News

Regional Conference on Aid Effectiveness and Gender Equality in Africa

Date: 24 July 2006

Bujumbura — UNIFEM, in collaboration with the Government of Burundi, hosted a Regional Conference on Aid Effectiveness and Gender Equality in Africa, on 12-14 July 2006, in Bujumbura, Burundi. The conference aimed to facilitate and strengthen advocacy on gender equality and women's empowerment in new aid modalities and development cooperation, identify strategies to support African governments' efforts to formulate gender-sensitive poverty eradication and development processes, support mechanisms for developing gender responsive indicators and tracking aid flows towards gender equality, and strengthen gender advocates' capacities to effectively participate in the high-level 2008 Ghana meeting on Financing for Development.

Close to 100 representatives from the governments of Burundi, Ghana, Senegal, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Mozambique, and Kenya participated. Also present were representatives from SIDA, CIDA, and DFID, the Diplomatic corps, regional and inter-governmental organizations, civil society, UN agencies, and staff from each UNIFEM regional office in Africa.

The three-day conference included plenary presentations of country papers from Burundi, Ghana, Senegal, Kenya and Zambia; a presentation on the experience of Somalia and Sudan regarding aid effectiveness and gender equality in the context of conflict and immediate post-conflict; group consultations; a focus on strategies and tools for mainstreaming gender equality and women's human rights in new aid modalities; and recommendations for the way forward.

In his opening address to participants, 1st Vice-President of the Government of Burundi Martin Nduwimana expressed gratitude to UNIFEM for its support to Burundian women and for choosing to host the conference in Bujumbura. "African women should play a key role in fighting against poverty," Nduwimana stated, noting that gender equality is an indication of good governance. He pointed to Burundi's enforced 30-per-cent quota for women in administration as proof of the government's commitment to include women in decision-making positions, conceding, however, that these efforts need to be extended to other sectors of social and political life. Referring to the conference's theme, the 1st vice-president questioned whether after close to 40 years of development aid to Africa, it is the aid that is failing, or the policies that often exclude women. He concluded his remarks by assuring participants in the confidence that their deliberations would bring forth relevant recommendations that would be welcomed regionally.

UNIFEM Chief of Africa Section Micheline Ravololonarisoa highlighted the fact that, because no concrete action has been made to improve the status of women world-wide — despite several international conferences and conventions such as CEDAW, the Beijing Conference, and UN Security Council resolution 1325 — it remains critically important that development policies are "owned by women." She noted that the framework for the conference's deliberations would centre on the five principles coming out of the 2005 Paris Declaration, namely: ownership, alignment, harmonization, managing for results, and mutual accountability. Ms. Ravololonarisoa reiterated UNIFEM's desire to continue in its partnership with governments, donors and civil society towards achieving gender equality.

At the conclusion of the conference, participants issued a communiqué (PDF, 126KB) with recommendations for governments, donors, civil society, UNIFEM, inter-governmental organizations, and the private sector on moving forward to implement gender-sensitive development strategies within the framework of new aid modalities.

UNIFEM has been active in Burundi since 1994, working with women to secure a strong, audible voice for representation of women's human rights in the Arusha peace negotiations and the final agreement. It has supported women's organizations and networks to empower their constituents to advocate for gender equality in the spheres of governance, peacebuilding, human rights and economic security. Most recently, UNIFEM provided technical, financial, and moral support to women's organizations in their efforts to mobilize to participate in and stand for the 2005 elections. This partnership bore unprecedented positive results for women in decision-making: not only were women appointed to the posts of 2nd vice-president of the Republic, president of the National Assembly and both vice-presidents of the Senate, women also constitute more than 20 per cent of leaders at the decentralized level. In addition, women head the ministries of Foreign Affairs, Planning, Justice, Commerce and Industry, Environment, National Solidarity, Human Rights and Gender, and the Ministry in the president’s office in charge of HIV/AIDS.

For more information, contact Irene Zirimwabagabo, irene.zirimwabagabo[at]unifem.org