Brave words need bold actions

I was pleased to be invited to the launch of Canada's new Feminist International Assistance Policy on June 9. It was a proud moment for me, an immigrant in my chosen country, to be among an intimate group to hear the announcement from Minister of International Development and La Francophonie Marie-Claude Bibeau. As the policy outlines, the federal government is reorienting public policy to put the security, rights, and economic empowerment of women and girls at the centre of its global aid strategy. I was especially proud because at Crossroads International we made the same choice more than a decade ago.

The policy promises to enhance the protection and promotion of the human rights of women and girls; increase the participation of women and girls in equal decision-making, particularly when it comes to sustainable development; and give women and girls more equitable access to, and control over, the resources they need to secure ongoing economic and social equality. These are the same tenets of our strategic plan!

The federal government has also committed to increase programs that will:

• Address sexual and gender-based violence and increase access to justice for victims
• Build capacity of local women’s organizations and movements and their work to advance legislation and policies that advance women’s rights
• Increase access to resources and growth for women including access to land; and improve economic opportunities for, and resilience of, rural women that take full account of impact on the environment and climate change
• Advance women’s leadership and decision-making in governance at all levels
• Effectively engage men and boys

In my partner visits this past year I saw example after example of innovative programming that is contributing greatly to each of these goals. Our work to advance women’s equality is benefiting whole communities.

Of course with this new mandate, more discussion of the myriad of details on how to implement a feminist international aid policy will be required. Crossroads International looks forward to working with the government and other stakeholders to facilitate a smooth implementation.

A key aspect of this implementation not yet accounted for however, is resourcing. Eighty percent of aid will go to the advancement of gender equality and empowerment of women and girls by 2021-22. This as well, is tremendous.

Yet the sum of this aid is not known. As I shared with you in advance 2017 federal Budget, Canada is on pace to have the lowest aid commitment of any Canadian government in half a century and has become a laggard among G7 countries when it comes to international aid. The most recent Budget did nothing to address this concern.

This Minister and the federal government have demonstrated courage and foresight in committing to a feminist international assistance policy. They must now back up their pledge with dollars. Investments spent wisely will realize greater gains and serve as stronger justification for the government’s strategy. 

As a country we have a lot to celebrate on this our 150th birthday and this bold policy is one of them. Planning for the next federal Budget is about to get underway. Let’s ensure this time the government gets the message: brave words need bold actions; increase international aid spending now. The women and girls of the world are depending on us.

To read more about Canada’s Feminist Foreign Policy visit http://international.gc.ca/world-monde/issues_development-enjeux_developpement/priorities-priorites/policy-politique.aspx?lang=eng#1

Seeking Justice for women in Tanzania

I have just returned from Tanzania to meet with our partners for the first time. Our discussions were frank, informative and, at times, difficult to hear. Yet I return with a sense of hope. 

The context and magnitude of the challenge of gender violence in Tanzania was startling. While Canada is not immune to issues of systemic violence, the absence of the sort of basic societal structures and policy responses in Tanzania that Canadians take for granted was alarming.

That is why it was so moving to see Crossroads volunteers with direct experience in the Canadian system —  a judge of the only Canadian Domestic Violence Integrated Court, a Crown Attorney and a manager of the Victim and Witness Services from Toronto — working with our partners KWIECO, police officers, justice officials and policy makers to share knowledge and provide training in systemic responses to gender-based violence cases in the court system.  

One of the first questions volunteers asked shelter staff concerned the first steps when a woman who is a victim of violence presents herself. Are the police called? This is a reasonable assumption, yet it underscores the many gaps in access to justice for women. Even where there is goodwill, there may not be adequate resources. For instance, police often will not answer a distress call without having the cost of the fuel to take victims to safety paid for!

This is not the least of roadblocks that await victims of violence seeking justice. Public confidence in police response is low. The place of paralegals in the justice system – among the key actors in the pursuit of justice for women – is fragile. They are not recognized by the Ministry of Justice in Tanzania. Cultural assumptions and traditions continue to be a challenge. All of this at a time when up to 40% of all public legal cases in the Kilimanjaro region are gender violence cases.

