A consortium of NGOs consisting of Actionaid, Gambia Red Cross Society, TARUD, SIMMA, World View The Gambia and MYTAPOLA, in their bid to address the issue of violence against women and HIV/Aids, on Tuesday organised a one-day sensitisation program for Central River Region Technical Advisory Committee members  in Janjangbureh.

In his opening remarks, Lamin Darboe, deputy governor of the region, said The Gambia is ready to champion all forms of human rights and protection of women.  He pointed out that some cultures and religious beliefs are hindering the effective performance of women and girls in nation building.  He noted that under the leadership of President Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh, women form part of the top decision makers which in the past never happened.  He commended Actionaid and the consortium of NGOs for organising such an important forum.

In his opening remarks, Lamin Darboe, deputy governor of the region, said The Gambia is ready to champion all forms of human rights and protection of women.  He pointed out that some cultures and religious beliefs are hindering the effective performance of women and girls in nation building.  He noted that under the leadership of President Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh, women form part of the top decision makers which in the past never happened.  He commended Actionaid and the consortium of NGOs for organising such an important forum.

For his part, Worldview coordinator, Haruna Kuyateh, asserted that violence against women and girls has become an issue of global concern, adding that a number of reasons have been forwarded for the escalation of this violence which includes poverty, a breakdown in family and societal values and norms. 

For his part, Worldview coordinator, Haruna Kuyateh, asserted that violence against women and girls has become an issue of global concern, adding that a number of reasons have been forwarded for the escalation of this violence which includes poverty, a breakdown in family and societal values and norms. 

Mr Kayateh reiterated that the most disheartening aspect of the whole episode is that increasingly, women and girls are dealing not only with violence itself but also with HIV/Aids.

Mr Kayateh reiterated that the most disheartening aspect of the whole episode is that increasingly, women and girls are dealing not only with violence itself but also with HIV/Aids.

The Gambia Family Planning Association Regional Program coordinator, Yadi Nget, also speaking at the ceremony, said the orientation workshop was designed to build the capacity of the TAC members to enable them to recognise that violence against women and girls is a violation of their fundamental human rights. It also has an impact on the right to freedom of movement and the rights to live in peace and dignity of the womenfolk.

The Gambia Family Planning Association Regional Program coordinator, Yadi Nget, also speaking at the ceremony, said the orientation workshop was designed to build the capacity of the TAC members to enable them to recognise that violence against women and girls is a violation of their fundamental human rights. It also has an impact on the right to freedom of movement and the rights to live in peace and dignity of the womenfolk.

Teenage pregnancy is a pregnancy that occurs at an early age, mostly, between the ages of 13 and18.

Teenage pregnancy is a global problem which needs to be address before it reaches out of control.  Inorder to explain the details of teenage pregnancy, its causes, problems, effects, and solutions should be discussed first.

The causes of teenage pregnancy cannot be over emphasized but it is widely believed that low parental care, ignorance, peer influence, among others, contribute greatly to this effect. Most girls who were not involve in love relationship are usually influenced by their peers, into this act. 

Most girls are not aware of the dangers, effects and risks involved in this ungodly act where as others who fall as victims of teenage pregnancy regrets it.

However the problems of unwanted abortion can be a great risk to the mothers’ health.

The desire to be up to date with fashion and jewellery is what disturbs many girls.

Ignorance

Most girls know little about adolescent growth, fertility and the consequences of early pregnancy.  Some parents do not attempt to advice their children on sex and its related issues.

Effects

Most teenage mothers become drop outs. Teenage mothers never have peace of mind due to fear of being expelled from school or sent out of their homes by their parents. Young girls who get impregnated sometimes try to carry out abortion, whilst others dump their babies after giving birth. This is a bad practice and it must not be encouraged in any society.

by Rohey Jallow
St Peter’s Senior
Secondary School.

At first, it is their youthfulness that captivates you, making you wonder how the Gambia Police Force was able to recruit such a fine breed of women to do the job they are doing- and excellently for that matter. For those who commute between Banjul and Brikama on a daily basis, these young police officers are a daily source of excitement. They are brisk about the job, blowing the whistle whenever it is necessary. But they hardly resort to that in that a mere wave of the hand is enough to make reckless drivers behave themselves. For inexplicable reasons, male drivers tend to respect the young female police officers more than they do the male ones!Two drivers got into a quarrel the other day over the right of way right in the presence of a policeman, who appeared helpless. But the moment a policewoman stepped in, they quickly resolved their differences and got on with business, as usual. Could this be a reason why the police high command decided to have them on the road? Don’t laugh.

