Forum – Bahia, Brazil

The African Women’s Development fund participated in this year’s AWID Forum. Members of our organisation were present on several panels, and helped carry the voices of African Women to the discussions in Bahia, Brazil. The conference took place from the 8—11 September, with the Black Feminisms Pre-Forum taking place from the 5-6 September. The theme was “Imagining Feminist Futures”, and over the course of four days participants were made to imagine a feminist future and strategize around making that happen. It was an important, fruitful conference and we were glad to be a part of it.

Power and Care : A mind and Life Dialogue with the Dalai Lama

AWDF CEO Theo Sowa was a moderator at the Power and Care Dialogue, held in Brussels from September 9-11. It was a two and a half day Mind and Life Dialogue of leading experts with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The aim of the conference was to see how forces of power and care could be conscientiously and fruitfully allied, and engender projects and actions to promote the welfare of living beings and of our environment.

Launch of Education Commission Report to the United Nations Secretary General at the UN General Assembly

In September 2016, AWDF CEO Theo Sowa and other commissioners of the Global Commission for Education launched their report and agenda for action. They also presented the report to the United Nations Secretary General at the UN General Assembly.

Over the last year, the Education Commission has sought to persuade global leaders to take urgent action by bringing together the best evidence on what works in expanding access to quality education and learning for all. If leaders do not take action now to increase investment and reform global education, more than 124 million young people will continue to be denied access to schools and more than 250 million will not gain the skills they need to lead healthy and successful lives.

The African Women’s Development Fund will be hosting a thematic convening on arts, culture and sports from October 22-24th under the theme “Weavers of Intersectionality: Amplifying Women’s Rights, Social Justice and Feminist Narratives in Arts, Culture and Sport.”

The first of its kind, this convening will bring together key women creatives from multidisciplinary fields of art, cultural production and sports to talk about their experiences, connect with one another and devise new strategies to strengthen the voices of women within their industry and on the continent as a whole.

It is no secret that the multidisciplinary fields of arts, cultural production, and sports have a huge impact on how people across the world engage with one another and the African continent is no exception. Over the years, African traditions rich with oral history, visual imagery, poetry, proverbs, dance, theatre, and sports have used these tools for education, entertainment, conflict resolution and community building. However, these cultural industries have historically been dominated by men which limit women’s participation in these spaces.

Women’s engagement in arts and in sports has led to the birth of radical ideas, beliefs and attitudes about the immense value and contributions of women. It has also invigorated connections and possibilities for communities across the continent and the world at large. Through both the arts and sports, women have challenged and broken stereotypes, amplified the demands of women and feminist movements, raised resources, and spread messages of social change.

In spite of this work, women practitioners in arts, cultural production and sports face persistent restraints from intimidation, harassment, and theft of work to isolation, immobility, burnout and limited access to networks of care, support, and resources of sustainability. By working through a lens of intersectionality, African women are in a key position to speak out against multiple oppressions – gender, sexuality, disability, race, class, ethnicity, geography, etc. – within their fields of work. This convening will help connect women whose work has been instrumental in telling the stories of african women’s lives and who have used their various mediums to amplify women’s rights, social justice and feminist narratives. The multidimensional nature of the convening will promote cross learning and solidarity. It will be a creative, engaging space that will help spark new momentum for change within various creative industries on the continent.

THIRD FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT TRAINING FOR AWDF GRANTEES IN

LAGOS, NIGERIA

16 – 18 AUGUST, 2016

“I am once more excited that The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) is able to organise this important training with support from Comic Relief. Since 2014, thirty-six (36) organisations have benefited from our Finance Management Skills Trainings. Of these, 22 have already reported steps put in place toward sound financial systems. As feminist grant makers we understand the need for accountability and results and therefore work towards building robust organisations by investing in human resource development of our grantees. This skills enhancement training on finance management for finance officers and managers in Nigeria is one of the ways by which we do this.” Nafi Chinery, Capacity Building Programme Specialist, AWDF

Second Financial Management Training held in 2015 in Uganda.

The Capacity Building Unit of AWDF is organising its third Finance Management Training programme for finance officers and managers of grantee organisations. This skills enhancement training will be held from 16 – 18th August 2016 in Lagos, Nigeria.

