Category: News

The Aowin District is a newly created jurisdiction in the Western region of Ghana with a population of approximately 30,000 residents. The district has a large migrant farmer community as it falls in the High Forest Zone. Many of the migrant community members come to the district capital of Enchi from the neighbouring country of Togo.

Although the district exhibits a wide diversity of culture and a rapidly expanding population, the community has a high incidence of violence against women, including physical and verbal assaults. Marital disputes amongst migrant farmers, who live on their farms for most of the year, are also quite common. Most incidents result from differing perceptions about how home and business activities should be conducted. For example, disputes can develop over how profits are divided from produce sales, the lack of profit made from produce sales, the best handling procedures for meat and other produce or how maintenance practices are conducted in the home. Conflicts also can erupt if a wife refuses to yield to the sexual demands of her husband.

During the period of May to September 2014, hundreds of cases of violence against women were reported to the District Ghana Police Service and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) at Enchi.

Some of these reports include the following assaults:

• A husband hit the back of his wife’s head with a masher (locally called tapoli) resulting in her death
• A baby was left outside for a pig to feed on while a husband and wife were fighting
• A woman was drowned to death in a barrel of water as a result of being suspected of cheating on the husband
• A husband cut his wife’s fingers because food was not ready at the time he desired it
• A wife was assaulted because she refused to have sex with her husband because they already had many children and she was forbidden from using birth control measures.
• A man shot his wife as a result of suspected cheating
• A man hit his wife in the head resulting in her death because the wife complained of a lack of maintenance in the home
• A husband kills his wife and baby because she left pork meat unrefrigerated and it became rotten.

This stark reality forms the background for a new project by AWDF grantee partner, the Women Youth Forum for Sustainable Development (WYFSD), to share critical information about gender based violence with migrant farmer communities. WYFSD is implementing an initiative to provide inhabitants, particularly migrant farmers and traditional leaders, in the communities of Asuoklo, Angunzu, Kankaboin, Jensue, Anvohkro and Tanokro with knowledge on the effects of violence against women. Together, the six (6) communities can evolve potentially effective systems to better address gender based violence. As a part of this project, WYFSD has also established anti-gender based violence committees to exchange lessons and strategies in the selected communities.

Lessons learnt

Unfortunately, the communities are situated far away from police stations and many men take advantage of this fact. A number of the women subjected to domestic violence are reluctant to report because of fear of provoking a confrontation or ending their marriages.

The most surprising revelation learnt during the implementation of this project was that a majority of domestic conflicts begin with a disagreement over the proper maintenance of the home. A high level of poverty and the lack of alternative sources of income are also key indicators in addressing the issue of violence against women in the Aowin District.

A lack of balanced and healthy communication among couples is also a major issue. Many women are pushed to the physical brink every day, labouring on farms, caring for families and households all while not receiving any independent income for their efforts.

Short Term Outcomes

The formation of anti-violence committees has improved the security of women by monitoring incidences and supporting the linkage to appropriate law enforcement agencies. Authorities such as the police, assembly officers, chiefs and queen mothers, have been sensitised and are supporting the process.

The project was also able to fully sensitise 1,000 men and women on the harmful socio-economic impacts of violence against women for perpetrators, including the possibility of being arrested, imprisoned or even assaulted.

Through this project, male participants also learn how women are capable partners in life, work and community development. Men and women participants are taught how to practically avoid violence, disagreements and intimidation in the home. In fact, the chief of Tanokro, one of the project communities, was so supportive of eradicating gender based violence, he immediately joined the project implementation team.

Multiple area church leaders have also agreed to integrate messages about gender based violence within religious and evangelical activities. Several local FM stations have decided to share information on the elimination of gender based violence with their listeners. With the support of AWDF, the anti-violence committees will continue to meet with chiefs, elders, queen mothers, assembly officers and community members to discuss and enact mobilisation methods to effectively prevent gender based violence.

Article by: Rose Buabeng, AWDF Programme Officer for Anglophone Africa

World AIDS day Dec 1, 2014

World AIDS day was even more of a success than hoped for the ISORE Women Initiative for Sustainable Development based in central Uganda, a small NGO and an AWDF grantee. The day-long event which kicked off Monday, eventually ran an extra two days, unplanned, but hugely successful.

