Women for Women International
No Women, No Peace

Media inquiries to Helen Ashley on 020 8974 7241 or 07976 804314, [email][email protected]
Women for Women International main number: 020 7922 7765

News Release

Violence against women the single biggest threat to peace –finds new report, launching 25 November

A Women for Women International report being released on international Stop Violence Against Women Day (25 November) finds ‘violence against women is the single biggest threat to peace’ and countries are falling strikingly short on UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) and UN (SCR) 1325 development and security goals.

Women for Women’s Country Director for Nigeria, Ngozi Eze, will be in London on 25 November to launch the Gender, Conflict and MDGs report, based on research with grassroots organisations operating on the frontline .

The Report found that at the ten year mark, goals signed up to by UN members to eliminate poverty and empower women, have fallen strikingly short of expectations. While many countries are behind on their promises to meet the MDGs, particularly those goals in which gender is explicit, conflict-affected countries, are further behind.

“Sadly, in times of war a woman’s burdens only get heavier, her vulnerabilities more pronounced. She remains locked in poverty, often losing the protection of home and husband, coping with fear and suffering devastating rights violations and violence, including torture, rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution and mutilation. Despite these grim realities, she brings enormous energy, leadership and resilience to protecting families and rebuilding fractured communities.

Yet, her essential voice remains absent from formal peace negotiations and her needs remain on the margins of reconstruction, development and poverty reduction programmes” Says Kate Nustedt, Executive Director of Women for Women.

To mark the tenth anniversaries of both the MDGs and UNSCR 1325, Women for Women International commissioned the research project to pinpoint steps that are needed to affect real change for women in conflict-affected countries based on their actual experiences.

Report Launch: Nigeria Stronger Women, Stronger Nations Event 25 November, London
http://www.womenforwomen.org/help-women/nigeria-stronger-women-stronger-nations.php

The Report is being launched at a joint event organised by Women for Women International and the No Women No Peace Campaign http://www.nowomennopeace.org/ on 25 November 7-9pm, at Amnesty International 17-25 New Inn Yard, London, EC2A 3EA.

This event will examine violence against women in conflict-affected countries with a particular focus on Nigeria.

At the event, Women for Women’s Nigeria Country Director Ngozi Eze (please see profile below), will be speaking about the current situation for women in Nigeria and the disproportionate impact that violence has on their lives. She will also talk about how economic opportunities are key in providing women with security.
This will be followed by an expert panel discussing the impact of violence including;
• Chinwe Azubuike — contemporary Nigerian poet and campaigner for the rights of widows
• Uju Ofomata Aderemi - Programme Director for One World
• Alice Ukoko - Founder/ CEO of Women of Africa
Tickets are £3 unwaged, £5 waged. To register for a place, please contact [email][email protected] with "Nigeria: Stronger Women, Stronger Nations" as the email subject. Payment can be made at the door.
ENDS

• Women for Women’s Country Director Ngozi Eze, UK Executive Director, Kate Nustedt and event speakers are available for interview on request.

• Press passes for the launch event are available on request

• A summary report of the research is available on request

• Women for Women International help women in areas of conflict around the world to rebuild their lives enabling them to move from victim to survivor to active citizen. We do this through a one year programme that includes counselling, access to education, rights awareness training, vocational, jobs and business skills and finance. www.womenforwomen.org . Women for Women have supported over 270.000 women in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Kosovo, Nigeria, Rwanda and Sudan.

Gender, Conflict and MDGs Report – Key Findings and Recommendations

Key findings

A. Development and security agendas are not linked
“It’s important to link the UN 1325 and the MDGs, because we can’t have peace without development, but development without peace will not be possible either,” says Ngozi Eze, Women for Women International Country Director, Nigeria. Monitoring efforts are separate and therefore critical connections between the lack of progress on women’s security and development are missed.

B. Violence against women is the single greatest impediment to development and peace
Sexual and gender-based violence is exacerbated by conflict and prevents women from participating in development, denies them access to education and healthcare, and is a key risk factor for HIV and AIDS. Until women in conflict-affected settings have a basic level of security, protection of rights and access to justice, there can be no progress on gender and MDG commitments. Gross breaches of human rights, which sometimes involve security institutions that are responsible for protecting women, also undermine these commitments.

C. Economic empowerment is key to women’s recovery from conflict
“Income-generation schemes in post-conflict zones have given greater autonomy to women. It allows them to say no to harmful cultural practices practised against widows and to say no to husbands that beat them, because it confers a greater degree of economic independence,” says Sylvia Nassiem from the Central African Republic. The main obstacle to women’s economic empowerment is the lack of security – both inside and outside the home. Other obstacles are the lack of opportunities to market goods, limited movement outside the home due to cultural attitudes and a lack of social protection when work is not possible.

