JONAPWD hosts a three-day leadership and capacity-strengthening workshop for intersectional leaders and activists who are women with disabilities. The workshop participants were drawn from Ghana, Togo, Senegal, and Nigeria.
The workshop began with a recitation of Nigeria’s National Anthem, followed by goodwill messages from the following speakers:
– Abdullahi A. Usman, National President for JONAPWD
– Theophilus Odaudu, Program Officer for Disability Rights Fund in West Africa
– Brenda Anugwon, Nigeria Women Trust Fund
– Andray Abrahamian, US Embassy Political Officer
– Abimbola Oyelohunnu, Program Officer at ECOWAS
– Honourable Bashiru Dawodu, House Committee on Disability Matters
– Buru Ijeoma, representative for Princess Jummai Idonije, Maryam Babangida National Centre for Women Development
This workshop was supported by the Disability Rights Fund/Disability Rights Advocacy Fund (DRF/DRAF) “Holding Rights, Leading for Rights” funding stream, a project funded by the United States Federal Government.
Key take home and quotes from the workshop are:
Abimbola from ECOWAS highlighted that we should not be carried away by the theoretical concepts (UNCRPD and SDGs) The documents both help us to advocate for our human rights. The advocacy for human rights is a long term journey that requires patience. We must leverage on reporting as reporting is one of the ways/tool to gain attention. But then, how equipped are women with disabilities to prepare their shadow report? How many Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs) are involved? What do we do with the recommendations from the reports? The Committee for the CRPD are very key stakeholders in this process. She also recommended a multidimensional advocacy. In her final words, she mentioned that “Nobody gives you your rights on a platter, you have to fight for it” Princess Jummai Idonije was concerned about the involvement of the private sector in the process as there’s so much they can do. She mentions that we need to hold the government accountable. We must look beyond the federal government level and focus on how many states have domesticated the act. Dogomangue Nambkoua from Togo mentions that we need to prepare and elaborate reports in such a way that they are convincing to avoid making it dead on arrival. Togo has been trying to get their disability law ratified since 2011 but all efforts have proved abortive. Enforcement of this important document is important for advocacies. “Ratification does not mean domestication” – Ene Obi “We need to advance the rights of women with disabilities because they are the most excluded ” – Agianpe Onyema “You cannot build something on nothing, you cannot go to the farm without implements” – Barrister Adegoke S. Jummai “There are little things we can do to assist persons with disabilities at our level” – Barrister Adegoke S. Jummai “Grassroot advocacy is very important” – Barrister Adegoke S. Jummai “If you bring the wrong data into the room, we will make the wrong decision” “All women and girls face inequalities but, women and girls with disabilities face additional and severe disadvantages” – “The lived experience of every woman is different” – Osasuyi Dirisu “One major problem of data in Nigeria is culture. It is a taboo to count the number of children in some cultures” – Beatrice Mube Awala “There is a scarcity of leadership all over the world. Crises reveal character. A leader solves problems. Problems come so that we can innovate. Leaders develop daily and not in a day. Inclusive leadership is needed in a diverse world” – Dr Ejiro Otive-Igbuzor Your organisation needs to be well branded. Never duplicate someone else’s work and pass it off as yours” Do not include the venue of your event before and while ongoing, especially in a location where security is not guaranteed” Two factor authentication is important for WhatsApp. Install antivirus in your systems. Do not use pirated software. Not every member of staff should have access to posting on social media platforms – Lois Chinedu