The great thing about visiting Womankind projects is not just seeing the work in action, but getting a better understanding of just what a Programme Manager does.  I was fortunate to accompany Cintia Lavandera on a visit to partners in Nepal.  Cintia has lived and worked in Nepal before and this gives her a good insight into both the working conditions and challenges for our partners, as well as the political framework in which they are operating.

Most Programme Managers working for development organisations focus on monitoring and evaluation, in other words, making sure that the money is spent on the activities it was intended for and that objectives and goals are reached.  Womankind does this, but also works with partners to build their own capacity for future work and funding applications. This approach, with a focus on strengthening our partners and the women’s movement, is at the heart of what we do.

So I watched Cintia hold a training workshop on reflection and learning with one of our partners.  This was quite a challenge given that none of the participants were native English speakers and there were varying levels of understanding, so Cintia had to be patient and flexible, explaining issues in different ways so that everyone could understand.  She had to make sure that everyone was able to participate and that discussions were not dominated by one or two people in more senior positions.  And not everything that we take for granted was understood by the participants:  the exercise to write issues on separate ‘post-its’ and attach them to relevant posters failed completely because this way of working was so unknown!

Language was an issue throughout the visit.  We did not have formal interpreters, but partners would help out.  This meant that sometimes people would summarise or put their own spin on what was being said rather than interpret literally.  Occasionally we had to ask for a fuller interpretation of what was going on, but it was difficult to make the ‘interpreter’ understand without being offended!

Cintia also had to be encouraging but firm with partners, for example, explaining that failing to turn up on time for a meeting with a senior local official was not good practice, even when there was a good excuse.  (The official was unable to see us for more than a couple of minutes and I suspect then only because Womankind visitors from the UK were with the group.)

I was pleased to be able to lend a hand, for instance, interviewing individuals as case studies.  Without me, Cintia would have been hard-pressed to cover the formal monitoring and evaluation, training and case studies.  It’s hard work to pack everything needed into a week or so, especially when the partners have their own priorities for the visit.  At one partner, we were asked to present certificates to the latest group of graduates from a skills-training programme – a pleasure, but a time constraint we hadn’t allowed for.  Fortunately, we were able to catch up on our programme by adding a bit more time the next day.

And I was also impressed to see Cintia thinking about the links across Womankind, so, for example, looking for opportunities and examples to use for fund-raising and advocacy outside Nepal.

I know that Cintia is not unique at Womankind and we are lucky to have committed Programme Managers like her.  They work hard to support partners in practical ways and to ensure that donors’ money is well spent, and they care deeply about improving women’s rights.

Post by Womankind’s Chair Julie Ashdown

A couple of weeks ago I travelled with Julie Ashdown, Womankind’s Chair of Trustees, to Nepal to carry out one of our monitoring visits. One of the objectives of the visit was to check if partners and other women’s rights organisations were using Womankind’s women’s rights advocacy toolkit, and if so how and what they thought of it.

Just by chance I met Babita Basnet, Director of Sancharika Samuha. Here is what she thinks of the toolkit, how she has used it and, even better, how she plans on continuing to use it in the future:

“I was asked by Muslim Women to conduct some training on advocacy, leadership and media in the Rautahart District.

When I started to plan the training I found your toolkit, that Saathi had given me, on my table. When I started to read it I realised that there were so many things related to advocacy that I could use in the training; what it is, how to plan an advocacy campaign. I used the definitions from the kit and information and examples from the national and international level plus advice on how to do advocacy work and who can advocate.

“I know now that feminism is not about working against men but focuses on equality”

If you are advocating for issues about women you need to firstly to understand the difference between gender and feminism. This is a section of the toolkit that I particularly enjoyed. I know now that feminism is not about working against men but focuses on equality. I am also undertaking training on UN Security Council Resolution 1325, this focuses on women, peace and security. I am considering using your toolkit to help me strategise my advocacy activities and messages I want to give out.

I like the fact that the toolkit starts off by explaining what advocacy is, and you can find all the information you need to understand how to advocate at the beginning. I also like the clarity of the explanation of what the ‘Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women’ (CEDAW) is and how it can be used in our activities. The great thing about this toolkit is that you don’t have to do any research to find other sources. All the information is there!