This training forms part of AWDF’s mandate to provide technical skills to grantees in order to ensure sound and prudent financial management of resources for results in their organisations.

The three-day (3) training will bring together nineteen (19) finance managers and officers from twelve (12) grantee organisations from seven (7) states in Nigeria including Lagos, Akwa Ibom and Gombe states. The training will cover budgets and cash flow projections, grant management, internal controls and checks, compliance with statutory requirements, and financial reporting among others.

It is our hope that participants will gain insights and skills into developing sound financial systems that meet minimum international standards for any financial management including donor reporting. Below are some expectations expressed by some participants ahead of the Lagos training.

“My main expectation from the training is to gain additional best practice procedures to include in our Financial and Accounting Manual which is currently being developed. I expect to strengthen my knowledge on NGO regular financial recording and management.” Ms. Joy Ngwakwe, Executive Director at Centre for Advancement of Development Right (CEADER) in Lagos.

“Knowing the logic in allowable and unallowable expenditures and developing the ability to analyse financial reports as well as develop skills in prudent financial resource management” Lucy Auwalu, Executive Director, Women and Children of Hope Foundation, Lagos.

To learn financial management best practices that will promote HELIN in her dealing with donors and how to harmonise the management of finances from diverse donors.” Doris Brendan, Executive Director, Heal the Land Initiative Nigeria (HELIN), Uyo

As dialogues surrounding sexual and reproductive health take a more visible place on university campuses, young people around the world, particularly young women, have worked towards inciting meaningful discussions and solutions to the challenges they face. In the African context, this conversation manifests in the organisation of innovative programs such as the “Reproductive Health Rights Defenders Program in Zimbabwe”. The Students and Youth Working on Reproductive Health Action Team (SAYWHAT), a Zimbabwean organisation supported by the African Women’s Development Fund, has worked tirelessly to create this program.

During May of this year, SAYWHAT debuted a short documentary film highlighting the achievements of Defenders program, how young women students are actively trained to participate in SRHR advocacy and address key challenges. Through a series of interviews, the viewer is introduced to the faces behind the great success of this youth driven organisation.

Tadiwanahse Bunikai, one of the members of SAYWHAT shares about the organisation: “It has groomed strong, confident, powerful women who are able to go beyond the issues of reproductive rights to discuss issues of national policy, politics, social and economic development, and entrepreneurship”.

As young women in Zimbabwe are faced with a number of sexual and reproductive health issues (which include but are not limited to child marriage, poverty, gender based violence and government accountability), SAYWHAT emphasises the capacity building needs of young women in order to better promote advocacy for institutional change within a number of tertiary institutions in Zimbabwe.

On this, SAYWHAT’s Programs Manager, Vimbai Mlambo states, “I have gained more confidence in myself and in my ability to relate with governance issues within my institution. I feel even more empowered to lead an organisation as a young woman. Mentorship has changed my perception about leadership. For me, leadership has become about discipline and self-leadership”.

SAYWHAT’s emphasis on leadership skills and knowledge building has not only increased the confidence of members, but has also produced agents of change. Some of the success stories achieved by the SRHR Defenders Program include projects such as the “Condomise Campaign”, a globally recognised initiative that promotes safe sex options to young women and men. The program has become quite popilar with women students, so much so that the Ministry of Health and Child Care in collaboration with the National AIDS council in Zimbabwe have accepted the proposal by SAYWHAT members to conduct the campaign at a national level.

Individual projects by SAYWHAT members have also developed more accessible and hygienic sanitary disposal methods for girls and women as well as marketing campaigns to increase the appeal for and effective use of the female condom. In this way, the Reproductive Health Rights Defenders Program ensures the social welfare of young women.

In addition to their work with young women, the Reproductive Health Rights Defenders Program challenges policies that miss the mark on SRHR and pushes for institutional changes that ensure respect, support and protection of young women. The Defenders Team has created persistent awareness about a number of sexual harassment cases on several Zimbabwean university campuses and are working towards the implementation of more expansive policies for women students. Partly due to this effort, one of the defenders has been invited to work as a women’s rights advisee to the presiding judge at the High Court of Zimbabwe.

