VGIF Small Grants for Grassroots Projects

The Virginia Gildersleeve International Fund (VGIF) is providing small grants for grassroots projects that empower women and girls in developing countries. It supports women’s organizations based outside of the United States by providing small grants for an array of community needs up to $7,500 USD.

The areas of support are:

• Community development
• Health and nutritional support
• Literacy and leadership training
• Educational seminars and workshops
• Women’s human rights
• Organizations that are governed and directed by women.

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She Will Innovate: Technology Solutions Enriching the Lives of Girls competition

Intel Corporation and Ashoka Changemakers have announced the launch of the She Will Innovate: Technology Solutions Enriching the Lives of Girls competition, which is designed to find innovative solutions that equip girls and women with new digital technologies, enabling them to live healthier, smarter, and more meaningful lives.

The competition is open to all types of individuals, organizations, and collaborations from all countries as long as the solutions apply directly to bettering the lives of women through information and communication technologies. Special consideration will be given to innovations developed by women for women between the ages of 18 and 34.

Entries should identify innovations that accelerate women’s socioeconomic progress by empowering them with digital solutions to improve their health, education, and well-being. To be considered for an award, entries must indicate growth beyond the conceptual stage and have demonstrated impact and sustainability.

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Eastern African Sub-regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI) 2012 Young Women’s Leadership Training Programme

August –September 2012

Venue: Uganda.

Deadline for applications: 15^th June 2012 at 5.00pm (GMT).

Are you a young woman aspiring to be a leader? Do you have what it takes to lead?

Would you like to make an impact in society through excellent leadership? Have you been looking for an exciting yet rewarding leadership training opportunity to come your way? … Well, LOOK NO MORE. EASSI is now receiving applications for her 2012 Young Women’s Leadership Training Institute.

The two-months training will be conducted from August –September 2012 in Uganda. The deadline for applications is 15 June 2012 at 5.00pm (GMT). Submission of applications by email is acceptable.

Submit to (eassi@eassi.org or eassi.eassi@gmail.com). All applications should be addressed to the Executive Director, EASSI. Late applications will not be accepted.

EASSI reserves the right to postpone or cancel the training depending on the prevailing circumstances that might warrant this action. In this unlikely event, EASSI will notify all applicants well in advance.

2012 Training Particulars

Venue: EASSI, Uganda

Dates: August – September 2012 (for 2 months)

Fees:

Non –Ugandans: USD 700 for the two months

Ugandans: UGX 1,400,000 for the two months

**Please note that fees are exclusive of accommodation and meals.**

About the Institute

The Young Women’s Leadership Training Institute has gradually evolved into one of the most exciting and rewarding choices for young women in Eastern Africa. More than a decade in leadership training, EASSI boasts of training over 500 young women in Eastern Africa. Some of the beneficiaries have gone up leadership ranks and proved that young women can also bring special leadership traits to the workplace. Others have received awards for their innovative work that has resulted from their acquired skills. To EASSI, the leadership training is about personal success and broadening opportunities for the young women and the women’s movement.

About EASSI

The Eastern African Sub-regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI) is a registered sub-regional civil society organization working in eight countries namely Burundi, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania. EASSI was born in 1996 after the Beijing Conference and is mandated to monitor the commitments of Eastern African governments towards gender equality.

With a history of fifteen years of existence and commitment to the transformation of gender relations, EASSI envisions a society where all enjoy gender equality, social justice, peace and development. EASSI’s mission is to facilitate follow-up of the Beijing and African Platforms for Action in order to enhance the advancement of women and social justice. Some of the human rights instruments that form the basis of EASSI’s work are: the Beijing and African Platforms for Action; the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol); and the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

Visit the EASSI website for the 2012 Training Prospectus and the Application Form

For more Information, contact

The Executive Director, EASSI, P.o.Box 24965, Kampala,

Uganda, Tel: +256 414 286153/ +256 312 266451

Web: http://www.eassi.org

Mailto: – eassi@eassi.org, or eassi.eassi@gmail.com

Find more training opportunities and events

Project Inspire: 5 Minutes to Change the World Competition

The Singapore Committee for UN Women and MasterCard have come together to organize this joint initiative called “Project Inspire: 5 Minutes to Change the World.” This competition aims to help young changemakers create a better world of opportunities for women and girls in Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.

The competition seeks entries from 18-35 year olds to submit a 5-minute platform to pitch their inspired idea to the world. There is an opportunity to win a $25,000 grant.The grant must show creativity and sustainable impact in the lives of women and girls across Asia, Pacific, the Middle East or Africa through entrepreneurship.

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Elizabeth Neuffer Fellowship

The goal of the Elizabeth Neuffer Fellowship is to provide a woman journalist with a transformative experience that will impact her career by offering her the opportunity to conduct research at leading academic institutions and build journalistic skills.

The Elizabeth Neuffer Fellowship is open to women journalists worldwide whose work focuses on human rights and social justice. Journalists working in the print, broadcast and Internet media, including freelancers, are eligible to apply.

