50 MINORITY WOMEN HAVE BEEN TRAINED ON MINORITY RIGHT ADVOCACY SKILLS, POLITICAL PEACE PARTICIPATION, COUNTRY DECISION-MAKING AND ENHANCING GENDER EQUALITY AND WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT IN SOMALILAND

USWO organization: 50 minority women, selected as active community committees from Daami A&B Minority IDP camps in Hargeisa, have been trained on minority rights advocacy techniques, political peace participation, country decision-making and enhancing the equality of gender and women's rights empowerment in Somaliland.

 On October 16^th 2014, Ubah Social Welfare Organization (USWO) and IIDA Organization together signed project funding agreement (PFA) on the implementation of this project entitled to “Support to the Promotion of Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Project in Somalia/land Funded by European Union (EU)”.

The main objectives of this three months project are as following:

§  To provide rights and skills training and support for Somaliland minority women to organise at a local level; and

§  To increase the effectiveness of advocacy activities at a local and national level, to bolster the future representation of Somaliland minority women’s needs and voice in the political process.

Among the main activities of the project to be implemented during the project live period include the following components:

§  Conduct Two Minority Rights Awareness & Advocacy trainings;

§  Conduct Two Mobilization Capacity Buildings to Address Somaliland Women's Issues;

§  Conduct meetings with target groups and local stakeholders for strengthening minority rights community approach based on protection structures.

§  Establish one Minority Women's Rights Pressure.

4.0       ACTIVITIES ACCOMPLISHED

The details and descriptions of the project foregoing programmatic activities undertaken so far (as of 18 October to November to 20^th 2014) and its achievements are the subject of this performance report, and are as narrated in the proceeding pages sequentially. 

4.1       Minority Women’s Rights Awareness & Advocacy trainings:

The minority women’s rights awareness and advocacy training (workshop 1^st & 2^nd) activities were conducted during the period between 9^th to 18^th November 2014 with the participation of 50 pre-selected and identified minority women from Daami A&B minority IDP settlements in Hargeisa.

§  Objectives of the Trainings

The trainings were developed and conducted as part a follow up to the awareness and advocacy component of this project on the Promotion of Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment. The purpose of the trainings is to:

-       Mobilize the minority women with the aim of increasing awareness, advocacy and knowledge about the support for Somaliland minority women to organize at a local level; and

-       Bolster the future representation of Somaliland minority women’s needs and voice in the political process.

-       Provide background information on the concept and definition of minorities and ways to create political participation, care, support and employment opportunities to minority women.

§  Expected Output of the training:

-       Trained minority women participants mobilized, being aware and having gained their knowledge about increasing advocacy and organized among themselves;

-       Participants having gained their ambitions for future political participation

-       The minority women (participants) clearly understood the concept and definition of minorities;

-       Participant actors having ability to define the chain of crimes that make up human trafficking;

• Opening of the Trainings:

A

fter all participants reported to the hall in each training, the official opening remarks were made by Mr. Abshir Ibrahim Hassan – the executive director of USWO. In his introductory and well coming speech, he thanked IID and MRG organizations and the European Union (Financial support) in advance for the appreciative cooperation and funding this project, he also thanked honorable guests and officials from local authorities; as well as, main figures from the private sector including Dr. Mohamed Cagaweyne. Foregoing his remarks Mr. Abshir also high-lightened the general overview of both the project and the trainings.

During the opening session of training one, Dr. Mohamud Cagaweyne – Manager of  Maternity Private Hospital speaking at the workshop promised that he is committed to support minority women and approved them as a representative committee to provide free medical services to three (3) women every month.

  Dr. Mohamud Cagaweyne – Manager of Maternity Private Hospital speaking at the workshop promised that he is committed to support minority women and approved them as a representative committee to provide free medical services to three (3) women every month.

Each one of the two target groups was given a two-day training workshop on Minority Women’s Rights Awareness & Advocacy raising methods trained by USWO officers whereas each training has attached 25 women participants from the respective target communities segments (i.e. youth girls and women).

The two awareness and advocacy training activities implementation methodologies and approaches apparatus per used include: (i) two way communication participatory approaches –open discussions, questions and answers, (ii) explanatory short lectures aimed to introduce the trainees about concept of each sessions, (iii) group discussions aimed to allow trainees to share, discuss and brain storm issues and particulars and also to courage trainees to express their understanding of the assigned topics while gauging their level of understanding, (iv) Plenary discussions to allow trainees set sights on experience and presentations (v) and Informal consultations that take aim to assist those trainees who have low understanding and/or energy while maintaining the interest of the energetic ones.

Training participants engaged in group work discussions

Table: 1.           this table illustrates Minority Women’s Rights Awareness Training workshop (1) data information summaries.

Type of the training	Date started	Date ended	Place held	# of training held	# of trainees & gender	Training Purpose	Training topics learnt
Minority Women’s Rights Awareness Training	9 of Nov. 2014	10 of Nov. 2014	Hargeisa Maroodi-jeex Region	1	Trainees # 25 Female 25 Male 0	The purpose of the training was to mobilize the minority women with the aim of increasing awareness, advocacy and knowledge about the support for Somaliland minority women to organize at a local level and bolster the future representation of Somaliland minority women’s needs and voice in the political process.	o    General overview of the project. o    What are indigenous peoples & minorities? o    Concept of definitions on Global Minority Rights. o    What are the modes of minority women’s rights? o    What are the criteria to identify minority? o    What puts racial discrimination to contract against minority rights? o    Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. o    Overview of Somaliland national policy for minority rights. o    Ways to create political participation, care, support and employment opportunities to minority women.