“This has been our first time to recognise World AIDS day and it has attracted many people,” said Christine Aumo the group’s Executive Director.

The event brought together the ISORE women and several members of the local community and government. They included Dr. Atai Betty, a representative from the Health Ministry who was guest of honour, local council members from the Mawatto division and community elders.

ISORE’s activities included free testing, HIV-AIDS counseling, distribution of condoms and education and took place in Kiwanga in the Mukono district.

The younger kids were not left out of the action. Pupils of a primary school in Kiwanga read poems while the Kiwanga youth put on plays, all centred around HIV/AIDS.

“It is the hope that the success of the event will encourage more women and men to open up about their status and seek the care and support that they need,” said Christine.

Out of over nearly 200 men and women who were tested on Dec 1 and 3, five individuals tested positive for HIV. They included a couple and three singles between the ages of 18-34, who were referred to counsellors as well as outreach centres for treatment. In addition, all of them are currently under ISORE Women’s care and support.

Days two and three were equally as successful. “The turn up was good,” enthused Christine.

Another 19 out of 146 people tested on the last day came back with HIV positive results, out of which 12 were female, Christine said.

The group has planned a debriefing and “way forward” meeting for Monday Dec. 8.

In observance of the global 16 Days of Activism to End Gender Based Violence campaign the Women’s Learning Partnership is hosting a free online screening of two short films on eliminating gender based violence around the world.

The screenings will also be interactive, allowing the audience to share their thoughts and reactions via chat. The chat is non-moderated and audience-focused, however participants are encouraged to be respectful in their exchange. The goal is to facilitate an insightful global discourse on the pertinent issue of gender based violence. The details on the films and their screenings are as follows:

‘Film 1

From Fear to Freedom: Ending Violence Against Women

A 40-minute film featuring activists and scholars from across the globe discussing the root causes of gender-based violence, sharing strategies to combat it, and providing inspiring accounts of the important milestones already achieved through the international women’s movement.

2 screenings: Wednesday, December 3rd, 2014, @ 10:00 am & 3:30 pm EST

To join a screening at the time of the event CLICK HERE,
or copy and paste this URL into your browser: https://abanlearning.adobeconnect.com/endvaw/

Film 2
Waiting on Justice

A 30 minute film that follows a selection of cases handled by WLP’s partner organization in Mauritania L’Association des Femmes Chefs de Famille (AFCF) as they fight on behalf of victims while demanding justice and accountability from the Mauritanian authorities.

2 screenings: Monday, December 8th, 2014, @ 10:00 am & 3:30 pm EST

To join a screening at the time of the event CLICK HERE,
or copy and paste this URL into your browser: https://abanlearning.adobeconnect.com/endvaw/

For social media interaction, use hashtags #16days & #GBVTeachin to share your remarks on the films and tag the Women’s Leaning Partnership @wlp1!

“Together we can make a difference and end Violence Against Women. “‘

To learn more about the event, click here.

 
We are excited to announce the launch event of the book, A New Kind of Dance, by our grantee partner, Habiba Dangana Foundation (HADIS), in Nigeria. The book is written by Amina Salihu, a development consultant with a well of knowledge and experience in building women’s political participation. The African Women’s Development Fund contributed $15,000 to the completion of this project.
 
Sarah Mukasa, AWDF’s Director of Programmes shares, “This publication charts the experiences of women in politics in Northern Nigeria. It makes a very useful contribution to our understanding of what works and what doesn’t and how women should be supported in electoral processes.”

The WHEAT Trust, a grantee partner of AWDF, will launch FemPress, a publishing house to amplify the visibility of grassroots women and their stories next month.

 
I am the Rose
 
If you are in the Cape Town (SA) area, join the December 2nd launch festivities which include the unveiling of I am the Rose, a collection of poetry and art by Zulfa Abrahams.
 
Zulfa Abrahams is a poet, artist and feminist scholar from Cape Town, with an interest in identity politics, gender and embodiment and mixed media visual art. She has MA in Women’s and Gender studies where she examined Muslim women and the politics of power and gender. She is currently undertaking her doctoral study which focuses on emerging technologies, women,power and education.
 
