The SADC Protocol on Gender and Development was drafted by the SADC Gender Unit and NGO Alliance in 2005 and is hailed as a progressive document that outlines specific gender equality and development targets for governments to work toward. The protocol serves to “provide for the empowerment of women, to eliminate discrimination and to achieve gender equality and equity through the development and implementation of gender responsive legislation policies, programmes and projects”. Of the 23 set targets equal representation of women in all levels of government by 2015 is an important and tangible target by which to hold member states accountable.
The Protocol is an effort to harmonize the various instruments to which SADC Member States have subscribed at the regional, continental and international levels on gender equity and equality. Below is a selection of the primary conventions addressed within the Protocol:
- The Convention on the Right of the Child (1989),
- The Beijing Declaration and its Platform for Action (1995),
- The Millennium Development Goal (2000),
- The UN Security Council Resolution (1325) on Women, Peace and Security (2001)
- The UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (2008),
The SADC Civil Society Protocol Alliance, which is coordinated by Genderlinks, has already done significant work in popularizing the Protocol. GAP is a member of the Alliance, and chairs the "Gender and Governance" cluster. In order to further advance its mandate of advocacy and lobbying, GAP, in partnership with the Western Cape Network on Violence Against Women (WCNOVAW), and with the support of the Heinrich Böll Foundation and the Commission on Gender Equality are hosting a seminar on the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development. The objectives of the seminar are to: (i) promote greater awareness around Articles and the targets set out in the articles; (ii) identify the challenges and obstacles in giving effect to the Protocol, and (iii) engage stakeholders on charting a process toward ratification of the Protocol. To achieve these ends, the seminar will engage policy makers and civil society representatives to share insights, and collaborate to achieve the aim of ratifying the Protocol.
Given the above, the main objectives of the seminar are to build awareness around the Protocol by highlighting specific Articles of particular relevance to civil society, identify the challenges and obstacles that have impeded the popularization and implementation of the Protocol, and to discuss possible strategies to achieve the ratification of the Protocol.
Details of the seminar are as follows:
Date: 19 November 2009
Time: 08h30 – 15h00
Venue: Commission on Gender Equality Boardroom, 5th floor, ABSA Building,Cnr of Adderley and Riebeeck Streets, Cape Town
Your participation and input in this seminar would be greatly appreciated. Kindly complete the reply form below, and return to us by Friday, 13 November 2009 on senzeni@gender.org.za, tumi@gender.org.za, or by fax on 021 465 0089. The programme for the seminar will be forwarded upon confirmation.
SADC Protocol Seminar RSVP Form