“You don’t feel that it is a top down tool”

I love the diversity of issues from different countries that are discussed in the kit, so you are informed about advancements for women in these countries. Given the wide range of issues covered the toolkit is written in a very simple manner, so you don’t feel that it is a top down tool. Women activists have a tendency to write very long pieces but do not highlight or make key points. In comparison this advocacy toolkit gives you a lot of information but in small paragraphs, showing how you can use the information in your strategies but in a simple way.

I am also going to use this toolkit to advocate about ‘gender-based violence’ (GBV) issues, for example, how to be an effective advocate on GBV and ‘violence against women’ (VAW). A resource that covers these topics is not often made, so I think it is great that these are included. I think this along with the toolkit by Inclusive Security on Peace and Security are the best toolkits available. In fact I plan on promoting this toolkit amongst all of my contacts and groups. I have already told one group I am a part of, the Media Advocacy group in Nepal, about the toolkit and how useful it is”.

Browse the women’s rights advocacy toolkit.

The atmosphere in the room is sombre. Womankind’s trustee Ros Boughtflower and I are sitting on a bench resting against a wall on one side of the room. The magistrate is sitting behind a desk and we all listen intently to the unfolding story.

A 20 year old woman wants to divorce her husband. The husband stands besides her looking rather defiant. She explains that he beats her and has tried to kill her for reporting his violent behaviour. He says he is unhappy she made their issue public. They make money from the family land but he does not share any of it with her. They have been to the community elders for arbitration and twice the elders have advised him to change his ways. But he refuses.

The magistrate asks questions and gets responses from the couple in hushed tones that sometimes grow emotional and frantic. After a while, the magistrate announces he has made a decision. He gives the couple an appointment to come back the next Wednesday when he will grant them a divorce. The young woman is delighted. Her husband looks bewildered. He wasn’t expecting that decision. They both leave the court room and the next case is called.

This scene is definitely played over in many court rooms around the world – women trying to assert their rights and to use the law to improve their situation. They may get the relief they seek but often they don’t. But in this court, there is a greater chance that their cases will be fairly considered. It is a special court. Located in the rural district of Boreda tucked away in remote south west Ethiopia, it is the result of Womankind partner KMG’s community programmes. Ros and I have come to see firsthand what it means to have a women’s court day

A huge success thanks to the support of the community

KMG brought women and men, court officials, community and traditional leaders in this community together to discuss why violence against women was high and what they could do about it. Women pushed for the local court to dedicate Fridays for women’s cases only. It’s become a new tradition – many women across the district travel near and far and expect to get a fair hearing.

KMG field staff and the head magistrate tell us afterwards why the women’s court day is popular and a huge success. It is supported by the community – women, men and community leaders agreed for the court day to be established. Having a women’s court day without ensuring that the community appreciates women’s rights would have been pointless. So, KMG is educating community members, groups, community leaders and court officials on women’s rights and violence against women. Community leaders play a big role in resolving disputes and KMG is improving their understanding of women’s rights so they can make fair decisions and recommendations when women come with their cases.

Long lasting changes are needed for women to live free from violence

We listen to a few more cases. We see the positive outcomes but also the challenges. One case stands out. An elderly woman wants a divorce. Her husband is violent and doesn’t look after their 8 children. She speaks confidently and quickly. Our translator is slow and we don’t catch every word. But her body language is clear. The magistrate orders the couple to return once again to the community elders to try and resolve their differences. He says she has to think about the children. She looks disappointed. I have questions. How much more violence will she endure? Is this the best decision for her and the children? Will seeing the community elders really help her? Would her choices have been different if she owned a piece of land? KMG staff will follow up on the case, so that she gets the support and justice that she needs to end violence in her life.

Women’s capacity to live free from violence is linked to many factors – women’s confidence to speak out, support from different players, widening women’s choices and capacity to own and control resources. These are issues that KMG is also working on as they seek to make long lasting changes in attitudes and practices towards women. They will continue to work in this community so that the women’s court works effectively for all women. It takes time and effort. But it is good to see that a strong foundation has been laid and change is already occurring.

