African Leadership Centre Fellows present Documenting Women's Experience in Peace and Security at the CSW New York on 2nd March, 2011

DOCUMENTING OF WOMEN’S EXPERIENCES- THE POWER OF EMPOWERING WOMEN TO DOCUMENT THEIR EXPERIENCE IN PEACE AND SECURITY AS A RESEARCH TOOL

BACKGROUND:

Conflict and civil war continue to destabilize the African continent. While majority of the casualties continue to be civilians, the plight of women in these conflicts is dire. However, due to structural inequalities in society, women are excluded from peace negotiations and crucial processes in the region.

In the context of the continued peace and security challenges facing the African continent, the African Union declared 2010 as the Year of Peace and Security in Africa. To keep this momentum growing so as to generate concrete achievements for women, the AU has declared 2010-2020 as the African Women Decade.

Making the Decade a success will require addressing major security and socio-economic challenges in women and girls’ lives, such as high maternal mortality rate, HIV/AIDS, poverty, gender-based violence, low participation in political and peace processes, among others. At the heart of addressing all these barriers to the promotion and protection of women’s human rights is education. It is believed that investing in women and girls’ education, empowering them to take ownership of issues affecting the societies in which they live, and supporting their leadership is essential for making the African Women Decade and beyond.

Outstanding among efforts to empower women through education is the Peace and Security Fellowship Programme for African Women, which is carried out by the Conflict, Security and Development Group (CSDG) of King’s College, London and the African Leadership Centre (ALC). The programme is designed to expose young professional African women to the complexities of conflict, security and development, as well as build a new community of leaders generating cutting edge knowledge on these issues.

In 2009/10, eight young African Women got on the fellowship,and this intensive fellowship allowed for the young professional women to have both theoretical and practical knowledge on peace and security for African Women thereby building mass movement of African scholars and practitioners that will use this experience around the core values of independent thinking, accountability and African led idea for change. These eight fellows that have benefited from the 2009/10 important educational programme, will like to share their experiences and discuss why documenting women experience in peace and security discourse is crucial!

The panel will therefore looking at:

• Leaving the next generation of the girl-child with a glimpse of hope: the role of the ALC.
• The ALC fellowship programmes: nurturing young talented women in peace and security.
• Importance of women documenting their experience in peace and security discourse.
• The use of social media in documenting women’s experience.
• Importance of documenting women’s experiences to influence policy: looking at HIV/AID incident and the marginalized women in Ethiopia and sexual violence perpetrated by the states in Zimbabwe.
• Fellows experience
• Research institutions in Africa: what they are doing and what can still be done.
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This discussion will feature eight fellows listed as follows:

VICKY KARIMI (NAIROBI), SHUVAI NYONI (ZIMBABWE), PHIDELIA AMEY (GHANA), ‘TOYIN AJAO (NIGERIA),HAJA SARAMBA KANDEH (SIERRA LEONE),DEBRA MWASE (ZIMBABWE), SELAM TEREFE (ETHIOPIA) MYRIAM WEDRAOGO (BURKINA FASO)

DATE: WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2ND, 2011

TIME: 10AM TO 11.30AM

VENUE: 2^ND FLR ROOM, CHURCH CENTRE, UN PLAZA, NEW YORK