A two day consultative meeting was recently held from 20-21 January at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The meeting was organised by the Gender is my Agenda Campaign (GIMAC) under the theme: “Corruption and Governance: Impact and way out for Women, Children and Youths.” This theme is in sync with the African Union’s Summit theme: Winning the Fight against Corruption”: A Sustainable Plan to Africa’s Transformation”. The meeting aimed at identifying strategies and interventions that have continental implications in order to forestall the continued impact of corruption in governance that hinders development. Recognising the importance of such a meeting and the outcomes of such a meeting, the Training for Peace Programme (TfP), through the support of the Norwegian government provided support towards to the hosting of this event.
The meeting documented the evidence of the burden of corruption on women and girls and implications of corrupt practices in Africa and also identified civil strategies for engaging stakeholders on how to reduce the burden of corruption on families and women in Africa. The two day event held panel discussions arranged thematically covering different topics ranging from “Women and Inclusive Anti-Corruption Framework for Africa; The Key Issues” to “Corruption and Economic Dis-empowerment of Women; From the Household to the Public Space”. The sessions covered first-hand experience, best practices, testimonials and recommendations from experts and practitioners from different countries. The event was concluded after the summary of recommendations were presented to the floor and handed over to the AUC.
The meeting was attended by members of the AUC, the AU Advisory Board on Corruption, Women, Gender and Development Directorate, AU Ministers of Gender and Women’s Affairs, Regional Economic Commissions, United Nations Ministers of Gender and other civil society entities. The Training for Peace Programme at ACCORD is an initiative funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and it aims at enhancing capacity for planning, coordinating, documenting, implementing, monitoring and evaluating peace and security issues of the AUC.
ACCORD/TfP was represented by Miss Sibusisiwe Nkosi, Programme Officer: Peacekeeping Unit.
