Inter-African Committee on Traditional Practices
Affecting the Health of Women and Children
Programs
Programs for youth
Youth are an important target group both as potential or actual victims as well as future parents. IAC invests a great deal of effort to sensitize youth using different entry points such as theaters, sports, peer education, school, radio and by organizing Regional Youth Fora and special training for youth. As Youth are still open-minded, generating a change of attitude is relatively easy and new cultural values can be embedded into their minds.
In November 2006, IAC organized a 5-day Youth Forum in
The objective of the Youth Forum was to consolidate more youth participation for the speedy elimination of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and other harmful traditional practices (HTPs). More than 80 young people from 27 countries participated.
Since the first Youth Forum in 2000, IAC has carried out 83 Youth projects, reaching over 261,600 young people with information on FGM and other harmful traditional practices. They have been trained in how to be educators to their peers, to set up youth clubs in or out of school and how to mobilize the community.
Training and Information Campaign (TIC)
Our Training and Information Campaigns are targeted to reach the public through a wave of successive trainings. The trainings are specified to the target groups, being women, men, community leaders, religious leaders, traditional birth attendants, health personnel and media. The project aims at changing the attitudes of these target groups for them to become agents of change.
Since 2002, 77 TIC projects have been implemented and training centers for the public have been set up in 12 countries.
Programs for religious leaders
As part of the Training and Information Campaigns, IAC has a special program for Religious Leaders.
Religion is still being forwarded as a reason to continue FGM. We work closely with religious leaders to clarify this misconception of religious requirements and encourage religious leaders to join the campaign.
Recently, from the 23rd-25th October 2007, a Symposium for Religious Leaders was held in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, in which 37 participants from 23 African countries took part. Also present were representatives from the local and international media, and the national Ministry of Health. A three-year Action Plan (2008-2010) was developed to combat FGM and mistaken beliefs about the role that religion plays in this practice. The symposia culminated in the Abidjan Declaration of Commitment. The statements in this Declaration include the assertion that FGM has no place in the Islamic or Christian faiths and it also calls for the signatories to commit themselves to the struggle for the total elimination of FGM, not just in their respective countries but wherever it exists.
This event was a follow-up to the two symposia held in 2005 for English and French-speaking Religious Leaders in Egypt and Burkina Faso. The participants were 80 religious leaders from 30 countries. After serious analysis of the FGM problem, they made an open statement (in what became known as the Ouagadougou Declaration) of their opposition to the practice and adopted a decision to set up a network in order to continue the campaign in a sustained and coordinated manner.
Empowering women
IAC works for the empowerment of women two-fold: Through the mentioned Training and Information Campaign projects, information and training is provided to women in order for them to realize the harmful effects of practices such as FGM, early marriage and nutritional taboos, and to valorize their body. Also, training is given on basic Human Rights and on the Rights of Women in particular. Additionally, IAC provides training for women to become trainers themselves, so they can continue independently. This makes the project have a rippling effect.
Micro-credit for former excisers (formerly called Alternative Employment Opportunities or AEO)
Another way of empowering women is to offer alternative employment opportunities to female excisers. This program is particularly successful as it aims at those who practice of FGM who, in many cultures have a high and respectable status. After they have declared their opposition to FGM and to no longer perform the practice, IAC offers them training in an alternative income generating activity and a seed grant to start their own business. Additionally, IAC involves the former excisers in its campaign by becoming active agents for change.
IAC implemented 49 micro-credit for former excisers projects between 2000-2007.
Capacity building
The goal of IAC is to create independent and sustainable National Committees that can execute and report on activities in a professional way. Therefore, we aim to strengthen the capacity of these Committees by providing salary for Program Officers, technical support and emergency support.
Advocacy and lobbying
IAC together with other NGOs continues to lobby and draw attention of policy makers on the issue of violence against women, especially those which are traditionally condoned. IAC uses its official relationship with the United Nations, African Union, and World Health Organization to influence policy. We lobby and call governments to take action.
In 1997, after holding expert meetings on the legal aspects of FGM and other practices, IAC proposed to the African Union a draft Convention on the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The essential contents of this proposed document are at present reflected in the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, also known as the Maputo Protocol. Articles 2, 5, 6, and 20 of the Protocol reflect IAC’s preoccupation with regards to violence against women. IAC is part of the African coalition group SOAWR, to campaign for the ratification and domestication of the Maputo Protocol.
IAC uses the sessions of the former UN Commission and Sub-Commission on Human Rights and current Council on Human Rights as well as the Commission on the Status of Women to include the issue of harmful traditional practices in the agenda and discussions. The appointment of the Special Rapporteur on Traditional Practices was a highly welcome achievement. Mrs. Halima Warzazi who occupied the position up to 2005 accomplished a remarkable job of revealing the violence against women and girls face as a result of respect for tradition even when the latter is harmful. In the ninth report on the situation regarding the elimination of traditional practices affecting the health of women and the child girl of Ms. Halima Warzazi recognized the contribution of IAC to the campaign against Harmful Traditional Practices
In 2003, IAC organized an International Conference on Zero Tolerance to FGM with the objective of building and strengthen partnership with stakeholders, governments, inter-governmental organizations, UN agencies and NGOs. The main outcomes of the Conference were:
- Proclamation of 6th of February as the International Day on “Zero Tolerance to FGM”. Since 2003, February 6th has been observed worldwide every year as an International Day on Zero Tolerance to FGM.
- Adoption of the Common Agenda for Action for the elimination of FGM, ensuring the involvement of different bodies (governments, UN institutions, parliamentarians, legislators, decision makers, NGOs…) you can find this document in the folder in front of you.
- Launch of an appeal to Governments to mobilize resources and efforts to eradicate FGM and others HTPs
Following this Conference, IAC signed a Letter of Agreement on Joint Action for the elimination of FGM with WHO, Unicef and UNFPA.
For its accomplishments, IAC received the UN Population Award in 1995.
Research
The IAC conducts research in the area of traditional practices, i.e. through its national committees and experts. A Scientific Committee was recently established during IAC's 5th Regional Conference.
The research on early marriage in Ethiopia reveals the fact that girls as young as 7 and 8 years are forcefully married to older men and the attendant complications can be observed at the fistula clinic in Addis Ababa. This practice exists in Niger, Mauritania, parts of Nigeria, the Middle East and some countries in Asia.
Several research papers are produced on FGM, showing the extent of the problem. These documents are valuable, particularly for designing strategies of intervention.
Production of educational materials
To support its activities and to inform people, IAC produces a range of educational materials. A newsletter is published twice a year that gives updates on progress in the fight against FGM and its latest developments.
To visualize the explanations on the consequences of FGM, IAC has developed an anatomical model, which is used in the Training and Information Campaigns as well as in health clinics and hospitals.
We are currently taking orders for this unique visual teaching aid. More details about this model can be found here. Please contact us if you are interested in ordering this model or would like additional information about it.
IAC and its National committees have also created several movies. A description of them can be found here. If you are interested in purchasing one of the movies please contact us.
We produce and distribute training manuals and information for youth, health personnel and teachers and serve as a resource centre at the grassroots- as well as at the international level.
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