Ultimately, SAYWHAT’s Reproductive Health Rights Defenders Team has a compelling focus on skills interventions and policy implementation on SRHR issues. SAYWHAT continues to empower young women into diverse, influential roles that, in turn, help to to create just futures for other girls and women around the country.

We are proud of the incredible work that our grantee partner, SAYWHAT, is able to accomplish each day in Zimbabwe.

Watch the full documentary on the Reproductive Health Rights Defenders Program below:

By: Mama Biamah

Today, a diagnosis of HIV/AIDS no longer means a death sentence. For many women, however, the situation can quickly turn into one. While many constraints to accessing affordable medication exist, there are other complex factors at hand. Even with the right medication, the stigma, discrimination and injustice surrounding the illness can easily erase promise and opportunity from the futures of many, flipping lives that were once vibrant into mere shadows of what they once were. Public Health Network Uganda (PHAU) is an organisation that helps to correct this imbalance.

Since 2011, PHAU has focused on tackling stigma and discrimination surrounding HIV/AIDS and providing vital education to numerous communities in Uganda. In 2013, the prevalence of HIV for young men was 2.4 % and for young women, it was 4.2%. (UNAIDS, The Gap Report 2014) The spread of the illness affected women nearly twice as much as men within the same age range (15-24). This data only reinforced the international trend of girls and young women being particularly vulnerable to contracting HIV, and therefore, accelerating multi-layered risks within their livelihoods. Young women who do contract HIV are met with quite hostile and isolating social relations, complicated by the lack of education on how to prevent or manage the illness.

The most effective way of tackling this lack of information is by creating innovative programs and implementing sound policies that bridge the gap in young women’s education. This drive for comprehensive education is one of the many ways PHAU is helping lead the fight to end HIV/AIDS transmission, discrimination and stigma in Uganda. Their activities focus on providing a safe space for girls and young women to understand their condition and how to increase wellness in their lives and relationships with family, friends and within their communities. PHAU explores ways to create positive futures for the young women through hope, dignity and empowerment by also developing community initiatives targeting stigma and misinformation about HIV/AIDS.

AWDF is currently supporting PHAU with USD 15,000 to implement a compelling and unconventional outreach program to help tackle stigma within Uganda. The project was implemented in June 2015 and will be completed in November 2016.“Stamp Out Stigma” is a musical outreach campaign that reached several thousand people using flash mobs and street theatre in Kisenyi, a resource-strapped province in Kinshasa. The program’s popularity led to a sharp increase in attendance that provided an opportunity for 2,400 persons to receive HIV testing and/or counseling. Additionally, PHAU has trained and sensitised peer educators and community leaders on HIV stigma and discrimination as well as reproductive health and life skills development. The project’s reach continues to grow with PHAU reaching a total of 23,000 people.

One of PHAU’s current anti-stigma campaigns – “Tuli Wamu Nawe” – provides entrepreneurial training for HIV+ girls and young women to enable them to set up and manage small businesses. A participant, Nakisozi Mastulah – Kyabando Kisalonsalo, shares: “I have learned how to evaluated my business internally and externally using the SWOT Analysis”. The workshop also trained young women in financial systems and recordkeeping as an honest and responsible means to sustain their business practices. Such interventions also help the participants to sustain themselves and to focus on keeping a forward-thinking mindset. The training also helps the participants foster a sense of community that is integral to supporting their physical and mental wellbeing.

PHAU’s programs are widespread, impactful and inventive.The organisation’s response to the needs of positive girls and women is immense because PHAU recognises the complexity of the situation and how best to ensure accessibility, efficiency and effectiveness to those who need it the most. By using music, dance and theatre, PHAU entreats community members to confront those ostracised because of their illness as well as practices of stigma and discrimination against positive people. Through this work, it is clear that the Ugandan organisation is making holistic impact in the lives of girls and women and stimulating communities into open, active and inclusive ways of communication and participation with people living with HIV/AIDS.

For more check out their World Aids Day Flashmob below:

By: Maame Akua Kyerewaa Marfo

Last Month, AWDF CEO Theo Sowa spoke and moderated a series of panels at Women Deliver in Copenhagen, Denmark. Dignitaries such as H.R.H Crown Princess Mary of Denmark and Danish Minister Kristian Jensen along with other notable international players all gathered to discuss development and what the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) mean for women and girls today. She was interviewed by the Associate Editor of Devex and had some poignant things to say about the future of development and how Women and Girls should be central in discussions, policy development and implementation.

