SENEGAL’S EQUAL FUTURES PARTNERSHIP COMMITMENTS

Below, you will find Senegal's original Equal Futures Partnership commitments. Updated commitments are being developed.

In the context of the implementation of the commitments taken by Senegal at the launch in New York, on the sidelines of the National Assembly of the United nations, in September 2012, of the presidential "Equal Futures Partnership project”, various activities have been carried out.

Continue the operationalization of the law on parity ahead of the local elections of 2014, while ensuring, for a better political participation, building capacity of invested women and the new parliamentarians

The Government of Senegal through the Ministry of women, children and the female entrepreneurship held a session of strengthening the capacity of 30 women parliamentarians in technical communication to their leadership allow, to put their full potential at the service of the Nation.

About advocacy for the establishment of an environment and support for the promotion of attitudes and behavior conducive to equity and gender equality, the Ministry of women organized a workshop of awareness advocacy in favor of 30 men and women parliamentarians for a mobilization of financial resources for the reproductive health with the support of UNFPA in partnership with the Senegalese Association for family well-being, the family planning incorporating the kind.

Other partners of the Ministry of women, civil society organizations have developed initiatives in this sense.

It counts among the actors of the society civil partner of the Ministry.

• The Association of Senegalese Jurists (AJS), an advisory body to the President of the Republic, contributes to the achievement of the tasks of the Ministry of women.
• As such, a national workshop funded by the Regional Office of the High Commissioner of the human rights (BRHCDH) was organized in October 2012 to the attention of women parliamentarians on the various stages of the Finance Act, specifically on the budget, but also on the functioning, bodies, procedures and organization of the parliamentary institution.

The overall objective was to strengthen the capacity of parliamentarians, including women in general around the Organization, operation and procedures of the parliamentary institution and the budget process.

The specific objectives were to:

• gain insight on the separation of powers and the role of the National Assembly;
• master the statutes that govern the organization functioning and procedures of the institution;
• master the different stages of the budget process (finance law) with emphasis on taking account of gender in the budget.

The following results are obtained:

• Members are fully aware of the principle of the separation of powers and the role of representation of the people and control of the Executive.
• The statutes that govern the functioning, organization and procedures of the National Assembly are included.
• The various stages which punctuate the budgetary process, as well as when and how to act effectively are well assimilated.
• A partnership that gave a group mentorship system that allows a group of women parliamentarians to remain in constant contact with a group of women lawyers to address all issues, including those relating to gender equality was established.
• Under the accompaniment of the implementation of the law establishing parity absolute man-woman, the Senegalese Council of women (COSEF) organized seminars for capacity-building of sixty (60) candidates in the legislative elections of July 1, 2012.

This group of 60 women benefited from three seminars on the following topics:

• The electoral code and the electoral process
• Leadership and communication
• Gender and parity.

At the end of the elections, women members have been trained on the objectives of Millennium Development and the national strategy for economic and social development.

Sixty (60) women elected local, especially rural regions in the Interior of the country were also trained on women and electoral process.

The Alliance for the Migration of Leadership and development (AMLD) is an international non-governmental organization, which mission is implementing, in Africa and with the international community, initiatives that can bring major changes in the relationship between migration, leadership and development and demonstrate how their synergy can stimulate the structure of development of African countries.

In the context of its actions for the promotion of equality in the political leadership and decision-making bodies, AMLD develops a joint program with International IDEA for the training and information of political parties.

This program allowed him to strengthen the capacities of political parties for the observation of the elections with a gender perspective. In this context, a staff of 120 members of political parties, members of the National Electoral Commission and the Department of Elections in Senegal have benefited from training on (i) thematic framework of Elections, (ii) law on parity in Senegal, (iii) kind in the electoral process.

Similarly, 400 candidates’ women and youth have been trained for the election campaign of the legislative 2012 with skills for effective leadership and 50 observers were sent to the ground in the regions of Dakar, Ziguinchor, Kolda and Sédhiou. The action of the AMLD has contributed to a critical mass of women in the observation of the polling stations where representatives of political parties were of the order of 281 men and 131 women.

The equitable access of women and men to economic opportunities by establishing, with the assistance of USAID, a program to support women's leadership aimed to promote the participation of women at the community level and to eliminate barriers that impede them.

Leadership and journalism: Implementation of the Citizen of Rural Woman Programme

The goal of the program is to strengthen the presence and voice of women in the media to develop their leadership at the local level.
 

Objectives of the programme

• Strengthening women's leadership and gender equity; in the management and programming of the radio
• Creating an environment that facilitates the leadership of women at the community level;
• Documentation and dissemination of lessons learned and best practices to promote women's leadership in the media.

The program covers an area that spans:

• 2 regions: Thiès and Diourbel
• 13 local communities
• 60 villages

Program radio Guindiku FM community created by women: results obtained:

• Better management of the radio (involvement of women, normal functioning of organs)
• 65% of the programs made by women
• 65% of the programmes presented by women
• 13 times a week a woman interviewed in the radio opinion leader
• Broadcast continuously (17 hours per day)
• Improving the programmatic supply
• Rural listeners follow the radio broadcasts
• Emissions on the various socio-economic and cultural issues broadcast

Women reporters program: results

• They are able to do radio productions
• They are people resources at the level of their village
• They create a network of women reporters to share experiences and work together.

Listening groups: results

• Implementation of 60 listening groups
• Community consultations (identification of genre themes)
• Development of quarterly action plans
• Establishment of a line of credit
• Implementation of mutual health insurance scheme

Lessons learned

• The advocacy with religious leaders promotes the acceptance of equity of gender and female leadership
• Community consultation on barriers and concerns is an effective strategy for the involvement of women
• The involvement of the leading men in the activities facilitates the success of initiatives in the direction of the women
• Lack of women's access to credit and health care are the burdens that hinder the development of their leadership
• Women's increased earnings to cover priority health, education and food to household expenses
• Coverage of these charges by women provides them with respect and consideration on the part of husbands
• The breaking of taboos is an effective way to denounce violence in communities (rape, mutilation, etc.) and restore justice

Challenges

• Increase the presence of women in local decision making for a better taken into account their needs
• Accompany women so that they occupy key positions in local decision-making bodies
• Better equip women to enable them to effectively play their role in decision-making bodies
• Strengthen existing health mutuals and implement new
• Increase the line of credit for better access to credit
• Strengthen the institutions that support women's leadership so that they can operate in a sustainable manner

Accordingly, the Ministry of women has prepared a draft 'Gender and Political Participation' to better support the participation and the presence of women in local authorities (local elections of 2014). This calls a mobilization of substantial financial resources to support such an initiative (about 130,000,000 F CFA). Quality human resources are available to carry out such initiatives.

The organizations of civil society and the technical partners and Financiers, including the USAID has just completed the first phase of the project "Female Leadership" to consolidate and strengthen the participation of women in the elections of 2014.