We don’t know why the police force has suddenly become so attractive to our young girls. But we are happy to see that they are engaged in something meaningful that contributes to the overall development of our country. Seen in this light, they need to be motivated. Those of them who show the aptitude should be sent for further studies. And they should be well compensated so that they don’t get induced by material gifts to do the wrong thing. When this is done, they will become role models for others to take up a career in the service. And hopefully, we shall sooner or later, preferably sooner, have a female Inspector General of Police.

In his welcoming remarks, the Amir Baba F.Trawally advised the participants to take the training seriously. He said that the training class for girls is of particular importance because women play a pivotal role in the shaping of a society. “You are the future mothers” Amir told the participants. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW) has said, “Paradise lies under the feet of mothers”.This lays a heavy responsibility on women to train their children in the best Islamic traditions and you are granted responsibility to change positively the community, society and humanity at large.

Women, he said, should therefore show a high sense of dedication in including the teaching of Islam in their lives. As children you should therefore learn to dedicate yourselves to the Jamaat and learn its traditions.Amir urged the children to respect their parents and teachers and make good use of their time. “You should also pay attention to both your academic and spiritual training,” Amir concluded.

Other speakers on the occasion includes, Brother Alhajie Bah, National Secretary Ta’leem who spoke on the importance of attaining quality education.

Sister Isatou Kinteh spoke on behalf of the Sadr Lajna Ima’ullah, The Gambia.

In a related development the 3rdAnnual Boys training class was also conducted and organized by the Youth of the Jamaat at Baitus Salam Mosque and ends on August 12th.

Meanwhile, the similar trainings were also conducted in all the six regions of the country.

The Ambassador of the Republic of China on Taiwan, His Excellency Richard Shih, recently presented a cheque amounting to US$400,000 to the President’s Empowerment of Girls Education Project (PEGEP).

Speaking at a presentation ceremony held at the State House, Ambassador Shih expressed his pleasure in making the presentation on behalf of his government.

The Taiwanese diplomat hailed the Gambian leader for the attention he is giving to education.

In receiving the money on behalf of PEGEP, Mrs. Tenengba Jaiteh, Secretary General and Head of the Civil Service, applauded the Taiwanese government for their continued support to the country’s education sector.

PEGEP, which is said to aim at providing free education for girls with a view to increasing their enrolment in schools, is the brainchild of President Jammeh.

On 7 July 2008, Southern Sudan celebrated its annual Girls’ Education Day, an opportunity to acknowledge achievements in girls’ enrollment and galvanize action to close the gender gap in education.

This year celebrations were focused in the Lakes State capital of Rumbek where thousands of school children gathered in the town’s Freedom Square. The event, which was attended by representatives of the Government of Southern Sudan, Ministers of Education from all ten States, United Nations and NGO partners, was presided over by the Governor of Lakes State, H.E. Daniel Awet Akot and the Minister of Education, Science and Technology of the Government of Southern Sudan, H.E. Professor Job Dhoruai.

During Sudan’s two decade–long civil war that ended in 2005 with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, it was estimated that only 14 per cent of students enrolled in primary school were girls. In April 2006 the ‘Go to School’ initiative, a major campaign to rebuild the education system and bring 1.6 million children back to the classroom, was launched by the Government of Southern Sudan with UNICEF support. Significant progress has since been achieved with total enrolment currently at approximately 1.3 million, up sharply from an estimated 343,000 during the war.  It is estimated that 34 per cent of the children attending primary school today are girls.

Despite these achievements, for every one of the estimated 1.3 million children at School in Southern Sudan today, there is at least one other who is not, and the great majority of those who remain out of school are girls.
The ‘Go to School’ campaign has provided a step forward in the drive for Southern Sudan to achieve the second and third Millennium Development Goals: universal primary education and gender equality.