Check out the interview below:

From 1999 to 2003 the Liberian civil war persistently disrupted the lives of Liberian women, forcing many to seek refuge in neighbouring West African countries. Not willing to see their country disintegrate, Liberian women took action to catalyse an end to the war, organising within Liberia, but and also as refugee women in Ghana around the peace talks happening in Accra. Liberian women also organised to address their situation as refugees, and build leadership and resources to sustain their displaced communities.

A group of Liberian women refugees living in Accra, Ghana’s capital city, came together to form the New Liberian Women’s Organisation (NLWO) to help the women to develop new skills, improve their livelihoods and forge new bonds in their host country. The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) began to support NLWO in 2005 when the organisation was still based in Accra, and have accompanied the group with funding support totalling over USD 60,000 to date. The initial grants went towards strengthening the institutional capacity and leadership development of young refugee women. Further grants have resulted in the construction of a community center, livelihood and leadership workshops, and the provision of critical emergency supplies, with housands of lives changed for the better. .

Members of the New Liberian Women’s Organisation returned to Liberia in 2007 to continue their work. Over a decade later they remain active in their communities. With continued support from AWDF, NLWO has gone on to impact their communities in powerful ways. They have provided training sessions on gender equality and income generation for women who returned to a Liberia under new rules and had to learn how to survive and prosper once more. They have also created awareness on the spread of STDs and HIV. When the Ebola virus struck in 2014, NLWO women mobilised in the same way that they always had, to deepen education on the virus, in community spaces like schools and marketplaces. They also distributed safety and sanitary items and led an awareness campaign in the country’s rural areas, including the heavily affected Montserrado County. As a follow up to these activities, AWDF has awarded NLWO a grant of USD 15,000 to provide Ebola survivors with income generating opportunities and leadership and mentorship skills training. The project will also carry out educational activities on issues of women’s rights to economic security.

The New Liberian Women’s Organisation is one example of how women activists continually create and support initiatives that have tangible impact on their communities. It is important to recognise the meaningful contributions and valuable impact that women have made, historically, in Liberia and other conflict countries.

We know from experience that refugee women need both protection and respect for their rights as granted by international law. Unfortunately, international communities have been slow and inconsistent at fulfilling necessary human rights mandates to protect their citizens. We have learnt also that refugee women need resources to regain autonomy and to organise around response, recovery and rebuilding their lives, communities and societies. Not just shelter, food and health interventions, but financial support and other resources are necessary to help rebuild communities and lead emergency care responses to long term recovery, development and sustainability. Let’s make sure that the work of refugee women is properly recognised, facilitated, and amplified.

At the Ithemba informal farming area in Eesteriver in the Western Cape of South Africa, small food gardens, livestock projects with chickens, pigs and goats bear testimony to the “Women Organising for Social Justice” project more than a year after its conclusion. Project participants at the Ithemba farm tell stories of how they have steadily grown their food gardens, learned how to take care of their animals and turn their skills into fundraising activities.

In 2015, the Surplus People Project received USD 30,000 from AWDF to implement a year-long project entitled, “Women Organising for Social Justice”. The project increased women’s knowledge, skills and experience on environmental justice, food sovereignty and economic empowerment.

Watch the stories of the participants above and see the full story by clicking the link below.

Surplus People Grantee Highlight

AFRICAN WOMEN’S DEVELOPMENT FUND

JOB VACANCY : ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Background

The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) is a grant making foundation, which aims to support the work of the African women’s movement for peace, equality, sustainable development and social justice. AWDF, which is based in Accra, Ghana, requires the services of an astute, experienced, innovative, dedicated and dependable Administrative Assistant. Priority shall be given to female applicants.

Scope

Her responsibility shall be to assist the Human Resource Manager in providing administrative and HR services to the organisation to ensuring that AWDF’s operations are executed in an effective, accurate and up to date manner.

