Reducing Pastoralist Women’s Vulnerability to Gender Based Violence In Kebribah woreda of Fafan zone, Somali regional state of Ethiopia
PROJECT OVERVIEW
| PROJECT OVERVIEW | |
| Project Title: | Reducing Pastoralist Women’s Vulnerability to Gender Based Violence
In Kebribah woreda of Fafan zone, Somali regional state of Ethiopia |
| Duration (months): | 3 months |
| Start Date: | August 1, 2017 |
| End Date: | October 31, 2017 |
| Project Location: | Somali region, Zone Fafan Woreda Kebribayah. |
| Target Beneficiary Number: | 5,480 (2,052 Women, 1,003 Girls, 1,214 Men and 1,181 Boys) |
| Project Cost: | 10,120 Euro |
| Project Objectives: | Reducing pastoralist and Agro pastoralist women’s vulnerability to gender based violence, and to enhance building the capacity of the local administration, community based organizations and law enforcing institutions on how to identify and handle gender based violence in their locality. |
- Back ground of the project
Recurrent of droughts has been the unmentionable disaster that has been striking the Somali region. In both this year and the previous year, rains remained abnormally dry for extended period affecting both lives and livelihoods of the pastoral and agro-pastoral communities in the region. In the normal years, if there is a drought in one part, it was common for pastoralists to move to other areas where water and pasture were relatively available like the nearby areas and zones of the region or even to Somaliland. But in this year the drought situation was also similar in these areas leaving the pastoralists and agro-pastoralists with no option for movement.
Women are particularly affected in this condition due to poor purchasing power of the households resulting from the loss of their livelihood and the poor body condition of their remaining animals left women with no power to exercise r their basic needs. Women also have little chance in terms of decision making at HH assets. During critical emergences and when they migrate, women carry very little of their belongings with them and often, their personal items like clothing and sanitary items are left behind in favour of other items that are considered essential for the family. As result, Lack of these items exposes many woman to ridicule and lack of respect and denies her the dignity she deserves in her community.
In addition, due to lack of access to appropriate female hygiene items and personal underwear women/girls are compelled to stay at home during menstruation cycle and they remain invisible to the humanitarian actors and miss being targeted for assistance.
Even though there is different humanitarian response going on in the region in general and in Kebribayh woreda in particular like emergence water trucking, animal feed distribution, cash distribution and etc both from the government and other humanitarian actors to save the lives and the livelihood of the drought affected communities, still there is no actors working in the protection sector. As a result women and young girls still continue to be victims of different forms of gender based violence like FGM, early marriage, wife battering, widow inheritance, and economic violence. In addition, there is limited capacity at local government administration and enforcing institutions to identify and handle these gender based violence in their locality.
- Description of achievements
Objective1: To reduce pastoralist and Agro pastoralist women’s vulnerability to gender based violence through.
Activity 1. 1 distribution of dignity kit: The plan of this activity was to target the most vulnerable 60 women and young girls (49 women and 11 girls) affected by the drought. Providing women and girls in reproductive age with the dignity kit will restore their confidence and respect, which is lost when they don’t have underwear to change and no sanitary items to manage their monthly menstrual flow. The beneficiaries received one complete dignity kit which contained one set of locally made sanitary pads, pair of underwear/pants of different sizes for women and young girls, scarf, torch, shanti, body and laundry soap, paper bag for disposal and plain bag to hold the different materials.
Dignity Kit ready for Distribution. Beneficiaries received dignity kit.
Women Collected Dignity Kit. Women Collected Dignity Kit.
Activity 1. 2 Prepare and distribution of IEC/BCC materials:
In order to increase community’s awareness on the different types of gender based violence (GBV) in the area and ensure wider community sensitization of its psychological, physical and social impacts on the women/girls, one day campaign was organized in both project intervention Kebelle and was reached out the entire Woreda. With the support of the Kebelle administration and local community leaders all segments of the community was mobilized and attended the campaign.
The plan was to print 5,000 IEC/BCC materials. We have prepared and printed 5,000 leaflets. This campaign reached out 1880 women, 1080 Men, 940 Girls and 1100 boys.
Activity 1.3 Organize GBV campaign.
During the campaign, for wider dissemination of the information and increased community sensitization on GBV, different IEC/BCC materials like leaflets, pamphlets and one bill boards with relevant information was prepared, printed and distributed to the Kebele entire population living in Kebribayah woreda. In order to ensure wider participation of the entire community in the Kebele, the community was informed about the campaign one week ahead and carried out in the weekend where there is no official duty. About 210 people from the target kebele, 90 female and 120 male (70 women, 20 Girls, 78 men and 42 boys) In the campaign different speeches was made by the different concerned stakeholders like the woreda women affairs office head, Kebelles administration, respected religious and traditional leaders on the different types of gender based violence in the area, its impacts on the wellbeing of women and young girls, its cultural and religious perspectives and the legal provisions against it in the Ethiopia constitution.