Table: 2.           this table illustrates Minority Women’s Rights Awareness Training workshop (2) data information summaries.

Type of the training	Date started	Date ended	Place held	# of training held	# of trainees & gender	Training purpose	Training topics learnt
Minority Women’s Rights Awareness Training	16 of Nov. 2014	18 of Nov. 2014	Hargeisa Maroodi-jeex Region	1	Trainees # 25 Female 25 Male 0	The overall objective of the w/shop was to mobilize the minority women with the aim of increasing awareness, advocacy and knowledge about the support for Somaliland minority women to organize at a local level and bolster the future representation of Somaliland minority women’s needs and voice in the political process.	o    General overview of the project. o    What are indigenous peoples & minorities? o    Concept of definitions on Global Minority Rights. o    What are the modes of minority women’s rights? o    What are the criteria to identify minority? o    What puts racial discrimination to contract against minority rights? o    Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. o    Overview of Somaliland national policy for minority rights. o    Ways to create political participation, care, support and employment opportunities to minority women.

5.0       CONSTRAINTS AND ACTIONS TAKEN

D

uring each training, there have been the same difficulties that USWO training officers encountered at the sides of educational background of the training participant minority women as 94% of them have been educational background problems, because most of them were illiterate; of course, they the selected and identified target minority groups and this was not a specific issue for only these women, but is also for the whole minority community; however USWO training officers have used easy technics to provide the training with self-presentation slides and audio clips in Somali language and finally achieved to train them comprehensively on the issue.

           

6.0       CONCLUSION AND FOLLOW UP

           

The road to social inclusion will be a long hard one if and only if the discriminatory attitudes that previously placed minority communities into a spiral of poverty and exclusion remain unchanged.

The voiceless ness and powerlessness of minority communities must not continue. They must have a voice and, of course, interlocutors open to dialogue to construct inclusive alliances.

In the Somaliland the issues of outcaste minorities, poverty and social exclusion are pivotal, or essential to the development debate. In many ways we are still grappling with development concepts, tendencies and initiatives of the developed world. Developing countries tend to follow the trends promoted by the developed countries.

Data on best practices can provide the guidance and support needed to take the right course. In this sense, the experience of some countries in Africa might prove invaluable to promote positive changes in the struggle for reducing poverty among ethnic minorities’ communities.

LISTS OF TRAINEES

Training One

S#	Name Of Trainee	Gender	Location
1	Shahdiya Dayib Mahamed	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
2	Asia Sulub Abdilahi	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
3	Shahmad Abdilahi Osman	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
4	Najma Jama Nuur	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
5	Halimo Aden Awale	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
6	Fosia Osman Yousuf	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
7	Sahra Abdi Qalinle	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
8	Amina Muse Ali	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
9	Ubah Ahmed Abdi	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
10	Shamis Ibrahim Mahamud	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
11	Kowsar A/Nour Sallan	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
12	Nimo Mahamed Yousuf	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
13	Ayaan Abdi Osman	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
14	Ifrah Mahamed Hussein	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
15	Asha Abdi Hussein	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
16	Fosia Ibrahim Osman	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
17	Hukun Ismail Omer	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
18	Qamar Sandon Awale	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
19	A/Nimo Osman Jama	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
20	Zamzam Nur Omer	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
21	Hinda Mahamed Mahdi	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
22	Nimo Mahamed Muse	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
23	Eido Abdi Muse	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
24	Nura Mahamed Ismail	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
25	Tamat Tabut Omane	Female	Dami A Hargeisa

Training Two

S#	Name Of Trainee	Gender	Location
1	Zainab Hussein Haybe	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
2	Ubah Jeeh Hassan	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
3	Hamdi Ali Hassan	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
4	Najma A/kadir Ismail	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
5	Kalsuma Mahamed Jama	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
6	Shukri Ibrahim Ali	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
7	Tiriig Khadar Mahamed	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
8	Ayan Deeq Qowdhan	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
9	Hodo Awil Ali	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
10	Ruun Mohumed Mahdi	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
11	Filsan Ahmed Jama	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
12	Ifrah Jama Abdi	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
13	Sharaf Mahamed Abdi	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
14	Ayan Nim’an Farah	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
15	Warda Hassan Ibrahim	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
16	Nura Mohumed Mahdi	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
17	Nasra Mahamed Omer	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
18	Nura Mohumed Ibrahim	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
19	Farhia Abdilahi Omer	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
20	Asma Ahmed Awale	Female	Dami B Hargeisa
21	Fardus Mahamud Ismail	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
22	Mabruka Mahamed	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
23	Asia Ahmed Osman	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
24	Gudon Dayib Mohumed	Female	Dami A Hargeisa
25	Qadan Mohamed Ahmed	Female	Dami B Hargeisa

 

The End