Reflection Workshops with Traditional and Municipal Councillors to Identify and Review Harmful Traditional Practices :

In line with the project titled “Strengthening Community Responses to End Sexual and Gender Based Violence and Improving Access to Quality Services for Women and Girls in Cameroon” supported by Amplify change, FFAC organized a series of reflection workshops with traditional leaders, municipal councillors and various administrative authorities of Yaoundé 1 and 2, Koutaba, Santa and Mbiame from the 10 – 25 of September 2020. These workshops were presided by the different Mayors and representatives of the Mayors of the various Councils in the communities and Delegates of Women Empowerment and Family , Chief of Social Centers . It aimed at deepening awareness on the impacts of gender based violence, stimulate the identification of negative socio-cultural norms and practices that promote violence, seek measures to redress, amend and modify some of these practices, and develop a social inclusion policy in the various communities that will observe, enforce and the protect the rights of women, girls and other vulnerable group and punish perpetrators.

These workshops were attended by a totally of 100 participants who were splited into groups to identify the negative socio-cultural norms and practices , to bring out the causes of this practices and come out with a resolution to be adopted. Some of the practices be modify or wipe out completely was early and force marriage, widows will no longer be force to marry their late husband’s brother and should be allow to inherit his property. It was also agreed that women have rights as men and therefore should inherit their parents. Widows should not be force to drink water used to bath the corpse of their late husband etc .Strategies were being identified on how to eradicate such practices and the development of an inclusion policies to be endosed by the traditional leaders and mayor’s to better include women and girls in decision making bodies .