Using Leadership Skills, Culture to Empower Borno Women, Girls

To empower, equip and embolden underprivileged women and girls in seven rural communities in Borno State, the Gender Equality, Peace and Development Centre, GEPaDC, has employed leadership skills to bridge the cultural and religious barriers, among others for these women to realise their raw and untapped potential. Rebecca Ejifoma narrates the account of three women who realised their potentials and are now contributing their quota to society

Hajara (last name withheld) from Borno State didn’t know she could be more than a sex slave. Neither did she know that life as a girl wasn’t all about being trafficked. All she could think of was that her yoke was nothing close to easy, and her burden was anything but light. From being trafficked, and sexually exploited as an adolescent to early marriage twice through to prostitution and unplanned pregnancy, she recounted her torrid time. 

“My story is a tragedy and I hope to share it today. My mother was divorced by my father when I was young. She remarried but the marriage failed. She got married again and then took me to the Niger Republic. She later died.” 

According to Hajara, 27, this marked her journey of misery and woes. “I encountered different people who molested, raped me then like some insignificant being they turned me into a lady of pleasure,” she bemoaned. “In the beginning, I was forced into marriage at a young age. The preparation was done without my consent but I had no choice but to comply. I later broke the marriage but was forced to remarry another man”.

This time, however, she met co-wives, who made life a nightmare for her. “The co-wives I met tormented my life so much that I broke the marriage and decided to leave to start my journey.”

And like the popular parlance, out of the frying pan into the fire, young Hajara was pleased to finally reunite with her aunt in the Northern part of Nigeria where she began to vacation in hell. “My aunt introduced me to prostitution. That was how four military men raped me one night. One soldier, who claimed he loved me, impregnated me but denied it.” 

Sadly for her, she felt everything fall apart and even the centre could no longer hold. “My whole life was a misery; from one tragedy to another, being deceived by different men which I find very hard to forgive now.” From that moment it was a fate worse than death. 

Refreshed

Until at age 27 when she bumped into Gender Equality, Peace and Development Centre (GEPaDC) in Borno state. Her life began to have a meaning. She became a brand new woman, refreshed and rejuvenated and equipped with new skills.

Hasfat Mustapha: Triumph in Disability

Just like Hajara, Hafsat Mustapha has had her fair share of internal adversaries. She is a person living with a disability (PWD) but tormented by her very own family. “My family discouraged me from achieving my goal – to go to school and become a lawyer. Instead, I was sent to Islamiyat (Islamic religious study).”

Although Mustapha memorised the Holy Quran, she persisted in pursuing her ambition of becoming a lawyer. “However, because of my quest to speak English fluently and to be recognised as the best in Borno State, my father advised that I should attend NCE and be a teacher instead because lawyers are involved in bribery”.

After joining the National Counsellor Examination (NCE), the PWD leader studied the English Language instead. “Because I often scored A and B grades in my courses, my aunt got jealous and said mean words to me. ‘You will never be anything in future,” emphasising that her auntie had pronounced profane words on her because she can’t walk. 

“She said I would be nothing because I’m a cripple. I replied to her by saying I will marry a cripple, be a cripple lawyer, build a school for the cripple and invite my cripple friends to my wedding,” she narrated, chipping in that “God in his infinite mercy granted me that wish.” 

Finally, fortune smiled at her. Today, she is a women leader for Borno State People Living with Disability. This, in itself, is fulfilling to her. “I’m still going to pursue my career once my result is out. I will further my studies till I achieve my dream”.

While she is thankful for life, she has acknowledged the role of the GEPaDC. According to her, the organisation supported her with some naira to reinvest in her business. “I will make sure that I save enough money, which I know my husband will support me because he is also passionate about what I am doing”.

Parsti A.: New Lease of Life 

In the words of 32-year-old full-time housewife, Parsti A., “Life no balance (life isn’t balanced). All her marriage life, she relied solely on her husband to bring home the bacon including her every wish. “I was doing nothing and always asking my husband. This affected me a lot,” she bemoaned. “I could not do anything for myself without asking for money from my husband. Even when I asked, I was not given immediately. It may take some time before I receive the money, and it might come after I no longer need the money.”

Finally, Parsti has got a new lease of life. Her progress as a woman was the establishment of a group, which she heads. She alongside other female members meets minds, table issues and challenges affecting women and empowers themselves through monthly contributions known as adashe. 

