Advancing Women and Girls in Liberia“Women are part of the development agenda for the first time—and we are making use of our time. Traditional culture has made us reticent. But no more. Our eyes are now open and there is no way they will close again.” These are the words of Liberia’s Vabah Gayflor, Minister of Gender and Development. Soft-spoken and patient, when her moment comes to speak, her voice drops to a whisper that commands the attention of all in the room. The 19 philanthropists with whom I am traveling in Liberia are focused; we have met a truly powerful
person. Gayflor, who is not a member of any political party, is an unmistakable champion of the person and policies of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Her colleagues speak of two revolutions led by Liberian women, and the one to come. The first was their struggle for peace in 2003. The second came in 2005, when they registered to vote and stood for election. Now, the third revolution is a more sustainable approach to economic development, one that provides benefits for all. Quiet power characterizes the women of Liberia with whom we have met. They and their daughters have been the victims of extraordinary gender-based violence throughout the country’s 14-year civil war and still to this day, for the culture of impunity lingers on. However, in Minister Gayflor’s words, “Women believe their time has come.”Meeting them persuades us that is so. Throughout our day today, we met with women and girls who were being given economic opportunity, albeit modest, for the first time. Job creation has not come near to keeping up with need, and remains an urgent priority for President Sirleaf, who met with us over dinner last night. While some of those jobs will come from large corporations in search of coffee, rubber, and cocoa, Sirleaf notes that the extractive industries are “capital intensive, and will not provide all the jobs we need.” And so the prospect of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) attracts the donors with whom I am now traveling, leaders of the Global Philanthropy Forum and The Philanthropy Workshop West. In a large building on Monrovia’s main thoroughfare, we met with the exuberant members of the Liberian Women’s Sewing Project, a pilot enterprise of Chid Liberty’s Made In: Liberia, a promising new business to manufacture apparel that would be fair trade certified and a source of employment. Elsewhere in Monrovia, each woman who opens a stall at the Nancy B. Doe Market, funded by the Sirleaf Market Women’s Fund, is required to open a savings account at the ECO Bank branch located within the market. And she is given access to daily literacy classes within the market walls. In a country where 60 percent of agricultural output and 80 percent of trading activities are carried out by women, ensuring that they have training and access to credit is essential. Liberian women have found ways to advance other aspects of the Sirleaf government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS). Members of the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP) told us of their efforts to increase women’s participation in peace building at all levels in the country, through advocacy, capacity building, radio outreach, and rural initiatives. And the truly extraordinary women of West Point—the largest slum in Liberia—have formed their own West Point Women for Health and Development Association. Forty-eight percent of West Point’s population is comprised of children, 35% women (mostly single parents), and 15% men. In this area not yet reached by government services, these remarkable women concluded that “enough is enough” after seeing too many children raped and killed. They self-organized and took responsibility for their impoverished community, with each paying weekly dues of 30 Liberian dollars (roughly 40 cents U.S.). With this money, they fund grassroots efforts to improve health and sanitation, reduce gender-based violence, provide literacy classes, reduce prostitution—and see to it that the police do their jobs. And if the police fail them, as is so often the case, they take matters to higher authorities until perpetrators of violence are prosecuted and some form of order is achieved. Their annual budget is $10,000. With funding, they would like to expand their skills training to teaching a woman to drive a car. Newly empowered with that skill, she could be a taxi driver and make a living for her family. So what is the role for private actors—philanthropists and social investors? Is the right entry point a community-based organization, an NGO that provides skills training and meets basic needs? Or is it to create the conditions for small enterprises to take seed, so that the economy can expand more than its current 5% per year. With funding and technical assistance, increased access to education, skills development, credit and inputs, women will be able to lift their families from poverty. Women did not get the vote in Liberia until 1948. Their country did not get peace until women demanded it in 2003. Now a woman holds the presidency, powerful women are heading ministries and holding senate seats, and women with no education and no obvious reason for hope have transformed West Point from being a daily, deadly danger to their sisters and their children. Their eyes are now open to the power they wield. Will they turn back? And how can the rest of us ease their path forward? Liberia: Background ©UNICEF