Recently, Zulfa has taken a keen interest in expanding her artistic work as a sketch artist and painter to include a number of mediums. She is particularly interested in the ways in which visual art empowers and provides a feminist space for intellectual creativity.
 
Inspiring women such as Diana Ferrus and Dr. Nadia Sanger will be leading the conversation at the launch.

FemPress, a publishing house for grassroots women stories in Africa
 
Grassroots women are sorely under-represented in the dialogue surrounding the issues that most affect their lives. Thus, they are often robbed of their physical and literary voices.
 
Instead of speaking on their behalf, The WHEAT Trust strongly believes that they deserve the opportunity to tell their own stories.
 
In April 2013, WHEAT hosted a writing skills workshop for some Western Cape grantees that work in the field of Gender Based Violence in their communities.
 
They published a first book containing these grantees’ personal stories born from the workshop. The book was entitled Every Scar Tells a Story.
 
This has inspired other women, like Zulpha, to come forth and tell their stories, and highlighted the need for a platform through which to raise their voices.
 
Thus, it is WHEAT’s aim that the launch of FemPress will enable women to share their stories, articulate their needs and share in the mainstream media in print as well as the additional digital platform.

To find out more about The WHEAT Trust and how you can help, visit the organisation’s website.

At the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF), we are actively working with women’s organisations on the ground to respond to the ebola crisis.

Members of our Grants department correspond with partner networks each week who are responding to community needs by amplifying accurate information about the virus and viable prevention methods, particularly to remote communities.

Below are excerpts of letters from the field written by AWDF’s grantee partners in Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Women Solidarity, WSD-Liberia

Bettea S. Monger

The disease has spread to all 15 counties. It is no longer the business of the Liberian government. The virus is covering the entire country.

The most affected communities are West Point, Montserrado, Dolo’s Town, Margibi, Barkidu, Grand Kru, Lofa, Gbarpolu, Bong, Sinoe, Nimba, Kolahun and Foyah District Lofa counties.

With limited and restricted financial resources, we have created public awareness and prevention strategies for the disease through the following activities:

1. Radio awareness and prevention messages in two dialects (Kpaleh and Bassa) during the months of August and September. The radio program is presently operating in six counties including Montserrado, Margibi, Bong, Bomi, Grand Cape Mount and Grand Bassa.

2. Printing and posting of information leaflets in the communities of Soul Clinic, Paynesville and Zaysay.

One of the volunteers in our office has nearly lost her entire family to ebola. They were among the twenty-five (25) who succumbed to the virus on 20th August in the Kolahun district of Masabolahun.

In many cases, a driver will take a patient from one health center to another until the person ends up dying inside the vehicle. The body could be in the vehicle for 2-3 days before the ebola response until takes it away. The death rate of women affected by ebola is quite high, particularly among pregnant women as well as children and babies.

The increasing spread of ebola is due to people traveling from community to community without taking preventive measures into consideration. At the same time, awareness and prevention messages are yet to reach the most remote communities in the country.

In an effort to rapidly respond to and combat the ebola crisis, we are in dire need of the following items:

• Printing educational posters, banners and leaflets
• Handwashing buckets
• Community to community sensitization and awareness/prevention workshops for residents, rural clinical workers (TBAs and TTMs and other midwives assigned in remote communities)
• Chlorine
• Protective personal equipment (PPE) for rural clinical workers

The markets are closed causing the price of commodities to skyrocket. Traveling from one part of Liberia to another has become extremely difficult. The epidemic is devastating the economic fabric of our country.

Community Empowerment Program (CEP), Liberia

Lucy Page

The outbreak has created an unfavorable economic situation. Communities are hugely challenged by the interruption of their cultural practices – shaking hands, hugging, bathing and grooming the dead. While none of the members of the organization have been personally affected, they have been emotionally and culturally impacted because of the number of relatives, friends and associates who are at risk because they live in “hotspot” communities.

If death occurs from the virus, they are unable to celebrate the homecoming properly because the deceased can not be touched or provided a proper burial. Women are at high risk for infection due to their dominance in the nursing profession and other caregiving careers.

