CIWED in partnership with Tools for Self-Reliance (TfSR), a UK based donor to provide skills training for young people in Northern Region. The programme is an intervention to ensure that the youth (18 – 24 years) especially those out of school to acquire entrepreneurship skills to become self-reliance and live dignified lives and reduce social vices in society. The unemployment rate and the lack of livelihood opportunities in the Northern Region and the country at large has contributed to a large extend of some social problems such as Rural- Urban migration (Kayaye) where young people as low as age 10 and above migrate from northern region to the southern regions of Ghana to do menial jobs such as head-potting to earn a living. Most of them return with teenage pregnancies and STIs, worsening their situations and increase their poverty level.
The fist face started in July 2019 to train 10 young girls in dressmaking and 5 young boys in welding and fabrication. Many of these young people were selected from the streets and part of the project aim is to re-integrate them back to their homes when they are done with the trainings.
The second face which is yet to start is looking at getting 26 young boys and girls acquire skills in Tailoring and dress making, Head dressing and beautician and Electronic welding and fabrication. This will contribute in Addressing Youth Unemployment through Skills Training and Development especially young women of age brackets (12-25) to be self-reliance and economic independent.
GENDER AND SDGS STEP DOWN TRAINING FOR WOMEN AND GENDER-BASED CSOs/CBOs IN THE NORTHERN REGION
he women 2030 project being carry out in 52 countries across different regions of the world. It is led by a coalition of 5 women and gender network organisations collaborating to realize the SDGs in a gender equitable and climate just way. The project also aims at contributing to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement by advancing local and regional sustainable development while ensuring it is equitable and inclusive. As part of the activities of the first part of the implementation, Foundation for Grassroots Initiatives Africa organised capacity building training for some selected women and gender based organizations in HO. The training was to serve as training of trainers to build the capacity of the participating individuals to carry out stepdown trainings for same NGOs/CBOs at the regional, districts and community level.
It is against this background that CIWED led the stepdown training on gender and SDGs for local NGOs and CBOs in the northern region of Ghana. The activity was carry out on 17th November 2017 at the Regional Disability Training Centre, Tamale.
CIWED CARRIES OUT COVID – 19 COMMUNITY SENSITIZATION EXERCISE IN ZIONG
The Centre for Capacity for the Well – being of the Vulnerable (CIWED) has been engaging members of the Ziong community in the Savelugu Municipality on the need for them to continue observing the COVID – 19 health and safety protocols to prevent infections.
The activity is part of the project, “Promoting Community Based Enhanced Systems Management Preventing Contracting COVID – 19 (ProBESPCoD)”, which is an 18 – month COVID – 19 prevention intervention. The project is being implemented in five MMDAs across the northern region, by seven NGOs who form the Alliance for Future Generations (AFG – Ghana) as implementing partners, to which CIWED is a member. CIWED, which has responsibility to implement the activities in Ziong in the Savelugu Municipality and Wovogu in the Sagnerigu Municipality, has been carrying out periodic sensitization as all other partners.
CIWED Executive Director facilitating the COVID – 19 sensitization in the Ziong Community
The CIWED team that visited the community and was involved in the exercise, including the Executive Director, Mr. Baako Abdul Fatawu, encouraged the community members to continue reminding each other that the COVID – 19 pandemic is still around and within our communities, which is why it is important not to let the guard down on adhering to the protocols. He revealed to them that the COVID – 19 pandemic is even more serious now than it used to be, since the new wave is unpredictable and changes all the time. According to Mr. Baako, this is making it difficult for experts to predict when the virus will become extinct, since researches carried out are not always consistent with the virus’ current form. He therefore encouraged the community members to continue wearing their masks and washing their hands with soap under running water, keeping a distance from the other person and most importantly, avoiding crowded places, especially when one is not well protected.
The “Promoting Community Based Enhanced Systems Management Preventing Contracting COVID – 19 (ProBESPCoD)” aims at sensitizing community members in the project areas on the prevention of COVID – 19 as much as possible, to prevent infections and spread of the virus in the rural areas.
The “(ProBESPCoD)” Project is in its third quarter of implementation and is being funded by Difaem in Germany.
CIWED is currently in partnership with Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) to implement a gender transformative initiative project on Women Voice and Leadership to address a gender in equality and sexual and gender based violence with the aims of building the capacity of women, young girls and boys with a school going age and the community structures to lead the gender transformation advocacy to eliminate gender inequalities and violence against Womens and girls. The project built the capacity of over 2,840 community members and stakeholders in short-term and 8,741 in the medium to long term, and this will bring the visibly empowered women, girls and boys and influential men (Gender Equality Champions) leading the gender transformative agenda to promote gender equality in project districts and communities in the long term change of the Project and result.
CIWED is again implementing a COVID-19 Rapid Response and Recovery Small Grants Mechanism, to Support coordinated civil society advocacy for women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health (WCAH) with funding support from World Health Organization through Management Sciences for Health Inc. (MSH) to contribute to advocacy and accountability for the continuation of quality, lifesaving health and nutrition services for women, children, and adolescents during and after the COVID 19 pandemic, and for improving health outcomes in these areas. The project started in September, 2021 and will end in June 2022,
CIWED is currently in partnership with Plan International through Plan International Ghana, implementing a multi country grant from Global Affairs Canada (Canada Federal Identity Program), on Women Voice and Leadership with the aims of empowering women and young girls to claim their rights to decision-making and sustainable livelihood through capacity building processes to influence responsible resource governance. That is Women’s access to equal participation in decision-making and economic resources are not just a democratic right but it is critical for accountable, transparent and responsive governance. The project is currently running in 5 communities in the Nantong District. The project built the capacity of over 200 women network groups on key gender transformative issues. The project formed VSLA of 75 women from 5 communities and further gave them capacity on basic group management and book keeping.