This map does not reflect a position by UNICEF on the legal status of any country or territory or the delimitation of any frontiers. Liberia is emerging from many years of civil war, which has led to internal displacement of hundreds of thousands of people, disrupted delivery of basic social services, and increased the vulnerability of women and children to extreme poverty, hunger and disease, including AIDS. Armed conflict has also hampered the country’s ability to make significant progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Barriers to girls’education · The impact of war has left the majority of the population living in poverty. High drop-out rates are largely due to teenage pregnancy, early marriage and harmful traditional practices. · The majority of teachers are unqualified, and only 19 per cent of all teachers are women. UNGEI in action Although an UNGEI partnership has not been initiated in Liberia, and there is no focal point at the country level, UNGEI conducted a gender review for Liberia’s submission to the Fast Track Initiative, which the country recently joined. Key girls’ education initiatives The Government of Liberia launched its National Girls’ Education Policy in April 2006, calling on partners to work together to achieve universal primary education for every Liberian child. The policy aims to provide universal, free and compulsory primary school and reduce secondary school fees by 50 per cent. It outlines activities to recruit and train more female teachers, provide counseling for girls and life skills education in schools, increase the availability of scholarships for girls and strengthen health systems in schools. And it calls for ending the impunity of teachers who sexually abuse and assault students. The policy encourages the formation of parent-teacher associations and girls’ clubs, and it promotes adult literacy. Partnership Partners in promoting girls’ education in Liberia include the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE), Ministry of Education, Oxfam,United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the World Food Programme(WFP). UNGEI within other national and international frameworks The country is developing a comprehensive poverty reduction strategy and the Common Country Assessment (CCA), which is conducted jointly by the UN agencies, has been developed. HIV/AIDS: The Liberian Experience!I have used the Liberian drums above to illustrate the call to arms in the fight
against HIV/AIDS. Within the traditional Liberian culture, the drum was not only used to entertain, but to also call the people to arms. A certain sound of the drum indicated that something awful had happened. The current news from Liberia about the spread of AIDS/HIV epidemic is not only alarming, it is of unimaginable proportion. According to the Minister of Health of Liberia, Dr. Peter Coleman, and Dr. Isabelle Simbay, head of the National Aids Control Program (NACP), over 100,000 Liberians have currently tested positive for HIV. The infected patients were primarily between ages 15-29. The report also indicated that there was a 20 percent increase over a two-month period. The NACP report shows that HIV/AIDS cases were substantially under-reported during prior years. According to the UNAIDS/WHO report on the incidence of HIV/AIDS in Liberia, from 1986 to 1997 the following HIV/AIDS cases were reported: These earlier test were restricted to antenatal (testing for birth defects) dignosis on women, and men who sought clinical help for STD or sexually transmitted diseases. The reports showed the following: The new report indicates that 3.2 percent of the Liberian population (assuming the population is currently 3.1 million) has tested positive for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, the virus that causes AIDS. It further indicates that 3 out of every 100 Liberians are infected with HIV. On a global basis, (assuming the current global-HIV infection is 34 million), three-tenths of one percent of the infected people with HIV live in Liberia. For a nation that is currently recovering from a devastating seven-year civil war, and a government that cannot provide the most basic health needs of its people, the news is devastating, but not unexpected. The seven-year civil war had all the ingredients for this health nightmare. Most of the 60,000 rebel fighters, who were "child soldiers" were forced to ingest drugs to carry out the will of the war lords. Thousands are currently addicted. Added to this factor were thousands of soldiers from various West African states who brought, "God knows what!" and infected the Liberian women and children. AIDS/HIV is a global problem, and no nation is immune from its infection; however, Liberia did not have to acquire this overwhelming health crisis. The response of the Liberian Government to the current health crisis is loaded with half-measures. The global experience indicates that education "safe sex", and health services are the current solutions to this health crisis. All the "gallows", the "hangman's noses", "firing squads" and long jail terms will not stop the Liberian people from engaging in risky sex. Education, and an improvement in the standard of living (health care, safe drinking water; sanitation; electricity) will help. The treatment and management of AIDS/HIV poses an enormous health and economic problem for the Liberia people. A report by UNAIDS/WHO shows that the treatment of an individual AIDS/HIV case in the Congo Republic and Kenya was well over $1,000 per year. If this figure is extrapolated in the Liberian case, we are talking about $100 million annually. This is another war that will claim the lives of thousands of our people. The traditional infectious diseases, malaria, yellow fever, and cholera, will only quicken the death of thousands of HIV-infected Liberians, whose immune system have already been compromised by AIDS. Approximately two-thirds of all the global cases of AIDS/HIV has been reported in Africa. In 1998, it is reported that 1.5 million people died from the disease. Liberia has joined the fray. My view is that the Governnment should immediately take the following measures to begin a national struggle against HIV/AIDS: A covered article published by Time Magazine (February 12, 2001, Volume 157, No. 6), and supported by AIDS ststistics from UNAIDS indicates that since AIDS was discovered as a deadly virus in the 1970s, over 17 million Africans have died from the virus, and about 8.8% of the adult-African population are infected with virus. . |
EXECUTIVE SUMMARYGirls and Development Inc. (GAD) is a charity non-governmental