Compound Number 1, a project community based in Grand Bassa County is encountering a spillover effect from Dolos Town in Margibi County. The gender equality program there is currently under quarantine. Market sellers are prohibited from trading in the quarantined neighborhoods causing additional challenges in income generation and food security.

CEP management has integrated an ebola prevention awareness campaign into one project, Department of Defense-Supported HIV/AIDS Prevention, as well as treatment and care targeting soldiers of the armed forces and surrounding communities of five (5) military barracks.

The organisation will conduct individualised and group counseling sessions, integrated with psychological counseling, and community events that target survivors of ebola. This action plan will be followed by the reactivation of economic empowerment initiatives to help rekindle the hopes of Liberians. These high-impact initiatives will help beneficiaries and communities to heal from the trauma of this experience. It is our hope to mend the existing fractured socio-cultural system so that citizens can resume a normal life.

What is still needed are the provision of sanitising materials or hygiene kits – chlorine, soap and rubber buckets with faucets. We also need funding to intensify the campaign of massive sensitisation and awareness with special attention to curbing the spread of the disease in high risk communities.

Given the accelerated pace that ebola is spreading in Liberia, we request fast-tracked assistance to provide women organisations the capacity to intensify the campaign against ebola.

New Liberian Women Organisation

Miata Kiazolu Sirleaf

My sisters, can you imagine that it was the women of West Point who led the demonstration! About 31 persons are said to have died. Our people are losing their lives on a daily basis. Much is needed in every way possible to make our people aware.

We encountered a problem in the field with a 16-year old girl giving birth. She went into a coma for three hours at a local clinic in Fandell, rural Montserrado County. We tried taking her to the hospital but, unfortunately, none of the hospitals allowed her. This took us nearly three days running from one place to another. At one point we were asked to carry her to the center where ebola patients are treated. We’ve known her quite well for many months and she was only giving birth. We refused because she does not have ebola.

At last, one private hospital, SDA Cooper Hospital, was able to treat her and she is responding well, even speaking and walking.

The country has very limited ambulance activity. As a result, dead bodies remain in the streets and homes for three to four days before the Taskforce Team can remove them.

Through the AWDF grant we have been able to do the following:

• A well-organized educational and awareness campaign to spread the word on symptoms and prevention methods
• A dramatization of how ebola is spread
• A talk show on radio in rural Montserrado County
• Distribution of essential materials such as clorox, biomedical soap, handwash buckets, stickers, fliers and posters to local marketplaces, communities, villages and towns
• A large projection frame to show how the virus works on the human body

We no longer live in normal conditions.

Schools are closed. The economy has declined, prices of local and international commodities have increased, hospitals are refusing people who are sick for fear of ebola. We no longer have long hours of work. Our rights are limited and the future of our children is at stake. It’s difficult to find food, women are depressed due to a loss of dignity and financial capacity to take care of their families. Women are especially affected because they tend to be the breadwinners for the family.

We need massive educational and awareness campaigns in the rural parts of the country where people lack basic information due to bad road conditions and limited electricity. Medication, food and ambulances are highly required to fight this battle against ebola.

In closing, let me give you nine (9) unsuspecting ebola sources you and your staff should pay extreme caution:

1. Door handles/access and transfer points in public places

2. Toll gate exchanges

3. Sharing writing utensils

4. Restaurants, food and drink handling

5. Fuel pumps and tanks

6. Makeup kits

7. ATM machine buttons

8. Hair and nail salons

9. Sharing cell phones and other mobile devices

Women and Children Development Association of Liberia (WOCDAL)

Malinda B. Joss

Along the Robertsfield Highway, twenty-seven (27) persons have died in the last two weeks. 13 children, 9 men, 6 women.This community is a concession area with diverse people. The situation was so alarming that President Sirleaf paid an emergency visit.

Four people have died in the community where our program manager lives. There’s not enough materials there for sanitation.

The government ministries don’t have the requisite training to prevent the spread. Cultural and traditional norms are negatively competing with the interventions of NGOs and medical team workers. There is a huge need for more funds to enable us to do the work.

