African Women Standing in the Gap - Redefining Gender Roles in Africa

ALICE UKOKO Founder and CEO of Women Of Africa Speaks: SOAS 8.6.13

Firstly, I wish to draw attention to the state of emergency imposed on three Northern States of Nigeria; where women and children are experiencing a secret war that is claiming civilian lives, destroying their meagre properties and creating a refugee crisis, as the world looks on. We are informed that this is a war on Boko Haram a terror group we are told are faceless.

Would this war against women and children in secluded areas of Northern Nigeria, deliver sustainable peace at the face of unquenchable hunger, impunity and massive corruption in high places? We must wait and see!!

When the world continues to witness armed conflicts, man-made famine, tragedies, forced migration and monumental abomination against our humanity then, we should know that it is time for women to stand in the gap.

Women are important stakeholders in Africa and in the world and not just “gender” implied as creatures that came down from Mars. Women are human beings with equal rights and responsibility for the survival and development of Africa and our global world.

From time immemorial in African societies, women define the culture and tradition of the Continent. The men as the head of their families and communities had the responsibility of welcoming visitors while the women take care of the hospitalities.  Before the arrival of foreign visitors, no decision was concluded without the consent of the womenfolk.

However tragically, during the visit of the slave and commercial traders, mama did not eardrop to know what the mission of the visitors to Africa was. This was when the early slave and commercial traders arrived to secure their various interests in Africa. As was expected by mama, the visitors never left and papa did not feedback on the mission of the visitors.

Thus, the outcome and nightmare of the slave and commercial trading in Africa continue to haunt this Continent so rich and yet so impoverished because the women were excluded from talks and the decision making process.

I wish to state categorically that legalised slave trading displaced Africans to such an extent that we now have African Caribbean; African Americans etc spread across the world. They are the descendants of the victims of this inhumane trade and represent Africa Diaspora firstly. For them to return to their roots and the land of their ancestors, women must stand in the gap to make the corrective and positive changes necessary.

Whilst I do not advocate for reparation for the wrong doing aided by papa in the slave and commercial trading in Africa, I stand firmly on the need for the world to empower African women to stand in the gap to redefine gender roles now, rather than later.

I am concerned that whereas African women are the back bone and hence the continuing survival of their families, communities and Continent, they are portrayed as the victims; the uneducated; the perpetrators of harmful practices; and the specie over populating Africa and the rest of the world.

Humanity is not homogenous so that a global project aimed at creating a homogenous world is certainly failing Mother Earth. Mother Africa wants to be Free to enjoy and develop at her own pace and to partnership with the rest of the world as equals. We are all born equal under GOD irrespective of our gender, Continent and circumstances of our birth.

It is time for the world to understand and to empower women in order to reform Africa genuinely; instead of arming and aiding governments to sustain the global project as unequal partners.

It is to effectively stand in the gap and enrich Africa’s gender roles that Women Of Africa is leading efforts to end poverty, conflicts and sexual abuse in Africa and across the world.

Restoring the status of African women through international recognition is Key to addressing the misconceptions of the past. African women are the missing partners at the tables of world policy decision making, not only in political offices, but as civil society voices and effective participants in global socio-economic processes. African grassroots women have been fish and crop farmers and traders since time immemorial and never basket weavers.

Concluding, I wish to draw our attention to the continuing civil war in Syria where women and children are losing their lives every second for two years now. Women are experiencing sexual violence and gang rape all over the world that, it is irrelevant to identify what part of the world is experiencing the worse incidence of rape both within the home and outside.

By African tradition, the woman represents Mother Africa and no son of Africa is expected to rape his mother as such, urgent action is needed to end violence against women so that peace can return to Africa and our world. Remember! Sexual abuse of African women is a TABOO and it should be stopped with military speed. It is time to reform Africa by empowering and following the lead of African women standing in the GAP.

For information about Alice Ukoko, visit our websites: www.womenofafrika.org www.aliceukoko.org and www.aliceukoko.com

A DAY TO BE BORN AND A DAY TO DIE (Farewell Pa Nelson Mandela)

As Pa Nelson Mandela prepares to join our Ancestors, Women Of Africa congratulates President Jacob Zuma the South African President and his government for the honour of observing this historic event on Africa’s soil. It is important that he departs this world from Africa; the land of his birth. We are proud that we have not had to travel to far away land to share this moment of our HISTORY.

We stand with our South African sisters as we wish our African father safe passage into the Great Beyond. We remember his mission of liberating firstly the South African peoples and Africa as a Continent with great pride and inspiration.

Pa Nelson Mandela is leaves behind a Continent with great potential and in dire need for reform; hope and gender balancing. He has shown us that a life that the life that has meaning, is that which is lived for the freedom and benefit of others.

Farewell Pa Nelson Mandela!

Rest In Perfect Peace

 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Women Of Africa (WOA) was created in 1994 to give women the platform to engage in efforts to end direct military dictatorship in Nigeria.  Military rule ended in 1999 and WOAs focus shifted to supporting African families and professionals based in the United Kingdom, through advocacy and mediation services.  The aim was to reduce existing cultural misunderstandings and distrust between the UK and African cultures.

Achievements:

1.      Through dedicated one-to-one support, around 4,500 families and professionals benefited over a period of ten years resulting in more children and young adults of African origin remaining in formal education and progressing to higher institutions of learning. Better understanding of African culture led to more children and young adults of African origin returning from foster homes to their natural parents and successfully prevented African children from being adopted.