organization that is exclusively girls’focus. GAD empowers young girls through series of programs that allows their participation into issues that affect their lives. GAD seeks to promote the growth and development of young girls through its programs and advocate equal opportunities for girls to enable them compete at every level of the society in post-conflict Liberia. It is for these reasons that GAD intends to host a two day training workshop on HIV/AIDS exclusively for girls between the ages of 13-18 years from middle and high schools in Monrovia. This workshop is designed to educate young girls, many of whom have had no formal education about the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Those participating in the program will be encouraged to develop action strategy and pursue grass root actions in the campaign against the fight of HIV/AIDs. These participants will be guided by GAD staff in organizing actions, awareness, and prevention on HIV/AIDs in their various schools and communities. The outcome of this two-day workshop will be evaluated by GAD base on the effective implementation of participants’action strategies in their schools and communities. Following the successes of this program, GAD will review objectives and needs of participants to better design the training and refine the programs for future participants possibly out of Monrovia. In order to implement this program, we are seeking funding from a variety of sources. In order to meet the full need of $US 2,610.00detailed in the attached budget, it is our hope that your organization/entity will contribute. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Since its inception in February of this year, Girls and Development (GAD) has been proactive in initiating programs directed towards the integral development of young girls. GAD radio program aired on Truth FM, and forums entitled “Let’s Talk” which is exclusively for young girls in middle and high school, and between the ages of 13-18 years primarily focus on the cognitive development of young girls. These programs afford them the opportunity to discuss many social vices that threaten their future and survival. HIV/AIDS epidemic is a growing alarm in Liberia, which poses an enormous health and economic problem for the people of Liberia. This could be another war that may claim the lives of thousands of young people if necessary actions are not taken to address the spread of this epidemic. It was estimated in 2008 that 35,000 adults and children are living with HIV (UNAIDS, 2008). Of this figure, it was also estimated the 32,000 are ages 15 years above and more than half of this amount constitute women and girls. NACP in an updated survey also reported than over 100,000 Liberians have currently tested positive for HIV. The affected patients were primarily between ages 15-29 years. This report also shows that HIV/AIDS cases are substantially under-reported (HIV/AIDs: The Liberian experience). GAD believe that one of the reasons for the prevalence in HIV/AIDs rate is due to the unsystematic sensitization and awareness campaign which focus mainly on an adult population, against the youth sector that comprise a significant percentage of our population. It must be noted that approximately 55 percent of our population is under age 20; while 40 percent are younger than 15years of age. Hence, to curtail the spread of the HIV epidemic this sector of our society must be actively involved in the education, awareness and campaign against the HIV/AIDs epidemic. Mass education on HIV should be targeted towards the youth population, including the age group younger than 15 years of age. OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT In respond to this demand, GAD is organizing a two-day workshop and training on HIV/AIDs exclusively for young girls in middle and high schools between the ages of 13-18 years from various high schools and communities in Monrovia. These young girls will be trained and mentored by professionals and social activists in the area of HIV/AIDs. This workshop will bring together approximately 50 young girls within the age group supra for two days of intensive lectures on the HIV/AIDs virus, preventions and the development of grass root strategy which they can implore to help prevent the spread of the virus. Participants at the workshop are expected to develop an understanding of HIV/AIDs, many of whom may have had no formal education on the virus, including event planning and how to raise awareness in their schools and communities. This workshop will also guide them through the process of HIV/AIDs prevention campaigns, developing and implementation strategic action plans that will enable them to effectively address the threat of this incurable virus and provide support group for other young people (especially their peer group) with concrete routes through which they can also take appropriate actions against the prevalence of this virus in our society. OUT COMES The outcomes of this workshop are immeasurable. Following the two-days of training at the workshop, GAD will review the objectives, reflections, and needs of the participants to better design the training and refine the program for future participants. As participants will be selected from different schools in Monrovia, they will be placed into groups during the workshop to develop action strategies for implementation. GAD will support these students’ action plans and will engage in a continual dialogue with the students to ensure that their action strategies are carry out in their various schools and communities. AN OVER VIEW OF GAD Girls and Development is a non-governmental, charity organization that is exclusively girls’ focus. It provides an environment where girls can address many of the social problems that affect them through dialogue and concrete grass-root actions. GAD was established in March 2006 and has since launch a radio talk show on Truth FM and forum in various high schools in Monrovia titled “let’s talk”. GAD is committed to the holistic development of young girls in Liberia and has in a very short period reached as many girls unimaginable through its programs. The mission of Girls and Development is to promote the growth and development of young girls in post-conflict Liberia. This is achieve through educational programs and training, psycho-social counseling, and by affording girls the forum to Discuss, Participate, and Take meaningful actions at grass root level in addressing the many social problems confronting them. We believe young girls can compete at every level of society with their male counter-part, thus we advocate that they must be accorded equal opportunities to realize their full potentials and God given talents. |