Find more about our work in Ethiopia

Women’s rights is an issue I was always aware of, but an issue that I pushed to the back of my mind. There were many times I’d come across a male peer who had a degrading speaking manner towards women and even if it was just in plain humour, my friends and I would work towards getting the guy to apologize, which 98% of the time he did. But after the small gratification we received, once again I would push it to the back of my mind because exams and who’s dating who and campus drama happened to be far more important at the time.

Volunteering at Womankind has been an awakening experience

As a current college student lost in translation between childhood and adult life, I was in the process of discovering who I wanted to be as a woman. I was in my own bubble until I came to London and began to grow up: I began to see things in a different perspective. I believe in fate, and I believe it was fate that decided I should intern for a women rights organization.

Volunteering at Womankind Worldwide has been an awakening experience. I am more aware of the constant discrimination and setbacks women are facing each and every day purely because they’re female. I have never felt a stronger sensation to speak up and stand up for women’s rights. Why? Because it affects all women out there.  We have the right to make a difference. We have the right to say what we feel. We have the right to tell all those who do not believe in gender equality that they are wrong. We have power.

To be in the presence of women who are taking action for their deserved rights is humbling

My experience has shattered a wall of ignorance I used to cosily live in. During my time here, I met two beautiful women from Peru.  Even though we were from different countries and had different paths of life, language allowed us to form a bond. By language, I do not necessarily mean Spanish seeing how my Spanish skills were rusty since I last used them in secondary school. I mean language through eyes, hand gestures, and the simple expression of emotions. To be in the presence of two women who are taking action for their deserved rights is humbling.

Women in Peru face high levels of domestic violence and discrimination. But the matter of fact is that it is not only Peruvian women who are experiencing this: women from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe are facing this too. We must speak up. The power of one woman’s voice is amazing. The power of millions of women’s voices is mind-blowing.

Step out of your comfort zone, educate yourself about women’s rights

For those residing in ignorant bliss, I encourage you to step out of your comfort zone and be grateful for what you have. I also encourage you to educate yourself about women’s rights issues. It’s up to us to move the world forward in providing equal human rights for all. We have the knowledge and the power to do so. Here’s to organizations like Womankind Worldwide: the women and the men out there speaking up and fighting for women’s rights. Thank you for giving me an experience that has affected my life forever.

Post by volunteer Akshara Vivekananthan

Last week the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone convicted Charles Taylor, the former President of Liberia, on 11 counts including terror, murder and rape.  Taylor had been on trial in The Hague for almost five years accused of backing rebels who killed tens of thousands of people in Sierra Leone’s 1991-2002 civil war. He is due to be sentenced next month.

Hannah Koroma, National Coordinator of Womankind’s partner in Sierra Leone, Women Against Violence And Exploitation in Society (WAVES) tells Womankind her thoughts on the verdict:

The War 

“WAVES was established to address some of the violations women and girls suffered during and after the war. Women and girls suffered at the hands of all the fighting factions in Sierra Leone, be it the Army, militias or the rebels; they all used women as weapons and shields. So many horrendous atrocities were committed towards women such as being gang raped, and having their pregnancies terminated – by opening their wombs with bayonet or knives.

 Justice

The verdict of the court was in favour of the people of Sierra Leone especially those who died, whose hands and limbs were amputated, who were raped, the women who lost their loved ones and properties.  I pause here for a minute of silence to remember those brave women who met their death from the hands of rebels in Kenema district (eastern province of Sierra Leone) in their pursuit to reason with the rebels to lay down their guns. ‘May their souls rest in peace’.

 “As a Sierra Leonean woman who experienced the war from the beginning to the end,  I give a big applaud to those guys in the Hague”

The Perpetrator

Charles Taylor in 1989 said, in his own words: “Sierra Leone will taste the bitterness of war”. These words were heard through BBC when he was interviewed about his views of ECOMOG[1] using Sierra Leone as their base to head operations in neighbouring Liberia. True to his words on the 23 March 1991 the first gun shot was fired at Bumaru village in the Kailahun district (a border town near Liberia).