Thankfully, we have a disaster management person on staff who was trained in Zimbabwe. This will help us to ensure that we handle the intervention according to the appropriate standards.

Centre for Safe Motherhood Youth & Child Outreach (CESMYCO), Sierra Leone

Laurel Bangura

For now, all organisations in the country are geared towards fighting ebola. It has caused a lot of mayhem in every facet of our society. Women and children are suffering. They are always the most vulnerable especially because women serve as domestic nurses to patients before the intervention of medical personnel.

In many cases when both parents die, the children are left as orphans. There are so many now in different communities across the country.

The government is presently quarantining five (5) districts in Sierra Leone: Moyamba, Bombali, Portloko, Kailahun and Kenema. The government is unable to meet all the needs of the people, especially that of women and children. We have been helping to assist pregnant and nursing mothers with food items, toiletries and soap.

On October 8th, Laygbay Lilian Amadu, Gender Advocacy Officer for Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, provided the following estimates of ebola’s impact on women and children:

Number of children infected: 105

Number of women infected: 813

Number of children orphaned: 313

Number of children who have died: 48

Number of women who have died: 433

The numbers are growing with each day.

*All photos used in this article are from ebola prevention activities implemented by the Women and Children Development Association of Liberia (WOCDAL). AWDF provided USD5,000 towards this endeavor.

Schools are closed. The economy has declined. Hospitals are refusing people who are sick for fear of ebola. Women are especially affected because they tend to be the breadwinners for the family.

We no longer have long hours of work. Our rights are limited and the future of our children is at stake.

-Miata Kiazolu Sirleaf

New Liberian Women Organisation

On the 18^th of September 2014, the UN declared ebola as a threat to international peace and security and swiftly formed the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER). Currently, there are more than 13,500 cases globally and the West African countries of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone have been hit the hardest. UNICEF estimates that 5 million children have been affected by the outbreak and 4,000 orphaned by the virus.

The disease has killed nearly 5,000 people and the World Health Organization figures show that 12 new cases are reported in Sierra Leone every day.

The daily life of women, in particular, has been greatly impacted by the virus since women most often are the primary caregivers of family members, especially those who fall sick. This puts women at significant risk should they come into contact with the bodily fluids of the infected, including blood, sweat, feces or vomit.

The hazards are evident in Liberia where more than 75% of the ebola death toll has been women.

Implications of the disease on women’s lives

The government ministries don’t have the requisite training to prevent the spread. Cultural and traditional norms are negatively competing with the interventions of NGOs and medical team workers. There is a huge need for more funds to enable us to do the work.

-Malinda B. Joss

Women and Children Development Association of Liberia (WOCDAL)

As providers of healthcare in their communities, women have a greater likelihood of contracting the disease since they are often employed as nurses or patient care technicians. Furthermore, women are the ones who check on family members who have been quarantined. If family members are not well informed about the modes of ebola transmission or the welfare of infected kin, panic and worry can become additional traumas affecting women caregivers.

The spread of the virus has interrupted the daily life of cultural communities in West Africa – particularly spaces where women are critical decision-makers – such as markets (where crowds and market sellers are being stigmatized), food and water gathering practices for families (women are going further away from home centers to locate adequate and cost-effective supplies) and corpse bathing rituals (important socio-cultural traditions between the living and deceased).

On this point, AWDF’s CEO Theo Sowa adds, “Women are the ones who have primary responsibility in most of our communities for family and family responses. If we look at the HIV/AIDS crisis, if it hadn’t been for African women, our continent probably wouldn’t have survived. It was women who were the caregivers, women who worked to help change behaviors, women who took care of treatment. Women have trusted relationships with their families and communities. They can change the way people think about ebola and help others to really understand the nature of the disease. If we want to crack any problem on our continent, women have to be at the heart of the response.”

The disease has not only impacted everyday life but also the convening of organisations in West Africa and even other parts of the continent. The African Media Leaders Forum, which enables networking and discussion of new opportunities in multimedia, was postponed because many participants come from West African countries and, therefore, would encounter difficulties acquiring visas to South Africa for the forum. Similarly, the African Grantmakers Network [AGN], chaired by Theo Sowa, has postponed the 3^rd annual General Assembly due to Ghana’s government moratorium on all international conferences.

