International Women’s Day 2019: Focus on the status of three REFELA campaigns (Part 1)

This year’s UN theme for International Women’s Day is: “Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for change.” Every year, the celebration of March 08 is an important milestone for the Local Elected Women’s Network of Africa (REFELA), UCLG Africa’s Standing Committee on gender equality, to highlight the actions and progress taken by these actors in local governance.

For International Women’s Day 2019, REFELA has seized the opportunity to provide an update on the deployment of its three main campaigns that are at the heart of its 2019-2021 Strategic Action Plan (SAP-REFELA). These are:

Ø The Campaign for African Cities without Street Children

Ø The Campaign for African Cities’ Zero Tolerance to Violence Against Women and Girls

Ø The Campaign for African Cities for Women’s Economic Empowerment

“African cities without Street Children” in Rabat

The campaign, “African Cities without Street Children,” is an initiative driven by REFELA, supported by the Kingdom of Morocco’s National Observatory for the Rights of Children (ONDE) and UNICEF. The campaign aims to provide solutions for a shared African problem; that which is the vulnerability, accepted insecurity and invisibility of street children. It also aims to mobilize government officials and elected African territorial officials in the protection of children within a decentralized territorial approach.

This Pan-African Campaign was launched under the presidency of Her Royal Highness Princess Lalla Meryem, at the Africities 8 Summit in Marrakech on November 24, 2018. Expressing his support for the campaign, which was delivered by the Princess, His Majesty King Mohammed VI, called on African leaders to make, “African cities truly worthy of their children.” As President of the ONDE, the Princess stressed that, “what is important is not the world we leave to our children, but rather the children we leave to this world.”

Since the launch of the campaign, a national pilot project, named “Initiative – Rabat without Street Children”, is being implemented under the guidance of ONDE and UCLG Africa, in partnership with the various departments of the Government of Morocco. During two meetings, initiated by ONDE (January 22 and 29), targeting institutional stakeholders, as well as elected officials and representatives of civil society, participants were presented with a work agenda for the creation and development of mapping a three-year action plan and an urban strategy for the protection and promotion of children in Rabat. The initiative, ”Rabat, a city without Street Children,” will lead to the implementation of guides, toolboxes and communication kits, for a city protecting its children, which will be presented at an event that will bring together the 60 African cities subscribing to the campaign.

Discover the 60 Cities subscribing to the campaign (Photo)