Applicants must have a minimum of three years of experience in journalism. Non-native English speakers must also have excellent written and verbal English skills in order to fully participate in and benefit from the program.

The fellow will be based at the Center for International Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts as a research associate during the research component of the fellowship.

Deadline for applications: April 30^th 2012.

For more information, visit http://iwmf.org/pioneering-change/elizabeth-neuffer-fellowship/neuffer-fellowship-faq.aspx#11

Terms of Reference for a Baseline Assessment on the Status of Young Women in Political Parties

Background

 

The Youth Agenda (YAA) is a premier youth organization that works towards a ‘just, equitable and progressive society in which young people fully enjoy social, economic and political rights and opportunities’. This vision is grounded in the belief that it is possible to realize a globally competitive and prosperous nation with a high quality of life in the near future, as envisaged by Kenya’s Vision 2030. One of our core mandates is to facilitate technical and legislative support to youth and those in leadership positions, in parliament, government and devolved units.

 

Through the support of UN Women – GGP III Programme, the Youth Agenda is implementing the Get Involved Initiative (scaling up young women participation in Kenya electoral processes) that aims to increase understanding of gender gains amongst young people particularly young women. The focus will be to ensure that young women gain the adequate skills and information to ‘get involved’ in the electoral process whether as aspirants or active citizens in governance issues. As such more young women will participate effectively in political parties and engage meaningfully within the new devolved structure.

 

The Get Involved Initiative: Outcome

 

YAA seeks to achieve one key outcome through the Get Involved Initiative: contribute towards protecting and promoting the right of women to participate in the electoral processes and governance in Kenya by end of 2012.

 

Objective and Scope of Baseline Assessment

 

The main objective of the consultancy is to determine the status of youth (that is young women) within key political parties in Kenya. The baseline assessment will collect quantitative data and will look to assess the following issues:

 

• the existence of political parties;
• the existence of youth leagues within these political parties and their mandate thereof;
• youth membership (especially young women) in political parties; and
• the roles young women play within the political parties.

 

The results will be used to develop a status report on youth representation and participation in political parties, with recommendations on frameworks and actions to be undertaken to provide an opportunity for young women to effectively participate in political parties.

 

Main Tasks of Consultancy

The consultant will work in conjunction with the Program Officer in charge of the Initiative and the Chief Executive Officer to finalise the design and inception plan for the study.

 

The consultant is expected to undertake the following tasks:

 

1. Develop an inception report, detailing the methodology, survey instruments, work plan schedule and budget to carry out the assignment.
2. Develop a Sampling Design and Data Collection & Management tool that is standardized.
3. Co-ordinate collection of data, and its entry into a suitable platform for analysis
4. Analyse and interpret the findings
5. Develop and submit the baseline assessment report including the detailed methodology, specific findings, providing key recommendations for implementation

 

Expected Deliverables

 

The consultant(s) shall be required to submit:

 

1. Inception Report detailing the evaluation design, methodology, tools, work plan and budget;
2. Data collection tools;
3. Draft and final Baseline Assessment Reports; and
4. Copies of original and cleaned data sets including audio sets and transcribed material.

 

Time Frame

 

The estimated time period of execution is 30 working days from the date of award of the contract.

 

Baseline Team Composition And Qualifications

 

The baseline team will comprise of individuals/firms who should have the following skills and capabilities:

 

A. Lead Consultant

 

• Post-graduate qualifications in law, political science or any other social science field;
• Demonstrated Knowledge of the governance sector and political processes in Kenya;
• Experience in policy analysis;
• Experience in conducting baseline studies with multiple components;
• Excellent data analysis and interpretation skills; and
• Demonstrated high level of professionalism and an ability to work independently and in high-pressure situations under tight deadlines.

 

B. Data Collectors/ Researchers

 

• A mixture of data collectors/ researchers with graduate qualifications in law, political science or any other social science field;
• Experience in conducting baselines with multiple components;
• Demonstrated Knowledge of the governance sector and political processes in Kenya; and
• Excellent data analysis and interpretation skills.

 

SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS

Interested and qualified candidates should submit a detailed proposal with the following components: understanding and interpretation of TOR, proposed methodology, activity schedule, relevant experience related to the assignment and the curriculum vitae of key personnel by close of business Tuesday 20^th December 2011 to: info@youthagenda.org; CC: judy.nguru@youthagenda.org

IPRA Foundation Dorothy Marchus Senesh Fellowship

The International Peace Research Association (IPRA) Foundation invites applications for the Dorothy Marchus Senesh Fellowship in Peace and Development Studies for Women from developing countries. The Senesh Fellowship provides a biennial fellowship for two years of graduate study to a woman from the third world.

IDRA Foundation is a non-profit organization aims at furthering the purposes and activities of the International Peace Research Association, which has for the last thirty two years sought to enhance the process of peace.

 

Eligibility Criteria

The Senesh Fellowship is available to women from developing countries who:

• have completed a Bachelor’s degree,
• who have been accepted into a graduate program and
• whose graduate work is to be focused on issues related to the goals of IPRA.

