We live in an ever-changing society where women and girls continuously remain faced with rising levels of violence and discrimination, low access to quality health services and gender inequality. In a subregion where the challenges of women remain the same and closely shared, with the commitment of governments and works of civil society organizations unchanged.
Here we are in Burundi and RDC, for a four-day transnational visit to partners and member organizations of the GenEgaliteECCAS movement in our flagship cross-border solidarity visits to all countries within the ECCAS subregion, to strengthen collaboration and sustainability in building resilient feminist movements in the fight for gender equality and women’s rights within and beyond the ECCAS-CEMAC subregion.
“Women need to be empowered” double quoted by the Representative of the Mayor of Uvira, RDC & Women in Parliament, Burundi in our four days transnational and cross border solidarity visit to Burundi and RDC. In a region where women’s voices are marginalized, and their rights unequaled, Wfac and the GenEgaliteECCAS movement convened a milestone transnational exchange learning visit to members of the GenEgaliteECCAS movement to share knowledge and expertise on women’s and girls’ issues and strengthen cross border feminist movement building in solidarity towards achieving gender equality and women’s right, with close focus on climate action and sustainable development.
The four days exchange learning in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi, informed on the status of women in the countries, and the growing effects of climate change in the lives of women and girls, most especially those living in rural and suburban communities. The incredible work continuously being carried out by civil society organizations and our partners and member organizations of the GenEgaliteECCAS movement; IJEFA and SEMerera in RDC and Burundi respectively, goes a milestone in advancing the lives and health of women and girls within the country and subregion at large; from capacity building outreach programs, exchange and skills learning activities organized by IJEFA and SEMerera in their respective communities, to impart and empower women and girls with information and life changing skills, the cross-border visit highlighted on the inextricable role of feminist organizations in the promotion of women’s rights and empowerment.
Meeting with grassroots women, local NGOs and the representative of the mayor in the two days exchange learning and skills sharing workshop in Uvira, RDC further strengthened our knowledge on the challenges women face in our communities today, some of which continues to be influenced by human, social and cultural aspects. The representative of the mayor of Uvira emphasized on the need for women to be capacitated and the role collaboration amongst civil society organizations plays in promoting women’s empowerment and rights. After listening to the various presentations on the status of women in the respective partner and member countries, it was well to note that, women and girls face similar challenges across the region. Talking to Women Members of Parliament in Burundi, youth advocates, Mandela Washington Fellows and other members of the civil society organizations in Bujumbura, Burundi, the exchange threw more light to the similarities of the issues and concerns facing women and girls in the country and the subregion. The need for collaboration and collective organizing in pursuing gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls has never been more important than now, with the region continuously being faced with climate change concerns, leaving thousands of women and girls homeless, with little to no means of survival. it is as important to discuss and share knowledge towards advancing climate action and gender equality, as we continue to reach out to members and governments within the ECCAS-CEMAC region.
Committed to promoting women’s rights and gender equality within the ECCAS-CEMAC subregion, the cross-border solidarity visits to Burundi and RDC yet again recorded another milestone in mobilizing commitment makers and champions for generation equality, with over five women of parliament in Burundi, other civil society organizations in RDC, youth advocates and young people, taking commitments to strengthen the already existing efforts in empowering women and girls, and joining the GenEgaliteECCAS movement to amplify and promote women’s rights within the subregion as champions and commitment makers to the generation equality processes.
In our society today, the need for collaboration and cross border exchange learning and solidarity visits in strengthening feminist movements across the subregion is vital towards promoting women’s rights and achieving gender equality. With women highly marginalized and affected by these inequalities, the time is now, for world leaders and commitment makers to champion the cause for gender equality, women’s rights and climate action. In our cross-border exchange learning in Burundi with youth advocates, women rights champions, women members of parliament, representatives from the ministries and the government, alongside UN agencies, the thematic emphasized on the need for strong feminist movements, and commitments to achieve gender equality and women’s rights, which now remains continuously threatened by climate action, violence and insecurity, discrimination and a handful of others.
The need and role of young people in championing discussions on gender equality, climate change and women’s rights remain critical to advancing women’s rights and climate action.
Sharing the wonderful experiences and challenges faced during cross-border visits, it is well to note the incredible support and warm welcome received from host countries and member organizations (SEMerera, Burundi and IJEFA, Democratic Republic of Congo), as we embarked on our journeys to the various respective communities and countries.
A rich and overwhelming experience that filled our moods with highs and lows, all in our efforts to gain more knowledge, share learnings and strengthen our understanding of the various challenges constraining women’s rights, gender equality and sustainable development in our subregion. Our experiences, challenges and opportunities remain interconnected and similar, with our fears, successes and failures a steppingstone towards achieving and realizing our ultimate goal of making generation equality a reality; and the GenEgaliteECCAS movement, a “home’.
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