Charles Taylor did not only provide arms to the rebels; he supported their training in Liberia and also in Libya. He also provided safe haven for the leaders of the rebels and most important of all he was their advisor and godfather. He was an agent that provided ammunitions to rebels from the sale of our precious diamonds. He also enriched himself through the sale of our diamonds.

The Verdict

The verdict on Charles Taylor did not come as a surprise.  I was expecting it, and so are many other Sierra Leonean women.  Although many of us thought that the process was slow – but we now realized that it was for the good of all genuine citizens of Sierra Leone.

I hope that the verdict on Charles Taylor will serve as a deterrent to other governments who may want to cause anarchy within the sub-region and Africa as a whole.”

Hannah Koroma, National Coordinator, WAVES

Well done to the nine fantastic runners who completed the the London Marathon and have raised over £18,000 so far to support women and girls around the world.

Every one of the Womankind runners put in a huge effort both in training and fundraising. You can see Kate Rutherford, Womankind Trustee, and Rosie Mockett, a volunteer at Womankind both celebrating at our post race reception below.

We have 5 charity places for the 2013 London Marathon so if you’re interested in taking up the challenge then please fill in this application form.

Any Questions?

If you have any questions please contact Tom Travell by email tom@womankind.org.uk or by telephone 020 7549 0360.

Talking to our partner Women for Human Rights about their work with widows is a real eye-opener.  Here in the UK we assume that widows are older women.  But in Nepal 67% of them are aged between 20 and 35 years old.  Only 33% of them are literate and just 2% have had higher education.

Under Nepali culture women who are widowed have to follow a strict set of rules:

• wearing dull colours or white for the rest of their lives
• becoming vegetarian for the rest of their lives
• having their movements restricted
• being excluded from village systems and celebrations
• having to cook separately and not being able to cook for the family
• being thrown out of the family (in-laws) home unless they have a son

These would be tough enough for all of us, but imagine the effect on a young woman of 21.

WHR has a range of programmes to help and support widows and other women without a husband.  We saw the latest graduates from their skills training programme who can now return to their villages, knowing that they have a skill, such as tailoring or catering, to help them find work.  And the regional offices of WHR, along with a network of members, will help to support them as they do so.  Many of the graduates had heard about the network of members and learned for the first time about their rights.

WHR has also campaigned successfully for changes in the law so that widows no longer

• Require male consent to obtain a passport
• Need to return property from their deceased husband if they remarry
• Need to wait until they are 35 to inherit
• Need the consent of an adult son to sell property
• Need to be chaste to obtain a pension

And the campaign I liked best was the Red Colour Movement, which promotes the right of widows to wear strong colours like red rather than white.  The movement has focused on sensitising religious leaders, communities and family members that colour is a birth right of all women.  Media coverage of the campaign at festival events has helped spread the message and the use of red colour by widows has increased significantly.

 Post by Julie Ashdown, Chair of Womankind’s Board of Trustees

“I am bright and I want to go to school” – speaking up and protesting early marriage is the subject of a drama performance by the Girls Leadership clubs in Luapula province in Zambia. After performing, the girls break into a discussion about their futures. They state “we want to be able to contribute to decision making”, and as one girl puts it, “to show the boys we are capable of leadership”.

According to UNESCO’s 2012 World Atlas of Gender Equality in Education (PDF),  in terms of academic achievement ‘boys in Zambia outperform girls in both reading and maths, with girls’ reading achievement having declined very significantly between 2000 and 2007’. Illiteracy is 15% higher amongst girls than boys aged 15 -24 despite girls having a higher attendance rate than boys at primary level. Indeed the World Bank found that there were ‘gender disparities in favour of males at nearly all levels of education in Zambia’. So what is going on for girls as they rise through the ranks of education?

The answer is, quite a lot.

As numerous reports have demonstrated, being a girl in Zambia means your schooling is more likely to be affected by becoming pregnant, marrying young and performing household duties, such as cleaning, cooking and caring for your younger siblings. It also means that teachers often have lower expectations of your attainment and intelligence, and your parents will be less willing to send you to school if resources are scarce. Unsurprisingly boys are seen as a “better investment” as after marriage girls are considered to belong to their husband’s family.