His Excellency Job Dhoruai said, “We need to build on what we have achieved and accelerate the enrollment of girls. It’s a responsibility for all of us and I urge parents and community leaders to do their best. Together we can make a real difference”.
UNICEF believes that girls’ education is the single most important investment any nation can make and the benefits of educating girls are enormous. For Southern Sudan to quickly reverse the worst effects of its two decade war and to achieve economic growth and reduce infant mortality, a substantial investment in education is essential, especially for girls.

The Director of UNICEF Southern Sudan, Peter Crowley said, “By investing in the education of the girls of Southern Sudan we will see the biggest returns. Educated women are less likely to die in childbirth and are more likely to send their own children to school. Healthy, educated, empowered women have healthy, educated and confident sons and daughters and it is children such as these that Southern Sudan needs if it too is to thrive”.
The active involvement of women leaders and role models as champions of girls’ education is critical to bridging the girl child education gap. To accelerate girls’ education, this year UNICEF is focussing on a number of concrete actions to support the Government of Southern Sudan, among them the Promotion and Advocacy for Girls Education (PAGE), a programme that uses community-based advocacy groups made up of youth, women and other opinion leaders to influence communities, parents and community leaders and government to support girls’ education.
   
UNICEF calls for committed investment in girls’ education as a key to Southern Sudan’s stability and development. UNICEF is appealing for $ 15 million for its education programmes in Southern Sudan this year, which will provide the much needed learning materials to keep children coming to school, the training of teachers, construction of permanent schools and vital capacity building.

UNICEF

The trafficking of girls from villages to cities in Nigeria is increasing and the state is powerless to stop the trade, officials told IRIN.

“The business of recruiting teenage girls as domestic help in rich and middle-class homes is booming despite our efforts to put a stop to it”, Bello Ahmed, head of the Kano office of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons (NAPTIP), told IRIN.

Girls aged 12-17 are regularly trafficked from villages and brought to the city to work as maids for an average monthly wage of 1,500 naira (US$13) which they usually send back to their parents who are caring for several of their siblings, according to Ahmed.

“Apart from being denied access to education, these girls are in many cases raped and beaten by their employers and this is why we keep a dormitory to rehabilitate them”, Ahmed said.

“Bringing in girls from the villages to the city to work as house helps continues unabated. In fact it is on the rise”, agreed Mairo Bello, head of Adolescent Health Information Project, a Kano-based non-governmental organisation (NGO).

As well as poverty, trafficking in girls and women is driven by the extreme income inequality which exists in Nigeria, and gender inequality. The problem is prevalent all around the country.

The dangers

Saudatu Halilu, a 16 year-old girl who moved to Kano from a rural village to work as a maid, has been a victim of the trade’s dangers.

Saudatu was brought to Kano from Nassarawa State in central Nigeria 10 months ago to work as a domestic help, but she said her master forced her into sleeping with him and threatened to kill her if she told anyone.

“I was too scared to tell my mistress or anyone what happened for fear of what my master would do to me and I did not realise I was pregnant until a medical check after I began to show some signs which attracted the attention of my mistress”, Halilu told AFP.
Poverty

Poverty drives parents into steering their teenage daughters into work as domestic helps, believing the menial jobs would secure better living conditions for their daughters, Ahmed said.

“I had no option but to send Hindu, who is my eldest daughter, to work in the city because we are poor and need money to feed”, said Aisha, a mother of six, who sent her eldest child, 14 year-old Hindu Nasidi, to Kano to earn money. The girl upset her keepers by not washing plates properly and they ground chilli pepper into her vagina as a punishment.

“The money she was paid from the job was very helpful in taking care of her six siblings until the unfortunate incident”, Nasidi said, blaming rising food prices for her decision to send the young girl out to work in the first place.

With Hindu’s job gone the family now ekes out a living from Nasidi’s raffia mat weaving and her husband’s mango and watermelon hawking which do not bring in enough money to buy sufficient food for their six children.

Powerless

Although NAPTIP has managed to stop the practice of teenage girls being ferried in trucks from villages to the cities “like chickens”, Ahmed admitted his agency had failed to stop the trade.

“The more the law enforcement agencies perfect their strategies at stopping the business, the more the perpetrators become more sophisticated in running their trade”, he said.

Lack of legislation to prosecute the traffickers makes NAPTIP unable to take legal action against traffickers even when they are arrested, according to Ahmed.

The Child Rights Act which provides for five year jail terms and US$424 fines for perpetrators of child labour is yet to be endorsed by the northern states’ legislatures because some clauses in it have been found controversial by religious and cultural leaders.