Religious & Traditional Elders Communities participation.
Reached communities pastoralists reading the leaflets.
Activity 1.4 Awareness creations.
Awareness creation workshop was given on the root causes/ social factors contributing GBV for religious and traditional leaders. These leaders were selected based on their social acceptance and having influential role in their communities. The training was organized for 15 religious and traditional leaders.
The objective of the workshop was to familiarize the different concepts of GBV and social factors causing GBV, types of GBV commonly practiced in the area, their social, psychological and physical impact on women and young girls’ wellbeing was discussed and action points was developed to reduce GBV cases. Since many people wrongly relate some of these practices with the religion and culture, the issues was discussed in detail. All workshop participants were men.
Workshop Participants Participants discussing about GBV.
Showing leaflets Participating the discussion.
Activity 1:5 Community conversation.
A one day Awareness creation session was organized for 30 members of the different segments of the community (women, young girls, men and boys). These 30 members were selected from the project implementation Kebelle based on their social acceptance and having influential role in their peers. A total of 135 individuals attended the community conversation session. Having already heard about the awareness sessions in the kebele more people have voluntarily taken part the community conversation.
The objective of the community conversation was communities understanding different types of the gender based violence commonly practiced in the area, their social, psychological and physical effects on women and young girls will be discussed.
In the community conversation, there were group discussions where participants were grouped based on their age/ sex and discuss the root causes of GBV in the area, its impacts on women and young girls and how it can be controlled. The grouping was made with the assumption that groups with the same sex and age can easily communicate and understand each other than mixed group. Then each group was to share their thoughts and ideas with the wider participants so that the entire participants can have better understanding of GBV from the different perspectives of the various social groups. For the entire project period one community conversation was conducted, and we have recommended and agreed with the project beneficiaries to conduct weekly community conversation.
60 male (21 Men and 39 young boys) and 75 female (43 women and 32 young girls) have shown up the community conversation session.
Group Discussion Group Discussion
Group Photo Group Photo.
Objective2: To enhance and build the capacity of the local administration, community based organizations and law enforcing institutions on how to identify and handle gender based violence in their locality
Activity 2:1 Training on GBV basic concepts for kebele and Woreda administrative.
Two day Training of 20 members of Kebele and woreda administration and law enforcing institutions on GBV basic concept and the legal provisions against it: 20 members selected from the kebeles administration, police, judges and prosecution was trained for one day on the harmful effects of GBV on women and young girls and how it can be prevented in their locality. In addition, since mostly GBV is not reported to these institutions, these members were also trained on how to identify and handle these cases and how to encourage and protect GBV survivor.
Out of the 20 participants 15 were men while the remaining 5 were female.
Judges taking part the workshop Police and Prosecution people.
Participants from the Woreda women office. Group Photo.
Activity 2:2 Training of community based organization (CBO) to integrate GBV in their bylaw
One day Training of different community based organizations on GBV and on how to fight against it. Twenty five members and leaders selected from the different community based organizations ( cooperatives, women groups, youth groups, IGA groups, NRM committees, WASH commits, and etc) existing in the project implementation Kebelles were trained on the basic concept of GBV, its social, physical and psychological effects on women and young girls and how to fight against it. In addition their role on the fight against GBV and how they can include punishing provisions in their bylaws were discussed. Finally, the participants were sensitised on the importance of women participating in the different community based organizations and how their role and right can be enhanced in the community.
20 of the participants were male while the remaining 5 were female.
Participants Participants
Discussion among the participants Women group participating.
Training attendance sheet Dignity kit beneficiary list
- Challenges
- Communities in the intervention areas are still recovering the 2015 drought yet preparing for the upcoming forecasted drought because of the rain fail; these scenarios has totally affected their entire livelihoods. Because of these higher commitment for such projects became secondary and availability of the entire population in the area wasn’t that much as to be compared if the project should be carried in Gu’ season (wet season).
- The life of the project was so short.
- Lesson learnt.
Experience has shown that individual “awareness rising” workshops or campaigns are rarely effective in changing people’s attitudes or behavior. Social change requires long-term, systematic engagement of communities, institutions, and decision-makers.
We have also learned that women cannot end GBV alone. We must engage men and boys as allies in GBV prevention, and there are many examples that have done this successfully, such community conversation, training elders and religious leaders and mass campaign about GBV. These approaches engage men and boys in open dialogue about violence and masculinity, and encourage them to develop new ways of relating with women and girls based on solidarity, cooperation, and fairness rather than domination and control. This new approach is being promoted and supported by the entire population the project has reached out.
Although there is no “one size fits all” solution for ending gender based violence, this project has shown that individuals and communities can change and that improving gender equality is an essential part of violence prevention. What we need now is sustained political commitment and resources to act on these lessons.