Building confident young women through girls’ leadership clubs

But generations of young women are setting their sights high: girls’ leadership clubs are springing up in the country’s most rural secondary schools. This initiative started by the Zambian National Women’s Lobby, a partner of Womankind, is aimed at building a groundswell of confident young women able to participate in and take up leadership positions in their schools, communities and wider public life. And it seems to be working. ‘I want to be President of my country!’ one girl from Lubwe High School smiles when we ask what she would like to do when she leaves school.

Lubwe High School, which started its first girls’ leadership club in 2009, is one of 33 clubs set up by the Zambian National Women’s Lobby. When Womankind visited, it took us 9 hours to reach the small lakeside fishing town of Samfya and then a further 3 hours along a pot holed rutted track to reach the school itself. The excited greeting we received from a group of singing, confident young women made it all worthwhile. The clubs provide opportunities not only for girls who demonstrate leadership qualities but also for those with lower self-esteem who are encouraged to build their confidence and take on roles of responsibility. Members actively participate in raising and contributing money (around 5000 kwacha, which is the equivalent of less than £1) for their stake in resources for the groups, which provide a ‘safe’ space for girls to congregate, practice public speaking, support one another and build important relationships.

I want to be empowered, even if I am poor

Monica Chewe is in year 11. Her sister is supporting her to attend school as her parents are not working and it is not as costly to send her to this rural school. She is the youngest of 6 children, 4 girls and 2 boys, and will be only the second of her siblings to complete high school. The club is very important to Monica because she wants to develop her public speaking skills in order to build her confidence. “I want to become a medical doctor” she says, “it is important for girls to be educated, with education they can help their parents. I am going to help my parents in future.”

 

Clementina Mwanza, 15, who wishes to become a journalist in order to fight for women’s and children’s rights, says “I’ve learnt how to carry myself as a person and how to make choices because of the group”. Another 16 years old told Womankind “I’ve learnt not to doubt and look down on myself”.

Listening to the career aspirations of the girls at Lubwe and other secondary schools, you might hear inspired intentions of becoming nurses, teachers, lecturers, pharmacists, doctors, police officers, lawyers, journalists and engineers.

At Chipiri Secondary School, the Deputy Head teacher has seen first hand the difference such groups have made there: “we have had more girls applying to be prefects, confidently asking questions, querying issues and boys are now demanding they want a club too”. However the dream of attending university for many, he states, will remain just that as “only 2 to 3 children from this school will have a chance to go, partly because of lack of resources and grade attainment”.

There are also harrowing personal accounts of the odds young girls are up against to remain in education, let alone go on to pursue a career afterwards. Odds that too often are a result of poverty, lack of family support and resources, societal restrictions and gender-based violence and abuse.

Mary is in grade 12 and is studying Maths, English, Religious Education and History . Abused by her uncle after her parents died, she made the difficult decision to get married as a means of escape. And she is not alone in her plight. 18 year old Constance Mwansa lost her mother and was abandoned by her unsupportive father. Despite money being a problem she says “I want to be empowered, even if I am poor”. The groups have provided both girls with a sense of belonging and a platform for negotiating the challenges of early marriage and succeeding during and after their education. “I want to know more about the world and follow in the footsteps of clever and confident female role models” says Constance.

More than girls turning up at school

Although some instrumentalist campaigns-of-the-moment may have you believe it, it simply isn’t enough to have co-educational schools and expect girls to do the rest. The external difficulties posed by societal norms about gender roles, combined with challenging job prospects for women afterwards, mean education is a far more complex issue than just getting girls to turn up at school.

The Zambian National Women’s Lobby understands that belief in the potential of what one can achieve is vital for realising girls’ agency, even in unfavourable environments. Importantly, girls as they move from primary to secondary education are at a crucial age, where empowering the decisions they make can greatly change their life as women

Find out more about our work in Zambia

 

An interesting discussion with one of Womankind’s partners in Nepal, Saathi, about an issue which is very much open for debate at Womankind itself:  should a women’s organisation fund projects for men?

