Previous Programs
Gender Mainstreaming in the Senegalese Armed Forces
In July 2010, with support from the United States Army’s Africa Command (AFRICOM) and National Defense University’s Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS), Partners Senegal’s Africa Institute for Security Sector Transformation (AISST) convened a panel of civil society and government representatives to provide technical assistance to the Ministry of Armed Forces on the potential opportunities obstacles for the integration of women in the security sector and opportunities for enhancing the process. PS sees the enhancement of inclusion of women in such a highly visible and highly respected organization can be key to promoting greater women’s empowerment throughout Senegal as a whole.
AISST’s team organized a workshop to serve as a platform for members of civil society, government officials, and leaders from the security sector to collaborate on the creation of a progressive and inclusive set of policies and programs. High-ranking female officers, including generals from the U.S. and Gabon and colonels from Mali and Liberia, also offered their support by sharing lessons and experiences from their respective countries. Following the dialogue, participants drafted a report containing analysis and recommendations on gender mainstreaming to be submitted to the Ministry.
The immediate product of the gender mainstreaming program thus far has been the creation of a set of legal guidelines to help provide the direction for the increased inclusion of women in the armed forces. The Senegalese Armed Forces hopes to achieve its goals of integrating women into the armed forces 3-5 years from now. In the meantime, some of the efforts made to better equip and address women’s needs in the armed Forces have come to fruition. Since July 2010, 300 additional women have been recruited into the Senegalese armed forces. Senegal is expected to gain its first female officer, a woman who has been trained at the US Air Force Academy sometime in early 2012.
For more details about the rest of the project please download our case study here: Case Study: Gender Mainstreaming in the Armed Forces
Capturing Best Practices and Strategies for Civic Society Engagement in Human Rights Promotion
Between August and December 2010, Partners Senegal conducted a regional assessment of the functionality and effectiveness of national child rights coalitions and their impacts on monitoring and promoting child rights in West Africa. The research included desk reviews and field research in Benin, Mali, Niger and Senegal. The goal of the research is to provide valuable guidance on developing more effective partnerships within national coalitions and to strengthen their institutional capacities. The work included a specific focus on the coalitions’ work on the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.
Start-up Workshop:
From 13 – 15 October, 2010, in Cotonou, Benin, representatives from national child rights coalitions in Benin, Mali, Niger and Senegal and staff from Plan offices in these four countries, Plan West Africa and Plan Geneva participated in a Start-up Workshop coordinated by Partners Senegal (under the leadership of former Plan Country Director Ousmane Seye).
Project Climate Change/Plan
The Kaolack Community Climate Change Project contributes to reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases by assisted regeneration of natural resources and the use of solar energy for domestic needs. This pilot project comprises three main phases:
• Phase 1: Inform, educate and train local authorities and beneficiaries on the effects on climate change and the use of solar ovens for cooking;
• Phase 2: Initiate reforestation activities on degraded land;
• Phase3: Equip families and school lunches with solar cookers for cooking food.
A training workshop on local community-based approaches to climate change adaptation was held from 20-23 December 2010. The workshop convened project stakeholders from Plan Senegal, Partners Senegal, the decentralized services of the state (Waters, Forests and Environment), CADL, Environment Club and RAPPROMAF to harmonize their understanding of the concepts of climate change in the Development Plan implementation process of ABC and the planning of the baseline program survey.
Assesment of Legal Frameworks/ ACPF
In December 2010, Partners Senegal’s team co-ordinated and managed an assessment of the legal frameworks and people’s perceptions of child rights in West Africa to help develop adequate advocacy strategies to improve policies and practice as well as attitudes and behaviours in the view of the protection and respect of children’s rights. In field studies in three countries – Benin, Senegal and Sierra Leone – Partners Senegal developed a complete set of data collection instruments in both French and English on duty bearers’ and right holders’ knowledge and perceptions and the relative effectiveness of State and traditional laws and structures pertaining to female genital mutilation, early marriage and school based violence.
The project included a desk review of the legal framework in 12 countries with Plan operations including: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ghana, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.