Responsibilities:

1. Keep the Front desk of the organization

2. Ensure effective and efficient receipt of incoming letters and documents distribution (and filling of documents where appropriate) as well outgoing ones;

1. Assist in resolving administrative problems by coordinating logistical complaints: receive, record and invite the relevant service provider to fix the problem
2. Assist in ensuring operation of equipment by completing preventive maintenance requirements; calling for repairs; maintaining equipment inventories; evaluating new equipment and techniques.
3. Assist in maintaining supplies inventory by checking stock to determine inventory level; anticipating needed supplies; placing and expediting orders for supplies; verifying receipt of supplies.
4. Assist in procurement processes according to the organisation’s procurement policy
5. Assist in maintaining electronic and hard copy filing system
6. Assist in maintaining confidential records and files
7. Take minutes at meetings and distribute them 7 days after the meeting
8. Provide professional administrative support to supervisor during recruitment process – collate soft and hard copies of applications received; communicate interview schedules, etc.

11. Assist in coordinating logistical arrangements both in-house and external events according to laid down procedures (flight bookings, accommodation, venue, for board meetings; Organise information / board papers other organisational meetings.
12. Assist in ordering and maintaining stationery and equipment supplies (checking quotations, wait for approval before purchases are made)
13. Assist in the renewal of permits , NGO recognition certificate and Filling of annual returns

1. Any other duties as may be assigned by the line manager

Person Specification

• Bachelor degree in HR/ Administration or its equivalents required
• Minimum of 2 years of hands on administrative support experience
• Proficiency in MS Word, MS Excel and MS Outlook a must
• Knowledge of office administration and reasonable knowledge of Human Resource management
• Knowledge of operating standard office equipment

Competencies required:

• Must have excellent communication (oral and written ) and listening skills
• Ability to speak and interact clearly and professionally
• Ability to prioritise work and strong problem solving skills
• Good research skills and attention to detail
• Ability to work methodically, accurately, timely and neatly
• Must be a team player with excellent inter personal skills
• Experienced working with an international organisation and has cultural awareness (preferred)

• Has good analytical skills
• Extremely organised. Strong multi-tasking and time-management skills.
• Can handle sensitive information with the highest degree of integrity and confidentiality.
• Knowledge in ticketing is a plus.
• Ability to work on one’s own with minimum supervision.

Qualified candidates should send typewritten applications and a CV of not more than 3 pages to the Human Resource Manager, African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF), 78 Ambassadorial Enclave, East Legon, P.M.B.CT 89, and Cantonments Accra Ghana. Copies should be sent by email to grace@africlub.net/awdf, with ‘Administrative Assistant’ as the subject reference. Applications should reach AWDF no later than June 10, 2016.

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

This week, AWDF CEO Theo Sowa will be speaking and moderating a series of panels at Women Deliver in Copenhagen, Denmark. The annual conference brings together global leaders to move forward the agenda for women’s rights. Women Deliver 2016 focuses on building will and knowledge to impact on women and girls’ lives through the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).This global platform provides an opportunity for African Women to be at the forefront of global agenda setting and change.

Bringing through the voice of AWDF grantees, Theo Sowa will be moderating a series of panels on women’s health and education. She kicks off with a session on May 16, “Delivering as One- Global Partnerships for Global Goals” with panelists from government, civil society and the private sector including Tedros Adhanom, Ethiopian Minister of Foreign Affairs; Catherine Russell, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues; Jan-Willem Scheijgrond, Global Head of Government Affairs B2G at Philips; Susan Myers, Senior Vice President of the UN Foundation and Vagn Berthelsen, CEO of Oxfam IBIS.

Watch Theo Sowa on May 17 at 11 am CET when she will be moderating the official Women Deliver press conference featuring Philanthropist Melinda Gates and Canadian First Lady Sophie Grégoire-Trudeau .

On May 18, Theo Sowa will moderate the press conference on the Amplify Change fund that AWDF co-manages. The press conference includes H.R.H Crown Princess Mary of Denmark and Danish Minister Kristian Jensen speaking to the role of Amplify Change in transforming Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights advocacy.

Follow Theo Sowa’s updates on Twitter @awdf01. To join in the conversation check the tag #WDlive ., You can also register for the virtual conference and watch an exclusive livestream of the events at http://wd2016.org/media-resources/virtual-conference/.