While being resilient in their quest to find themselves, GEPaDC gave them a reason to smile again. “It was exactly one year and six months doing things on our own when they came to our aid. They gave us beautiful ideas on peace building and ways to promote peace in the community,” says Parsti.

GEPaDC empowered the group extensively with different skills like cap knitting, liquid wash, local incense, and vaseline. “This solves one of our great concerns as an organisation and the members passed on the training to other community members. 

“One thing I must thank GEPaDC for is the sense of leadership that they installed in us. Before in the community,” she recalled, “we don’t have any say on decisions made by the leaders who are men. Instead of decisions made with us, decisions are made for us until after the training on leadership. The men now invite us for community dialogue and conflict resolution even though not all the women. But we, the leaders, partake in decisions taken in the community now.”

Indeed, for Hajara, Hafsat, and Parsti among a list of others, organisations like GEPaDC came in handy. This is because it is employing strategic approaches to bridging the gap for women in rural communities in seven communities in Borno State. With the right information, education and awareness programmes these women are gradually realising and attaining their full potential. 

GEPaDC:  Rescuing Women in Borno

GEPaDC is a non-governmental, non-partisan, non-religious and not-for-profit organisation. Its vision is a society where women and men, girls and boys realise their full potential and participate in every sphere on an equal basis;  where the rights of everyone irrespective of sex are recognised and respected and its mission is the promotion of gender equality, women and girls’ empowerment, peace, and sustainable development. 

According to the Executive Director, GEPaDC, Patricia Donli, their area of focus are gender equality, women’s empowerment and leadership development, women, peace and security; violence against women and girls; non-violent peace initiatives; women’s rights including reproductive health rights; women’s health including HIV/aids and reproductive health; democracy and good governance; youth development/mentoring; environment and sustainable development.

Since its establishment in 2010, GEPaDC has been responding to the humanitarian crisis and is currently working in MMC, Jere, Mafa, Konduga, Mafa, Damboa, Biu, and Gwoza in Borno state. 

Approaches to Challenges in Communities

GEPaDC is familiar not only with the physical terrain but also the cultural terrain, using mentoring programmes to proffer solutions. “We have been able to achieve results through strategic navigation of these cultural barriers and challenges. 

“Also, GEPaDC has a very robust volunteering and internship and mentoring programme where the participants are taken through a learning process via understanding mentors and hands-on experience for three to six months, hence there is always a critical pool of young people that are in the field, learning daily.”

For Donli, their approach to working in this highly conservative and patriarchal society has been guided by culture and conflict sensitivity. They also employ the principle of do-no-harm and community engagement/centred approach and build alliances and linkages with those who identify with their vision and mission. GEPaDC has an exceptionally good relationship with the traditional and religious institutions in Borno state.

With an all-inclusive approach, GEPaDC with the help of the British Council ensures community participation and inclusion through consultations, and open discussions and all activities are community-driven. 

In addition, the organisation works within strategic guidelines including significance, completeness, responsiveness, collaboration, inclusiveness, integrity and plain English planning. 

In the words of the ED, the organisation deals with issues of significance and ensures that the proper foundation is laid to achieve successful outcomes and sustainable results.

“We seek to understand the concerns, views, needs and expectations including views of all stakeholders. We respond coherently and appropriately to the terms of reference and the expectations of all stakeholders.

“We work with the other CSO/NGOs, Traditional and religious leaders, Government partners, Security Agencies, and oversight bodies, to build sustainable relationships. We will recognise, understand, and involve all stakeholders in the process,” Donli highlighted. 

Over the years, GEPaDC continues to conduct engagement in a manner that fosters mutual respect and trust while also seeing to the use of plain English in all their drafting and training to enable ease of translation into local languages and to support ease of implementation in the future security and gender-related projects.

While the world has come to terms with the fact that Emma Watson was right when she said women share this planet 50/50 and they are underrepresented – potential astonishingly untapped, organisations like GEPaDC seek to empower the girl child and women. To them, this is a critical step towards eradicating poverty and many societal ills that cripple their roles in society and their homes.

Quote 

One thing I must thank GEPaDC for is the sense of leadership that they installed in us. Before in the community, we don’t have any say on decisions made by the leaders who are men. Instead of decisions made with us, decisions are made for us until after the training on leadership. The men now invite us for community dialogue and conflict resolution