D. Women continue to be left out of formal peace processes
“Women are imprisoned by poverty, because they are not part of peace-building processes, national politics, and their voice is absent from every part of society,” says Elysee Yohali, Women for Peace and Human Rights, DRC. Women’s participation in the 16 peace processes since 2000 has been minimal, and in 5 cases - Somalia (2002), Cote D’Ivoire (2003), Nepal (2006), the Philippines (2007) and the Central African Republic (2008) – no women participated as signatories, mediators, witnesses or negotiators. In spite of their contributions to community reconciliation and peace, women are chronically under-represented in security, justice and public sectors, which all play a key role in peace-building.

E. Work on security, conflict prevention and peace-building needs to be informed by local realities and women’s needs
Whilst women’s participation alone cannot guarantee gender-sensitive approaches, their experience and expertise remain vital because of their ability to drive implementation of peace agreements and their motivation to prevent and end violent conflicts.

Key Recommendations

1. Strengthen links between development and security
Consultation with local and women’s organisations is needed when national development (MDGs) plans are drawn up. Plans need to address challenges that cripple both agendas, including violence against women, women’s exclusion from decision-making and their lack of access to resources.

At the international level, governments as donors need to increase direct funding to women’s organisations, particularly those working at community level and ensure that women are fully-involved in developing, implementing and monitoring both development and peace-building strategies.

2. Protect women and girls from violence
Better protection of women requires peacekeepers, police and other representatives of the security sector to receive gender training so that they can develop a deeper understanding of the gender dynamics of conflict and the unique threats faced by women and children.

Some perpetrators are in positions of power – in the government, security sector or community – and there needs to be strategies to bring them to justice.

Investment is needed in organisations that are at the frontlines, caring for survivors of violence. National authorities need to ally with NGOs to develop a realistic response to sexual and gender-based violence and provide survivors with better health and psycho-social services. as well as facilitate their access to justice.

3. Invest in women’s economic opportunities
Governments and organisations must prioritise and fund programmes and projects that foster women’s economic empowerment. These include initiatives that equip women with the skills and resources to run businesses and be employed, enable women to own land and access credit, and facilitate saving. Interventions must also challenge conservative, patriarchal attitudes that prevent women from owning land on an equal basis with men, or from working outside the home, by educating traditional, religious and community leaders.

4. Give women a seat at the peace table
Governments and NGOs must ensure increased and meaningful participation in conflict prevention, resolution and formal peace processes. Community initiatives that uncover women’s hidden voices and experiences in formal processes must also be encouraged and supported.

5. Support security and development approaches that are defined by women themselves in their own cultural context
Governments and agencies must consult with communities and women before rebuilding infrastructure or providing services in conflict-affected communities. This local-level approach recognises that marginalised groups play an important role in peace-building and development.

Ngozi Eze, Women for Women International, Nigeria, Country Director

Ngozi Eze has been the Country Director in Nigeria since 2003 and has helped more than 13,000 women forge a future in a country ravaged by corruption and civil unrest. In 2005, Ngozi received the Amelia Earhart Pioneering Achievement Award for making a difference in the lives of thousands of survivors of civil conflict in her home country of Nigeria.

Under her leadership, Women for Women International, Nigeria have implemented a programme of direct financial assistance, rights education, vocational skills training and income-generating opportunities.

Ngozi has led on the development of specialised programmes to educate women about HIV/AIDS and the harmful effects of some traditional practices, including female genital cutting and widowhood rituals.

She also pioneered a men’s training programme to sensitise community leaders to women’s rights. In the wake of increased community violence between Christian and Muslim communities in northern Nigeria, Ngozi launched joint training sessions to offer women from both religious backgrounds the opportunity to meet and rebuild their trust.

Ngozi has over 18 years of experience working in both private and public institutions on advancing the status of women and children through international development. Before coming to Women for Women International, she worked in Nigeria with a number of NGOs and private firms, including the Ohio African Trade office based in Lagos.

Women for Women International – Nigeria Country Profile and Programme

Women for Women has been operating in Nigeria since 2000.

Since independence in 1960, Nigeria has experienced decades of corruption, ethnic and religious violence, and political and economic instability.

Women have been the victims of systematic violence and endure indigenous practices of genital cutting, inequitable treatment under religious laws, and the abuse and humiliation of widowhood customs.

Religious and ethnic conflicts continue to threaten stability, most recently occurring in Jos in November of 2008. Much of the population lives in poverty and still struggles to meet their basic survival needs, such as food, adequate shelter, primary education and economic stability.

Our Programme

Since 2000, we have helped 23.000 women in Nigeria to rebuild their lives. We currently have over 5000 women on our one year programme. We have distributed over half a million USD in direct aid.

We help women to rebuild their lives through a one year programme of support which includes rights awareness, health education and vocational training .

We also help women develop business skills, so they can set up their own businesses. To date, 548 co-operatives have been formed.

We also have a Men’s Leadership Programme which helps men understand the impact of gender-based violence. It was first piloted in Nigeria and since then has helped over 500 male leaders become agents for change in their local communities.