It is expected that the outbreak could take more than six months to control.

AWDF activates ebola prevention and eradication

One of the volunteers in our office has nearly lost her entire family to ebola. They were among the twenty-five (25) who succumbed to the virus on 20th August in the Kolahun district of Masabolahun.

The disease has spread to all 15 counties. It is no longer the business of the Liberian government. The virus is covering the entire country.

–Bettea S. Monger

Women Solidarity, Liberia

In response to the epidemic, AWDF has ensured measures to protect employees and to gain a greater insight into the effects of ebola on grantee organisations. Subsequently, learning sessions with health professionals have been provided to thoroughly educate all staff about prevention strategies within and outside the workplace. Precautions have also been implemented in the event of an ebola outbreak in Ghana.

Since early August, AWDF has supported six (6) grantee organisations in Liberia and Sierra Leone, with a total amount of US30,000, to intensify educational activities and resources that help prevent the spread of the disease and increase community knowledge about the outbreak. The Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Market Fund for Women (SMFW) has been granted USD10,000 to facilitate large-scale, mass awareness campaigns by market women in seven (7) markets across the country. The organisation is working with a coalition of government, NGO and CSO partners to accurately inform citizens about the disease, symptoms and prevention methods. SMFW improves the infrastructure of markets in Liberia by connecting women traders to a wealth of information and resources including assistance with credit, healthcare, childcare centres, storage areas, sanitary facilities and literacy development.

Additionally, the New Liberian Women Organisation/Skills Training Centre (NLWO) has been awarded USD5,000 to undertake a series of educational activities on the outbreak within selected communities in Careysburg City, Bentol City, Yeantown and Cruzerville. NWLO will use the community-valued methodologies of music and dance to translate ebola prevention messages to residents. The organization works to develop the capacity of unemployed, young women and refugee women in specific skills-based training and advocacy.

In Sierra Leone, the Foundation for Integrated Development (FID) was granted USD5,000 to generate the “Kick Ebola Out of Makpele and Soro-Gbema” campaign as a supplement to the government’s efforts to prevent the spread of the disease in the Pujehun District. The campaign will build critical awareness of the epidemic in targeted sessions with 120 town chiefs and provide sanitation kits to selected communities in two chiefdoms. FID was set up in southern Sierra Leone in 2004 to support women with small scale agricultural trading and other income generation projects.

A Labor of Love

Communities are hugely challenged by the interruption of their cultural practices – shaking hands, hugging, bathing and grooming the dead. If death occurs from the virus, they are unable to celebrate the homecoming properly because the deceased cannot be touched or provided a proper burial.

It is our hope to mend the fractured socio-cultural system so that citizens can resume a normal life.

-Lucy Page

Community Empowerment Program, Liberia

The effects of the outbreak are felt on an intimate level in Moiyatta Banya’s story, “A Phone Call, a Journal and a Bar of Soap.” The reality of the disease in Sierra Leone, a country in persistent recovery, has been devastating. Moiyatta’s organisation, the Girls Empowerment Summit Sierra Leone, educates and builds the capacity of young women by providing them with “knowledge, skills, courage, and confidence to become fulfilled and successful young women.” In the article, Banya narrates how the loss of family members, and particularly breadwinners, has been detrimental to the sustainability of families. Schools have been shut down in order to prevent the virus from spreading. However, this measure disrupts the education of girls and increases their vulnerability through this indeterminate suspension of school.

Since the presence of ebola has now been documented in a few cases outside West Africa, there is greater urgency for the disease’s containment and eradication. Liberia’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, Axel Addy, alluded that human kindness, which has led to the spread of the disease, is the very trait that could aid its elimination. Similarly, Wanja Maina, a Kenyan journalist and participant in AWDF’s African Women Writers Residency on Creative Non-fiction, muses on the transmission of the virus: “Ebola is spread through love, really. It is very African to take care of a sick relative. Therefore, we need a global community to show love to our West African friends during these trying times.”

Together, we can support women organisations to provide comprehensive and sustainable community responses to the disease. This is one way forward towards counteracting the devastating effects of ebola.

By: Sionne Neely & Shakira Chambas