The following are the achievements of the project:
- 5 community gender networks (Ge-net) groups formed in the project communities.
- About 200 Ge-net members trained on advocacy, lobbying and negotiation skills.
- About 2800 community members sensitized on gender issues
- 75 women formed into Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA)
- 75 women trained on financial literacy and basic book keeping skills and income generating activities [IGA]
CIWED is currently in partnership with Difäm through Alliance for Future Generations – AFG/WUZDA Ghana to implement a COVID 19 Project which aimed at developing actions to mitigate the progressive spread of CVID 19 disease and improving sanitation in Wovogu and Zion Communities.
The following are the achievements so far since its inception in August:
– About 238 communities members were sensitized on the mode of spreading of the virus, the signs and symptoms of the disease and the precautionary measures
– communities were sensitized on some of the Ghana government’s preventive measures
– 150 Tipi-Taps washing facilities were distributed
– 150 reusable notes marks distributed.
CIWED in partnership with Tools for Self Reliance (TfSL), a UK based donor since 2019 to provide skills training for 15 young people from 2019 to 2020 and 26 young persons from 2012 to 2022 in Tamale, Sagnarigu and Nanton. The project which started in July 2019 to train 10 young girls in dressmaking and 5 young boys in welding and fabrication. Also the second face see to train 15 young girls in dressmaking, 6 young boys in welding and fabrication and 5 young girls in Hairdressing/Beautician. Many of these young people were selected from the streets and part of the project aim is to re-integrate them back to their homes when they are done with the trainings.
The following are the achievements so far since its inception in July:
– 10 young girls are places in dressmaking shops and have since started their skills trainings and 15 new once have also started their training.
– 5 young boys are placed at welding and fabrication shops and have since started their skills trainings and 6 young boys are currently in internship.
– 5 young girls are places in Hairdressing/Beautician internship for one year
– 15 young people in Tamale Metropolis and Sagnarigu Municipal are self-reliant and able to cater for their basic needs and their immediate families.
– 15 young people in the project communities acquired theoretical knowledge in business and financial literacy, Life skills, and Entrepreneurship and improved their income generation levels and negotiation in the business sector.
– Over 80 stakeholders including parents, traditional leaders and religious leaders made aware of the project and accept and commit their support to the project and its objectives.
– About 150 people within the project communities received awareness about the project benefit, goals and objectives.
CIWED entered into partnership with Women Environmental Programme in August 2018 to implement women economic empowerment advocacy project on women access to fertile lands for crop production. Research in Ghana revealed that women do not have access to fertile lands for crop production especially in the northern part of the country. The project main aim was to partner with local authorities and lobby for allocation of fertile lands to women for crop production, specifically maize, soybeans and rice.
The following are the achievements under the Women Agenda 2030 Project
– Five communities in the Mion district benefited from the project.
– 872 women were reached out to and five advocacy groups were formed to champion the course of the project.
– 35 women group leaders were trained on advocacy, negotiation and lobbying skills
– 10 Gender Equality Champions (comprises of influential and religious people in communities) were identified and trained on advocacy negotiation and lobbying skills
– 82 beneficiaries were trained on good agronomic practices including soil fertility management process.
– 96 women were able to acquire fertile lands (average of 4 acres each) to cultivate maize, rice and soybeans and the yields were overwhelming.
About the Women Agenda 2030 Project
Women CSOs networking to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (Post-2015) also known as Women2030 project is an EU funded coalition of 5 global and regional women and gender networks working towards the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs in 52 countries of the world. It is being implemented in the following regions of the world: Eastern Europe, Caucasus, Asia, Africa and Latin America.
The Women 2030 project comprise of the following 5 global and regional women and gender networks: Women in Engage for a Common Future (WECF); Women Environmental Programme (WEP); Global Forest Coalition (GFC); Gender and Water Alliance (GWA); and Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD). WECF is the lead applicant of the Women2030 project while WEP is the lead partner in Africa.
The Objectives of Women2030 Project is tobuild capacity of women’s and gender-focused civil society organizations on planning, monitoring and implementation of the SDGs/post 2015 agenda and the climate agreement. Create awareness at all levels of gender-equitable best practices and progress of national post-2015 SDG plans. Ensure more gender-responsive SDGs/post 2015 plans with participation of women and women’s organizations.
CIWED in partnership with SNV (Netherlands Development Organisation) with funding from USAID Agri-finance project advocated for smallholder farmers who are primarily women to access banking services at the comfort of their homes to promote electronic cash transaction for safe keeping of their monies. The project covered Mion, Sagnarigu, Tamale Metro, and West Mampurisi and Bole districts.
The following are the achievements under the USAID Agriculture Finance Project
· The project mobilised over 5, 394 smallholder farmers in the aforementioned districts in the northern region of Ghana.
· The project collaborated with Fidelity Bank in Tamale to linked up to 2, 780 smallholder farmers to open SMART accounts with Fidelity Bank in order to bring banking services to the doorsteps of these smallholder farmers and to encourage the operation of cashless system in communities.
· The Agri-Finance project also trained over 50 women groups on Village Savings and Loans Association on Financial Literacy and numeracy and basic Records Keeping.