Uganda Consultation, September 2008
From September 18 to September 25, 2008, Inclusive Security traveled to Kampala, Uganda to consult with the Uganda Women Parliamentary Association on the Peace, Recovery, and Development Plan for Northern Uganda. The PRDP is a post-conflict recovery plan designed to eradicate poverty in Northern Uganda after more than 20 years of conflict and population displacement. In Kampala, Inclusive Security also advocated to the government and development partners to increase attention to women’s priorities and participation in PRDP implementation.
Inclusive Security also traveled to Gulu, in the conflict-affected North, to meet with key leaders about the status of security and reconstruction in the North. We convened a meeting of women councilors and civil society leaders to discuss their views on PRDP implementation and priority areas for women. At the meeting, which was covered on local radio, Member of Parliament Betty Aol and Inclusive Security staff highlighted the importance of women’s participation in any and all efforts to rebuild the war-torn region. In addition, Inclusive Security participated in planning meetings for Empowering Hands, a program run by women ex-combatants striving to ensure effective reintegration for demobilizing combatants.
At the invitation of Uganda Women Parliamentary Association, Inclusive Security held a consultation in Jinja from September 21 to September 23 to develop recommendations for ensuring gender-sensitive implementation of the PRDP. While it is an important instrument, the PRDP falls short of adequately addressing gender issues or including women and girls’ needs in its framework. Consultation participants created “A Call to Action,” including a succinct analysis of the PRDP and a set of ten critical recommendations for increasing gender sensitivity and accountability.
Consultation
Our consultation with UWOPA on promoting women’s priorities within the PRDP for Northern Uganda brought together 25 parliamentarians and women civil society leaders from diverse regions across the North. They were joined by Dr. Hilda Tadria, new gender adviser from the Office of the Prime Minister.
The goals of the workshop were to:
- Synthesize existing gender analyses of the PRDP in order to develop a single advocacy agenda for the inclusion of women’s needs within the PRDP
- Aid in the development of UWOPA’s strategy for advancing the implementation of the PRDP to ensure its gender sensitivity
Read "A Call to Action," recommendations developed during the Jinja consultation.
Next Steps
This was the first in a series of trainings focused on increasing women’s participation and priorities within post-conflict reconstruction. Additional workshops will involve district-level and national political leaders, as well as members of civil society.