Yet I returned to Canada with great hope and determination to do more. There is demonstrable progress. Women are better informed about their rights and are better positioned to demand justice. There is greater awareness of gender-based violence generally throughout the community. In addition, paralegals are coming into the communities once a week to provide consultations. Change is being made and there is a shift in thinking. 

Crossroads and its partners are at the forefront of this change. The Access to Justice Program in Ghana and now Tanzania is inspiring.  And with support from the Government of Canada’s volunteer cooperation program, information and expertise is being shared and adapted to the local context in each of the countries where we are active. The model could have an unprecedented impact on women’s access to justice and equality across regions and countries and we need to do more.

Ending gender-based violence requires a holistic approach. More supports are needed for psychological support, where there is a clear need especially for children who have experienced or witnessed violence and access to health care, since hospitals are often far from the community so it is difficult to get evidence of assault.

Change can be painfully slow for a woman and her child staying in a remote shelter wondering if wounds can heal and justice will ever be realized. But change can, and does happen. Rights awareness and demands for access to justice are growing and as it does violence will ultimately be reduced and rights will be realized. With the collaboration of volunteers and donors, Crossroads will continue to seek that justice alongside our partners and the women and girls they serve.

National Volunteer Week

In a world where fewer than 10 people own 50 percent of the global wealth, what can we as citizens do to effect change? What do we have to offer that cannot be bought by a wealthy elite? How do we stand up to the rich and powerful in the face of such inequity? 

Martin Luther King, Jr. offered a useful perspective: "Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, What are you doing for others?"

All of us have this capacity for service. Whether it is helping on a project to improve your local neighbourhood, or volunteering to advance women’s rights on the other side of the world. Volunteerism is both an expression of shared humanity and a commitment to civic responsibility.

Of course, volunteerism is the heart of Crossroads International. Volunteers' generous commitment of time and expertise is our lifeblood. Canadians from all walks of life, all backgrounds, and all regions of the country are dedicating themselves to making the world a little more equitable, a little more just.

This week, we are celebrating not only Canadians, but also the many volunteers in our partner organizations who are passionate and skilled collaborators. National Volunteer Week (April 23-29) is also an appropriate time to reflect on the wider societal impacts of volunteerism. Engaging with the world through service builds empathy, fosters dialogue and cross-cultural understanding, and sparks curiosity – all traits that too often appear in short supply when we observe political contexts around the world.

Crossroaders are – through our model of international cooperation – building bridges with their fellow global citizens that will remain strong and drive change long after the immediate impact of their project contributions is realized.

By decoupling service from monetary or other personal reward, we are building a true coalition of the willing, and preparing an effective counterweight to the forces of ignorance, greed, and division.

In the past 50 years more than 10,000 people have served as volunteers with Crossroads International. Through their dedication of time, experience, and expertise, they have created a legacy of hope and change. I salute all of you and thank you for your global citizenship.

As we usher in National Volunteer Week, I encourage you to re-commit to service and reengage. Research an organization or cause, speak with a neighbor or colleague, and get involved. Your energy, ideas, passion, and skill are needed, and together, we can build a better world.

Will you stand with us – and “Be Bold for Change”?

On International Women’s Day, Crossroads International is celebrating women and men who are taking bold action for gender equality. This year, the theme is “Be Bold for Change”. Well, these Crossroaders are change-makers, and their boldness is what the world needs now more than ever.

• Asia Clarke is a young Canadian with her own jewelry business who shared her experience as an entrepreneur to support woman building their own similar business in Ghana. 
• Susanne Courtney is leveraging her expertise in communications and advocacy to aid women’s rights in Tanzania.
• Ángela Romero is advising on market access in Bolivia to support sustainable community projects. 
• Crossroads Board Member and volunteer Alain Fournier is providing technical assistance to improve monitoring and evaluation with partners in Burkina Faso
• Daniel Godon leveraged Geographic Information System (GIS) technology with partner APROFES in Senegal to support data gathering and information synthesis that allows the managers to locate and assess current interventions and reveal villages with less support that could benefit from future interventions.
• In Canada, Board Member Susan Green is leading by example in the private sector and calling out misogyny in the discourse and standing up for equality. 

Crossroads also has many incredible partners who are being bold for change.