Funds will only be dispersed when the selected candidate is admitted into a graduate program. Awards are considered based on need; therefore students with substantial funding sources are less likely to be considered for the award.

Fellowship Provisions

Every other year (beginning in 1990) one woman from a developing country receives school expenses in the amount of $5,000 per year for two years.

Last date for submission of applications is January 15^th 2012

For more information, visit http://www.iprafoundation.org/senesh_fellows.shtml

Community Enterprise Development Conference 2011 – Call for Applications

The Africa Women and Youth Organization (Berlin, Germany Office) in partnership with SALMET, Christine Berger Germany and the German Institute of Human Nutrition proudly presents the Community Enterprise Development (CED) 2011 conference,

The CED 2011 Conference in Potsdam Germany is a 7-day study tour to three mechanized farms – sea food, crop and poultry farms in Berlin, Germany from Sunday, November 27th – Friday, December 2nd 2011.

The training is specifically designed to build the capacity of the communities and help organizations, business owners and agro-allied professionals (mainly farmers) to generate durable economic and social benefits.

Find out how to participate by visiting http://www.yipekenya.org/Community Enterprise Development Conference 2011 – Call for Applications.htm

Women of Kenya … How far have we really come?

Back in the day, a brand in America had an ad with the slogan You’ve come a long way Baby!

This ad was a not too subtle allusion to the women’s rights movements of the 1960s and 70’s which not only broke the ceiling of all the earlier suffragettes had been fighting for. Burning bra’s and other feminist protests had unchained women from the kitchen. The word equal took on new meaning. Yes the world was changing and women were being liberated.

That was America and the Western world. Here in Kenya, things were different. Whereas some women in the developed world were disenfranchised, Kenyan women had the vote. There was also equal work for equal pay. We even had women leaders. Surely we won the feminist liberation war long before. But had we?

In the past three months, Kenya has lost three great women who each in their own way have shown that despite the current calls for quotas for women’s seats in leadership positions, we have a long way to go Baby!

 

Dekha Ibrahim and her work for peace, which won here the Right Livelihood Award – a little sibling of the Nobel Prize shattered the stereotypical perception. She was but one of the few women working in conflict resolution field. In a Kenya where harmful traditional practices such as female genital mutilation and early marriage abound, Dekha showed that socialisation as young girls is just that. That the girl child can do anything and be anything, even if it means making peace with warring tribes.

Wambui Otieno was also a crusader in breaking the barriers. As a widow she fought her late husbands clan for her right to bury him. Though she lost, her tenacity in this battle showed her steely determination, which probably also served her well during her time as a freedom fighter of Kenya’s liberation. Wambui Otieno did what many young widows today still cannot do. Stand up to their husbands clan. Widow inheritance still happens. As if that battle was not enough, Wambui Otieno also broke another unspoken barrier. Marrying a man much younger than her – she showed that the old perception that women of a certain age are just that – women of a certain age does not hold water. This in a country where we still have polygamy and it is not seen as surprising for a septuagenarian to marry a girl just out of her adolescence. Wambui Otieno showed that we are the same as humans with the same feelings for companionship.

Finally, this week began with the shocking news of the demise of Wangari Maathai. Where to even start regarding her achievements in breaking the boundaries. As the First woman PhD from East Africa (and in the sciences!), first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize – we all know these and the many more achievements of Wangari Maathai. But on the other side, she has battled the establishment – old boys as it were. When she was with other women at Uhuru Park, she was labelled a divorcee just out to make trouble. As the winner of the Nobel Prize for her work in conserving the environment, she was a mere assistant minister in the very docket she would have been perfect for – the Ministry of Environment. How she was beaten and clubbed unconscious by marauding thugs as she was protecting Karura Forest, is an actual abomination. Not just in African culture but throughout the world. You never lay a hand on a woman. How did this happen? Was it that by being a divorcee who was outspoken against the male powers that be, made her a lesser being? Even after the Nobel Prize, Wangari Maathai remained more popular on the international scene than at home. I wonder if it would be the same if it was a man who had won the prize.

So back to why I ask: Women of Kenya … How far have we really come?

Do we still require the affirmative action being called for in terms of the quota of leadership positions?

For someone who has never felt my gender was an issue, today I wonder. I ask this because if we still have women bearing the brunt of war in terms of rape, if harmful traditional practices such as FGM and early marriage persist, if a girl can be made wife to a polygamous man much older than herself, if even with credentials women are tokenised in leadership, and if a woman is questioned if she does not fit into the stereotypical role that is expected – how far have we really come? But more importantly, how far have we to go?

M. Atim

FLOW: Funding Leadership and Opportunities for Women

The Dutch Foreign Ministry has launched a new fund called FLOW (Funding Leadership and Opportunities for Women) succeeding its MDG3 Fund.

The fund aims to strengthen the rights and opportunities for women and girls worldwide.

It has focus on three priorities of security, economic empowerment and political participation with female leadership seen as an important instrument.

Dutch or international NGOs applying for this grant opportunity must be based in or operate in developing countries.

For more information, visit http://www.yipekenya.org/FLOW Funding Leadership and Opportunities for Women.htm