Although not supported directly by Womankind, Saathi’s project  ‘Creating Violence-Free Model Villages’ is a door to door campaign, with male and female advocates working directly with the perpetrators of violence to help them understand that violence against women is wrong and to convince them to change their behaviour.  The project was initiated at the request of domestic violence survivors who said “unless you can change the men we won’t be able to change the community”.  As village men only listened to other men it was necessary to recruit men into the project as peer educators, some of them being former perpetrators.

There are three elements to the programme:

1. One-to-one counselling with the perpetrators, or, if necessary, referring them to the police.  The men also receive group training on masculinity and their role in reducing violence in the community.
2. Men accompany women advocates to take up individual cases in the community, liaising between husband and wife.  This provides support and protection for the women advocates and also encourages male perpetrators to take the intervention seriously.
3. Inducing new sectors of men to understand that violence against women in wrong.  One targeted group are football supporters; football is the most popular sport in Nepal and crosses all generations.  The project is entitled ‘Our Goal: Stop Violence Against Women’.  Posters, bill boards and video advertisements feature 5 of Nepal’s top footballers who have lent their name to the campaign, and feature slogans such “Fair play not only in the ground but also in the house and society.  Be a real man and play a fair game.”

On their own initiative, the male activists have adopted a pink t-shirt with black trousers, and the women wear a pink sari with black top and they have all now requested pink baseball caps.  This enables them to be recognised in the community.

Saathi believe that engaging with men has achieved better results in Nepal because previous efforts which targeted men as abusers had a direct impact on their partners, who often received more abuse as a result.  I think they are right to work with men in order to empower women and protect their human rights.

Post by Julie Ashdown, Chair of Womankind’s Board of Trustees

Something that differentiates Womankind from other charities (and a reason I work here) is that we don’t fly in ready-made solutions, instead we work with local community groups to develop practical solutions around their local conditions.

 

Supporting partners

We partner with women’s rights organisations who are tackling the day to day issues that affect women’s lives and we deliver the essential support these organisations need to amplify their voice, increase their impact and bring about greater change.

 

Planning for the future

Part of this essential support is thinking about how our partners plan for their future. How do we get to a stage where they no longer need Womankind’s support? A stage where their organisation is changing and developing according to local need but is robust enough to face all the challenges that brings. One of the ways to make sure organisations are sustainable is to help strengthen their ability to fundraise and promote their work to donors and decision makers.

 

Fundraising support

A couple of weeks ago I ran a two-day fundraising and marketing workshop in Addis Ababa for Womankind’s four partner organisations in Ethiopia: AWSAD, ICEDA, KMG and Siiqqee.
We looked at who their audiences were; local audiences such as beneficiaries, local media, general public, government and services providers, and foreign audiences such as existing donors, potential donors and international organisations.

We considered what information these people want e.g. the general public might want to know how someone can contact the organisation for help or how they can get involved and support the work. On the other hand, a potential international donor might want to see the organisation’s achievements, read a recommendation from an existing donor or find out current statistics to access how critical the need is.

 

How to bring supporters closer to the work

We discussed how to show donors the life-changing work they do every day if they are not lucky enough to visit Ethiopia and speak to the women they empower. We talked about using facts and statistics to explain the local situation, telling the stories of the women and how their lives have changed, using photographs and quotes to strengthen the stories and demonstrating clearly how donors can help.

 

New ideas and challenges

We also explored using new media, could our Ethiopian partners use their websites, set up a blog, set up a facebook page to engage with supporters given the limitations of technology and government directives? And what about fundraising in Ethiopia from companies, individuals, groups and grant-makers? A new and challenging prospect but one that could deliver real sustainability.

I hope that our partners left with a host of ideas to explore further and that they found it useful to learn from each other’s experiences. I certainly learned a lot about the local context in Ethiopia that our partners have to work in and hope that the fundraising team at Womankind will be better able to support them. I also left feeling grateful to the 10,000 people in the UK who support Womankind’s work and hope that one day our partners in Ethiopia will have 10,000 local supporters of their own.

Find out more about our work in Ethiopia