• Mama Elizabeth Minde is a lawyer and women’s rights activist in Tanzania who initiated the first shelter for abused women in the country. Volunteers from Ernestine’s Women’s Shelter in Toronto are helping KWIECO with the process. 
• Companies such as Green Beaver and Papillon MDC are boldly supporting Crossroads’ local partner Union Nationale des Femmes Coopératrices du Sénégal, a network of 15,000 women cooperators who produce a range of soaps in ten regional unions across Senegal, to get a foothold in the local economy. 

These are just a few of the examples of Crossroads women and men working to advance equality by taking bold actions. In the current climate, these actions stand in stark contrast to rhetoric that marginalizes and demeans women. All Canadians can Be Bold for Change by taking action in their own communities. We need more Canadian businesses to be bold in joining with us to leverage their expertise to increase the productive capacity of women led businesses and ultimately improve incomes.

The proposed US federal budget from President Trump included a more that one third cut to international aid and development. If implemented, the impact on women globally will be devastating. In this country, the Canadian government has made bold statements. We need the federal Liberal government to be bold in investing in international aid. We need the government to heed the call for #MoreCanada.

Global volunteer cooperation is a cost effective way to share strategies, build expertise, and understanding that advances equality and peace. Will you stand with us and help us continue our innovative work on access to justice for women?

We need Canadians from all walks of life to Be Bold for Change. We need women and men to speak out against hate, stand for equality, and support our work – by donating, volunteering, or spreading the word.

So today, I wish you a Happy International Women’s Day, and ask you to stand with us, and #BeBoldforChange.

The world is counting on us, it is counting on #MoreCanada

After devastating recent events, Canadians took the streets again, this time to call for solidarity with refugees and Muslims. Crossroads International proudly stands with them.

The political events in Washington and the attack at a Quebec City mosque demonstrate just what a critical juncture this is for our world. Consider also, our neighbours to the South are threatening massive and critical funding cuts to important global development agencies, including those working on women’s rights. This is a time when people should coming together and embracing each other, not erecting walls or undermining development work.

Canada will soon be releasing a federal budget. In years past, we have let our own country’s development funding decline to the point where we trail the G7 and a number of other similarly-sized countries as a percentage of Gross National Income.  If we do not change course, Canada will have its lowest aid commitment in the last half-century.

In the face of the rise of extremism, continuous attacks on women’s rights and the integrity of women’s bodies, and the use of women as tools of war, Canadians are justifiably proud that its government has spoken so forcefully for the principles of equality, diversity, respect, and inclusion.

But as global citizens, we want more. As activists committed to volunteer cooperation, we know the world needs more. Please read some incredible stories from the field by Crossroads volunteers on how we are making a difference and what more we can do as a country.

In our hearts, we know we have more to give. It is time for #MoreCanada: more opportunities to volunteer, more support for overseas partners doing incredible work, and more reassurance for those in the global development community who find their work, and their very existence, under threat. Tangibly, this means an increased commitment to international aid and matching our words with the resources necessary to facilitate real change.

From February 5th to 11th, it is International Development Week (IDW) in Canada. The week is an opportunity to focus public attention, and remind ourselves, of the important work being done by Canadians around the world. It also provides the forum for Canadians to discuss, debate, and demonstrate that we as citizens are prepared to do more, and seek our government to do more too.

Canada can realize its potential, please visit our Call to Action page to learn how you can make a difference.

The world is counting on us, it is counting on #MoreCanada.

Why Marching Matters

I have been thinking a lot about what impact President Elect Trump's inauguration Friday will have on the rights of women and girls — globally and here at home.

Early indications are troubling. Consider, during the US election campaign Mr. Trump consistently vilified and verbally attacked women. He pledged to defund Planned Parenthood and made other spurious claims about sexual reproductive rights.  After the election, the New York Times reported Trump’s transition team requested lists of all programs, positions, and funding that support gender equality, violence reduction, and “promoting women’s participation in economic and political spheres” from the State Department and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). These inquiries strike fear in many aid and human rights activists around the world.

Then something incredible happened.  A few women musing about a march on Washington on social media has become a global celebration of the newly acclaimed International Day of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion bringing women from all walks of life together with male allies to advocate for peace, justice, and human rights in cities across North America and more than 30 countries around the world.

