Debate: Gender Equality

The Boys network today held a debate on Gender Equality. The event took place at Munali Boys School. The students from Munali High School, Kamwala and Chazanga basic school debated on Gender Equality. The floating trophy was won by Munali Boys. See pictures below.

Court Acquits Former Roma Girls Teacher

The acquital of the former Roma Girls teacher makes sad reading. Passing judgment in a case where Humphrey Kayela and his brother Roy Chilingwa Kazembe were charged with two counts of defilement, margistrate Lameck Ng'ambia after analyzing evidence said he found the duo not guilty and accordingly acquitted them.

The coalition has responded by making contacts with other stakeholders including Member of Parliament for Mandevu Constituency in Lusaka, Hon. Jean Kapata to strategize on next steps.

Picture below from right- Honorable Jean Kapata,  Nelson Banda of the Boys network and 2 KBF lawyers who are part of the coalition.

Needs Assessment in the Safe Spaces

In order to understand and appreciate students' knowledge about issues of sexual violence against girls, TAAAC partners developed a survey, which was administered to the  Safe Spaces participants during scheduled sessions. Both girls and boys from 6 Safe Spaces schools participated. Lotus Basic was excluded for scheduling reasons.

This exercise was conducted between February and March 2011. Data entry and analysis was completed between March/April 2011. Students also were presented several statements to gauge their attitudes about gender roles and sexual violence. Statements were either gender-inequitable (“women lie about rape to punish men”) or gender-equitable. More on this soon. Keep visiting the TAAAC blog. Picture below showing partners sharing their Needs Assessment results with population other partners.Population Council will soon be undertaking the Knowledge Attitude and Practice (KAP) Survey. 

Boys Campfire

The war against gender injustices rages on as the Zambia National Women’s Lobby launches the Boys Network to engage boys in schools to be role models and fight sexual violence on girls. The programme, titled ‘The Boys Network’ is part of the Tisunge Ana Athu Akazi Coalition (TAAAC) supported by the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women through Equality Now. It is implemented in 6 schools namely Kamulanga, Munali, Kamwala High Schools and Chongwe, Lotus and Chazanga Basic. The Boy’s Network held a campfire conference whose aim was to equip boys with information and skills to mobilise boys' support on issues affecting girls in schools.

The Campfire Conference was held during the 16 Days of Gender Activism at Kasaka Camping Site in Kafue 45 Km south of Lusaka. The topic of the campfire conference was ‘working with Boys to end Sexual Violence against Girls in schools’ and the aimwas to equip boys with information and skills to mobilize support on issues affecting girls in schools.

At the two days campfire conference, the Boys Network whose members comprises of students between the ages of 14 to 19 years called on government to pass strong laws to punish perpetrators(see picture below)

Chongwe Boys on their way to Kasaka Campfire

TAFOD Drama group performing during a boys and girls outing at Adventure City.

 

 

 

 

 

Campfire discussions on Sexual Violence against girls

TAAAC Participates in the Youth Day Celebrations

Zambia National Women's Lobby Chongwe Basic School Boys Network joins the rest of the Zambian youths in celebrating this year's Youth Day.

Chongwe Boys Network march  with other schools from Chongwe District .

A boy from Chongwe Basic School displaying PPAZ's Referral Guide for Sexual Violence Service Providers

YWCA Kamwala High School Safe Space Girls participates in the Youth Day Celebrations

‘’Dialogue and Mutual Understanding’’ is the best practice that we the youths of Zambia can adopt but it comes with many challenges; if youths have to engage into dialogue and mutual understanding, they need leadership skills; at the same time a lot of youths have acquired the leadership skills and are ready to take up leadership roles and participate in decision making processes, but  there is need to create favorable structures that will allow youths to seek audience and be heard if we have to engage in dialogue and mutual understanding.

To interpret the theme, youths conducted focus group discussions a Kamwala High school, Lotus Basic and Marian Shrine Orphanage to empower youths with leadership skills to enable them dialogue  and have mutual understanding rather  than  resorting to rioting which may cause long term consequences. The youths were also taught on how to make sisal bags to enable them raise money for their school fees instead of engaging into harmful vices to raise money for school fees. (See pictures below)

TOPICS COVERED:

• Ø  Self Awareness
• Ø  Interpreting the theme Dialogue and Mutual Understanding
• Ø  Leadership skills

  

Empowerment skills on learning how to make sisal bags and table mats. 

Importance of learning a skill:

Ø  Youths or school girls and boys face a lot of challenges in rising school fees or their transport money to and from school. Other youths walk long distance with no food to get to the school and back home. Most youths come from poor families who cannot afford to provide for all their needs, while other youths head their own homes due to the loss of their parents. Such skills will enable youths to rise abit of money to pay for their school fees or transport money instead of engaging into harmful vices in order to raise money.

Ø   Youths will be able to teach their parents at home about this skill so that they are able to do it together and raise more money for the family too.

Ø  Such skills enables youths to also have a sense of responsibility, they are response for their own lives and have to do it wisely. This is a skill that can be expanded more after they complete their education as they wait for results because that is the period when most school leavers go world and engage in all sorts of harmful behaviors