AAW Highlights 1999 - 2007

Our activities this year (2007)

APC-Africa-Women (AAW) is one of the Focus Networks of the Harambee project (Reinforcing African Voices through collaborative processes) http://www.harambeeafrica.net. We are undertaking an exciting project to increase member participation in the AAW network and consequently increase the benefits of being a member. We are busy creating shared online spaces to enable members to more easily meet, share and collaboration with other members.A story-telling component where we will interview AAW members for their ICT stories. Country-based meetings where possible for AAW members who live in cities meet face-to-face and create a social and learning space to promote member interaction. Private, interactive and facilitated member spaces on the new (soon to be launched) AAW website using blogs, flickr space etc. Members able to upload and update their information on the website (skills, experience, news, activities) which can be accessed by a wider community.
Some other activities planned for this year are - hosting WENT Africa 2007 which will focus on digital storytelling, localising Take Back the Tech, participating in the Internet Governance Forum, some of our members will be part of our Gender Evaluation Methodology (GEM) Training Exchange.

Some activities in 2006

Blogging

In September AAW members attended Highway Africa and the Digital Citizens Indaba on blogging. Members blogged on the APC blog about their experiences. http://blog.apc.org/en/

Gender and ICT for rural development

AAW in partnership with WOUGNET, an AAW member, implemented the Gender, Agriculture and Rural Development in the Information Society (GenARDIS) project. A knowledge sharing workshop was held at Entebbe which included a Gender Evaluation Methodology (GEM) workshop. You can read more about the GenARDIS project and the knowledge sharing workshop on the website we built for the project at:
http://www.apcwomen.org/genardis/
The website contains information on the GenARDIS grantees, how ICT has been applied to projects involving women and rural development and stories and case studies from the field.

Violence against women and ICTs

Take Back the Tech! - http://www.takebackthetech.net/index.php
APC WNSP believes that both ICTs and VAW affect our capacity to completely enjoy our human rights and fundamental freedoms. Our right to move freely without harassment or threats to safety also applies to digital spaces. This 16-day campaign aims to engage greater participation by all civil society, especially grrls and women ICT-users, to think about this issue in diverse contexts and realities. By calling for all users to reclaim control over technology, we are asking for the right to define, access, use and shape ICTs for its potential to transform power relations, towards a vision and reality of equality.

Free and Open Source Software

AAW supported members to attend the Africa Source II - Free and Open Source Software for Local Communities camp in Kalangala, Uganda in January 2006.
http://www.tacticaltech.org/?q=africasource2

Gender Evaluation Methodology (GEM)
GEM is not only a tool for gender evaluations. Nor is it just a guide or a manual that breaks down gender concepts and makes it relevant for ICT project. GEM is also a project and a community. You can download the tool and read more about the GEM community at http://www.apcwomen.org/gem/
In 2006 AAW presented a GEM workshop at the GenARDIS knowlege sharing event in Entebbe, Ugandaas well as at the AMARC 9 conference in Amman, Jordan. AAW member, Women'sNet ran a GEM training for WOUGNET staff in early January.

Our 2005 activities

Training for women - the second WENT Africa!
In 2005 we hosted the second Women's Electronic Network Training (WENT) workshop in Africa in Kampala, Uganda. The focus of WENT Africa was on two things - one track focused on technical training for women using Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) and the second was on Technology Planning for women's organisations. 22 women participants from 12 African countries, 4 participants and 1 facilitator – that’s the mix for WENT Africa 2005 were from countries such as Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Uganda, Cameroon, Zambia, Sudan, Cameroon, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Ghana and Senegal. Read more on our participants blog at http://wentafrica.blogspot.com/

2004:
Networking for change and empowerment Forum - Catalysing a Gender and ICT Advocacy Movement
The Forum was designed to provide a space where the APC WNSP can consolidate the growing gender and ICT advocacy network and focus greater attention on the need to locate gender issues at the center of all ICT policy and practice processes. It also developed strategies and resources to sustain this network over the longer term and enable it to have greater impact.
http://www.apcwomen.org/rio/index.htm

In partnership with IDRC, AAW co-hosted a workshop to establish a research proposal and an ICT and gender research network. Participants at the workshop established the Gender Research in Africa on ICTs for Empowerment network (GRACE) and will begin implementing research on "How is the use and appropriation of ICTs by women in Africa transforming their lives?" in 11 African countries.
http://web.idrc.ca/ev_en.php?ID=57567_201&ID2=DO_TOPIC

APC Africa ICT Policy Monitor Project commissioned AAW to write an in-depth research paper on "The Role of ICTs in the Development of African Women". Soon to be published online at: http://www.apc.org/english/rights/africa/
E-consultation on "ICTs for the advancement of rural women's empowerment: Strategies, platforms, tools and training". The e-consultation increased the number of voices in the FAO/Women'sNet/DIMITRA workshop on advancing rural women's empowerment and widened the space for dialogue and sharing of experiences, information and resources. http://womensnet.org.za/dimitra_conference/econsulation.htm

2003:
The production of three issues of PULA, an e-newsletter on women and ICTs in Africa. Pula promotes and profiles the work of women's initiatives in Africa and links women to each other and to opportunities. http://www.apcafricawomen.org/pula.htm
Women's Electronic Network Training (WENT) Africa 2003. WENT built the capacities of 23 women and their organisations to utilize ICTs in social development work and policy advocacy. http://www.apcafricawomen.org/went_rep.shtml
World Summit on the Information Society Summit, December 2003. AAW hosted a panel on "Free and Open Source Software (FOSS): The potential power and possibilities for women's organizations and networks".
GEM presentations at various workshops including a UNIFEM-hosted "Regional Training Workshop on Monitoring and Evaluation: Gender, Human Rights and Participatory Approaches". http://www.afrea.org/content/index.cfm?navID=6&itemID=131

2002:
Multiple presentations and an AAW face-to-face meeting at the Kampala Know How Conference.
AAW participation and presentation on gender at the first Africa Civil Society and ICT Policy workshop in Ethiopia.
African Gender Evaluation Methodology workshop in Zanzibar.
http://www.apcwomen.org/gem/news/index.htm

2001:
Intersections: A bulletin on gender at the World conference Against Racism (Durban, South Africa). The bulletin highlighted the intersection between race and other forms of oppression with gender. http://www.apc.org/intersections/
2000 - present:
GEM is a guide to integrating gender analysis into evaluations of initiatives that use ICTs for social change. AAW is leading its testing in Africa
http://www.apcwomen.org/gem

1999-2000:
Flamme/Beijing+5 initiative: information and training activities implemented in partnership with FEMNET to support the participation of African women's NGOs in the global Beijing +5 review, June 2000.
http://flamme.org
Publication and dissemination of "Net Gains: African Women take stock of Information and Communication Technologies", a groundbreaking research report on the situation and needs of African women with respect to ICTs. http://www.flamme.org/
Multiple contributions to Women in Sync, a collection of stories and experiences of women and organisations and their successes and challenges in women's networking initiatives, published by the global APC Women's Networking Support Programme (APC-WNSP) to encourage and support women's electronic networking