2.      Through our effective support, African families were granted leave to appeal a murder conviction by the British Court of Appeal in 2005.

3.      For more information about our achievement through our one to one support services visit our website: www.womenofafrika.org historical background: Diary of cases.

Addressing Africa’s Backwardness for the good of all

The experience we gained from working directly with families in the UK and Africa highlighted the root cause of the many challenges that Africans face both at home and abroad; namely the delay of Africa’s reform. Africans love Africa and those outside will return home if the situation on the ground was improved and less would emigrate.

The Problem and Presumptions

Contrary to international efforts to help Africa through international aid, UN Conventions, AU’s Decades For Women amongst others, the responsibility for Africa’s recovery and reform rests with Africans themselves and alone.

Our Mission is to raise the profile of African women for international recognition through lobbying influential people (politically and otherwise) across the world. We aim to achieve a positive shift of consciousness in favour of African women.

Policy decision makers in governments both in Africa and globally need to become aware that without African women at the high table, partnership agreements would not yield the desired outcome. African women are the providers in most homes and therefore understand the challenges they face. African women would deliver sustainable peace, socio-economic and political development. Importantly, the growing rate of violence against women and girl children can only be halted through direct involvement of Africa’s women.

  Our Working Philosophy:

It is true that African women define Africa’s culture and tradition and are the back bone of the Continent. Representing the combined voices of women, we react to challenges by issuance of position Press Releases amongst others from time to time.

Globalisation presumes partnership between Nations of equal standing.  However given Africa’s continuing backwardness, it is clear that most countries in the continent fall within the categorization of third world or developing countries. One therefore wonders how developed countries can comfortably partner with under-developed countries and expect them to interact as equals. For how long can developed countries support failing African countries with arms and international aid?

Negative Impact of Immature globalisation on African Women & Civil Society:

• Globalisation changed the developmental reality through the imposition of international norms on a still backward Africa.
• The misunderstanding of the role and status of women by the foreign traders who arrived on the Continent during the commercial and slave trading and colonial era injected a gender gap and role frustration which continues to haunt and hurt African women into the 21^st century. So now, the world is global without African women.
• The globalised agenda thus portrays African women as victims within their families and communities. This scenario ignores the fact that African women are the care givers and leaders of their Continent.
• Across the African Continent grassroots women are organising in an attempt to empower themselves and attract international attention to no avail as the rules of the globalised world appear to be set in stone in favour of African governments and hence African men. This is to the detriment of world peace, stability and Africa’s reform.

Africa’s recovery from her negative past depends on international recognition of African women as equal stakeholders.

Our Strategy & Progress:

We wrote formally to Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth of Britain and Head of the Commonwealth of Nations informing Ma’am of the work we are doing to raise the profile of African women for international recognition for Africa’s reform.

We have attempted to make contact with the African Union through letters to the immediate past President Dr. Thomas Yayi Boni: President of Benin Republic; The American President; The British Prime Minister; Secretary of State for Foreign Affair; World Bank Vice President for Africa; Mrs. Hillary Clinton; The Secretary General of the United Nations Ban-Ki Moon and many others with the message that a New World Order is urgently needed to end the global unrest and help Africa recover. Women as important civil society players need to be recognised and effectively empowered to contribute to Africa’s recovery and end centuries of abuse and negative imaging. It is important that the continuing growth in commercial interests in Africa’s market should include Africans themselves. African women want to be the catalyst for the emerging economic change so as to make it beneficial and sustainable in the future.

Our Partners: Women across Africa and in the Diaspora are organised under various groups under grassroots leadership, to support themselves to meet their day to day needs. Many organise as Non Governmental Organisations to meet their needs. Our work will bring women’s groups together to connect with what governments are doing nationally and internationally for greater impact and relevance.

The creation of the African Women Commission (AWCOM) aims to become a civil society body/voice for African women working with themselves; world governments and donors in the interest of our global project.

Exposure to leadership at the continental level as is being aimed, would Mentor, Support, Empower and give voice to African women.  This would enable them to regain their traditional status and authority to modernise Africa and equalise our standing with the rest of the developed world.

Women understand better what their needs are in their role as mothers, in the home and as peace makers.  AWCOM would enable women to bring their individual skills and authority in the home to bear on international decision making process.

Sexual abuse is a major challenge for Africans. African women working together void of competing interests have the capacity and authority to reduce this abominable act against humanity, tradition and culture. Most health concerns facing Africans and the world today will become a thing of the past if women are given the opportunity to restore their traditional role within Africa and the global world.   

To add value to humanitarian efforts worldwide, AWCOM aim to launch Project Africa Direct, a project that would ensure that every donation and effort expended by Africans living abroad and the goodwill of world citizens gets to the grassroots of Africa for whom these efforts and sacrifices are meant.

A major problem facing women across Africa and the Diaspora is isolation due to a lack of information. AWCOM aims to put an appropriate information mechanism in place to ensure that every African woman is connected to their government and is aware of how her contributions create a peaceful and better world. African women should be supported to feed their families, communities and the world in their own rights and through their own efforts.

Our Funding: As equal stakeholders in humanity we are appealing for world governments and investors in the humanitarian well-being of the world to kindly support this unique Mission so that together, we can save Africa in our lifetime