Women NGOs Secretariat Ends A 3-Day Interactive Training Supported By UN Women And Funded By Irish Aid
By Tokpa Tarnue- tarnue82@gmail.com
VOINJAMA, Liberia- The Women NGOs Secretariat of Liberia (WONGOSOL) in partnership with the National Rural Women of Liberia on Monday, March 20, 2023 ended a three-day advocacy mentorship and conflict mediation and documentation capacity building training here in northwestern Liberia.
The training brought together women CSOs/CBOs, Youth organizations and other key stakeholders in Voinjama, Lofa County.
The activity is part of series of actions including; Supporting CSOs to facilitate women’s transformative leadership in practice through conflict resolution and documentation of cases mediated at local level, Dialogues, advocacy, and networking (influencing) activities led by women groups, and training of women and CSOs to monitor and report on VAWIE/P during the 2023 presidential and legislative elections under the project titled “Transformative Leadership and Community Engagement for Women’s Political Participation” funded by the Irish Aid through UN Women Liberia.
According to WONGOSOL Program Manager Willet L. Salue, the overall goal of the project is to ensure that women fully and equally participate in leadership and decision-making and to also ensure that women and girls benefit from gender-responsive governance.
She told the gathering that the project is being implemented in five counties namely, Grand Bassa, Grand Gedeh, Nimba, Bomi and Lofa Counties respectively, where WONGOSOL is working through other women-led women-focused organizations.
“The current activities we are conducting here now is a second phase to the project Supporting Community Engagement to Promote women’s participation in local governance and public life that was conducted in Gbarpolu, Grand Bassa and that of Grand Gedeh Counties” She noted.
She named support to women to participate into politics both at the local, county and national level as one key thing under the said project which is expected to end in November 2023.
“Now we are around the time of elections and so want to make sure that women participate freely as voters, participate as elections workers or staff and also to ensure that they can participate as aspirants and candidates as well” madam —- indicated.
According to her, inclusive participations should be at every level where women can exercise their rights freely, openly and transparently without any forms of barriers or obstacles that could hinder their participation.
“We will also be delighted to see our women occupying positions at the local government level such as town chiefs, clan chiefs, paramount chiefs, commissioners including superintendents. That is one of the reasons why this project is empowering women at the local level through the Peace Huts and other women associations to work closely and hold dialogues with traditional leaders and county authorities as well” she further explained.
She said, some key things under the project as the need for the women to build stronger relationships in their respective communities in order to prevent conflicts or resolved the already existing conflicts especially during electioneering year and creating massive awareness on violence against women before, during and even after elections.
“We must work and make sure that we can all put aside our differences in order to keep the pending elections peaceful” She disclosed.
During the VAWIE training, the head of the Council of Chiefs & Elders, Lofa County, Chief Worlobah Dorbor, openly committed to supporting the women to disseminate the information for a violence free space for women’s participation in elections and public life. ‘’Although I’m a chief and the head of traditional people in Lofa where we have high respect for culture, I will be the number one person to promote women to take part and win elections and other local seats in Lofa County. I will be the messenger to take this message to my fellow chiefs and traditional people in the county to stop keeping women back from leadership’’.
Speaking on behalf of the participants during the closing, the County Coordinator of the National Union of Disability (NUOD), Madame Ballah K. Yamah extended gratitude to the project sponsors UN Women and Irish Aid through WONGOSOL and highlighted that ‘’It is crucial for people with disability needs to be included to fully participant in all national and community engagements, especially this work of creating awareness on Violence Against Women in Elections and conflict mediation since people with disability can be at greater risk during this period’’.
The Women NGOs Secretariat of Liberia (WONGOSOL) was established as an organ for coordinating the activities of women organizations in Liberia in 1998.
WONGOSOL coordinates the activities of women’s organizations in Liberia and bring women together to formulate and present their independent views on government issues directly affecting women of Liberia.
The organization has a growing membership, currently over 175 network members in the 15 political sub–divisions of Liberia.
The membership categories within the 15 counties encompass Community Based Organization (CBOs), Faith-Based organizations and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs).
The group is called to build the capacity of women NGOs and CBOs to promote sustainable peace and security.
“What we envision is a just and fair Liberian society where women and men equally participate in and benefit from decision- making processes at all levels in all areas.”