Friction

The Act has been a source of friction between the Nigerian federal government, which has endorsed it, and the northern legislative houses.

“We are disturbed by the trend of using teenage girls as domestic helps which is a form of child labour and we are aware of the provision in the Child Rights Act that deals with that issue”, Abdulaziz Garba Gafasa, speaker of Kano’s parliament, told IRIN.

“However we can’t endorse the Act because of certain clauses that are in conflict with our religious and cultural values; once such grey areas are expunged we will approve it, otherwise we will make by-laws at state level that will deal with the perpetrators of this despicable act.”

Mohammed Aliyu Mashi, who collaborates with the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in fighting child trafficking, rejected the notion that there was no legislation to prosecute child traffickers, saying what was lacking was the political will to enforce the law.

“There is provision in the penal code operating in the north which prescribes five year jail terms to life imprisonment to people convicted of child trafficking and child labour”, Mashi said.

“The claim of lack of legislature is just a ruse; it is an excuse to avoid prosecuting offenders because of lack of political will from officials.”

IRIN http://www.irinnews.org

Mrs. Jallow disclosed that in recognition of the negative effects that violence, or the threat of it, could have on the physical and mental health of women and their psycho-social well-being and cognisant of the gaps that exist in providing information and quality support services to the women and girls who encounter violence, a Consortium of NGOs and partners was set up. This consortium, she explained, is to effectively advocate for the right policies that respect, protect and fulfill the rights of women and girls in the face of societal violence. The consortium consists of ActionAid The Gambia, Gambia Family Planing Association, Gambia Red Cross Society, World View The Gambia, TARUD, UNHCR, UNFPA, MUTAPOLA and SIMA Vocational Training Centre as the Steering Committee.

The consortium, known as Women Won’t Wait Consortium, and a study on women and girls, was launched on Tuesday at the Tango office in Kanifing.

In her launching statement, the Action Aid Country Director, Madam Kujejatou Manneh, said that violence against women is a problem that affects all nations and societies and is of pandemic proportions. She said that women experience violence in their homes, communities, schools, streets, markets, police stations and hospitals.

She revealed that in 2006, her office commissioned a study on violence against women in The Gambia. The findings of the study revealed several socio-cultural factors responsible for violence against women and girls.These, she said, include women’s low self-esteem and the low status accorded to them by the society as well as their low literacy levels. This affects issues of control, ownership, and participation in almost all aspects of development and strategic resources. Their reproductive health problems, she added, remain the leading cause of sickness and death for women of child-bearing age thus resulting in a high maternal mortality rate.

According to her, the vision of the consortium is to have a Gambia in which women claim their right to be free of violence and in which the rights of women and girls and other vulnerable groups within their ranks are respected, protected and enhanced.

Almameh Taal of Worldview The Gambia, thanked Action Aid for their support to the three-year project.

The Forum for African Women Educationalists Gambia Chapter (FAWEGAM) last Friday held a one day bantaba (annual gathering) for students at the Regional Education Directorates, Region One, Kanifing. The gathering, which brought together students from different schools in the region, centred on violence against girls. FAWEGAM is an organisation to support women and girls in acquiring education for development.

In her welcoming remarks, the chairperson Mrs. Emily Foon-Sarr, anticipated that the information shared would be based on practical, real life experiences that will awaken the minds of girls to some of the difficulties they may face in their future lives. It would also however teach the young girls how to be economically independent, self reliant and confident. These, she said are the first step towards shielding oneself from being so easily victimised. She encouraged girls to learn to speak up and report cases of violence.

According to her, years ago violence against women was not given the attention it deserved and was for the most part regarded as an everyday occurrence. This was particularly true because women were subservient and without a voice.

“It is only in recent times that women discovered that by coming together they could gain the strength to enable them to claim their rights in a social and religious set up,” she said. She described the forum as an opportunity to make girls enlightened as to the processes and channels they can access to escape the realities of being the victims of violence.

The resource persons at the bantaba included Mr. Mustapha Drammeh of DOSE’s Gender Education Unit, Mrs. Yamundow Jagne Joof of the Child Welfare Unit of the Gambian Police Force and Mrs. Antoinette Corr Jack the general secretary of the Gambia Teachers Union.