Here in Canada women and their supporters are marching in solidarity in 26 communities and counting. As I sat down to prepare my remarks for the Women’s March to Washington solidarity March in Ottawa this Saturday,  I found myself asking “Do marches still matter when one man’s tweets can shift the discourse, move markets, and reshape policy?”

To paraphrase outgoing US President Barack Obama: Yes they Can.

Democracy has long had its roots in the grassroots forums, fields, and streets of the communities in which citizens reside. Organized marches are critical to the practical implementation of change. As Jelani Cobb wrote in a recent New Yorker article, “Movements are born in the moments when abstract principles become concrete concerns.”

The speed with which this emerging grassroots movement has organized the women’s marches, and the public’s response to them, bodes well for a future where people are willing to call out misogyny wherever it is found and to fight for true gender equality around the world.

Those of us who work on women’s rights issues in the global south also understand how critical it is that hard won gains that serve as a beacon of hope to so many are not sacrificed. At Crossroads we see how innovative programming and partnerships, and the volunteer cooperation model in particular, have empowered women and girls, improving lives and bettering communities in Swaziland, Senegal, Ghana, Togo, Tanzania and elsewhere.

We can be proud of our country’s commitment to the advancement of women, celebrate the distinction of our feminist Prime Minister among global leaders, and even to bask in the glow of an U2’s Bono declaring the world needs “More Canada”.

Yet it is precisely because of our role in the world and the moral authority we command that requires us to be a leader in advancing women’s rights globally. The world does need more Canada, and Canada must do more for the world.

Canadians – regardless of gender – can begin by joining a Women's March on January 21st.

 

5 reasons to be optimistic for 2017

The divisive discourse and the violence that has been inflicted on marginalized people throughout the world, particularly women, cast a pall on all of 2016. While this has been a turbulent year globally, and powerful political changes forecast great uncertainty, I believe the values of justice, respect, and solidarity will ultimately prevail. 

In fact, my first year with Crossroads has filled me with hope. As list making tends to be a popular feature of new year messages, here are my five reasons to be optimistic for 2017:

1. “The world needs more Canada”. 

From Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recognition that “poverty is sexist” to Global Affairs Canada identifying poverty and gender equality as key priorities, our country is making important contributions on the international stage. While we can be doing more abroad and at home, Canada is at least heading in the right direction.

2. Some global wrongs are being righted

The world finally took note when the reports of sexual abuse perpetrated on women and children by some United Nations peacekeepers in Africa in 2015 came to light earlier this year. With leadership and pressure from civil society the UN ultimately took responsibility and committed to action. The UN can and must be a model for individual states’ conduct in treatment of women.

3. Our work is contributing to positive change for women and girls

Crossroads continues to see positive and hopeful results from its involvement with girls’ empowerment programs in Swaziland, Ghana and Togo. More abuse cases are being reported, girls are staying in school, and there has been a marked reduction in teen pregnancies, a major barrier to education.

4. We are creating new collaborations

Creativity and collaboration are so important to successful development projects and we at Crossroads are grateful to all of our private and non-profit sector partners. This year we are building on our private sector partnerships with Green Beaver and Papillion MDC and UNFSC in Senegal to improve productive capacity  and leadership of women producers.  I am also excited by two recent initiatives to support women and girls who are victims of abuse and to end the cycle of violence through innovative collaborations with Ernestine’s, Women’s Shelter in Toronto and The John Howard Society. 

5. You inspire me

Volunteer cooperation continues to be the basis for our work, and we could not do this work without so many global citizens committed to justice and peace. I am filled with joy by the number of people willing to share their time, their passion, and their ideas to make the world a better place. 

On a personal note, this year at Crossroads has been an incredible journey and I am grateful to be a part of such a wonderful organization. I would be remiss not to mention Karen Takacs, whose pursuit of equality for women and girls is reflected in so much of our work. Among the many points of light over the past year was the launch of the Karen Takacs Women and Leadership Fund which is providing direct support to organizations advancing equality for women and girls and emerging women leaders.

On behalf of the team at Crossroads, best wishes for a hopeful 2017. 

Carine Guidicelli