1 REPORT OF THE BOTSWANA GENDER JUSTICE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT SUMMIT AND AWARDS Boipuso Hall, Gaborone 30-31 March 2012 The winners of the first National Gender Justice and Local Government Summit with the keynote address speaker, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Hon. Mokgweetsi Masisi - Picture by BOPA
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REPORT OF THE
BOTSWANA GENDER JUSTICE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT SUMMIT AND AWARDS
Boipuso Hall, Gaborone
30-31 March 2012
The winners of the first National Gender Justice and Local Government Summit with the keynote address speaker, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Hon. Mokgweetsi Masisi - Picture by BOPA
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Executive summary
QUICK FACTS: 137 participants of which 78 were females and 59 were males 24 entries, 21 by women, three by men in seven categories Four women and two men were runner up winners All winners are women
This report covers the first Botswana Gender Justice and Local Government Summit and awards that brought together 137 participants at Boipuso Hall in Gaborone from 30-31 March 2012. Under the banner “365 days of local action to end violence and empower women” the summit and awards brought together journalists, local government authorities, municipalities, NGOs and representatives of ministries of gender and local government. The summit focused on two key targets of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Gender and Development: achieving 50% women in all areas of decision making and halving the current levels of gender based violence (GBV), by 2015. The summit was initiated after two years of successful participation of Botswana in the Regional Gender Justice and Local Government Summit and Awards, held in 2010 and 2011 in Johannesburg South Africa. Since 2009, BALA and Gender Links have been involved in nationwide interventions on gender mainstreaming in Local Government, through the roll-out of the Centre‟s of Excellence (COE) programme for mainstreaming gender in local authorities. Currently, the two organisations are working with 22 councils that are implementing gender action plans to mainstream gender in their respective councils. The summit brought together representatives of local authorities, government representatives from the relevant ministries, community based organisations and NGO‟s, to share their best practices in the field of gender violence and gender justice. The summit was officially opened by the Minister of Local Government, Hon. Peter Minister Siele and closed by the acting Permanent Secretary of Labour and Home Affairs, Mrs Kelebogile Kgabi. During the summit awards ceremony, the Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Hon. Masisi, delivered the keynote address. In total, 137 people participated in the summit and 24 organisations presented their best practices in 8 different categories; prevention, response, support, local economic development, HIV/AIDS and care work, climate change and sustainable development, institutional and leadership.
Participants at the Gender Justice and Local Government Summit
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A detailed participants list is attached at Annex A outlining the contact details of all the delegates who attended the 2 day summit. A programme is attached at Annex B. The summary of the entries is attached in Annex C of this report. The summit received good media coverage from the newspapers and was covered by the Botswana Television in the BTV Evening News on Sunday 25th of March. This coverage was much appreciated as Gender Links, together with WAD, also launched the GBV Indicators Study the day before the summit, for which also media coverage was given. BALA had engaged the TV show Primetime, which also covered the summit. For a full list of media coverage and scans of the articles, kindly refer to Annexes E and F. Participants In total, 137 people participated in the summit, 59 male and 78 females, these included representatives from 18 local authorities, the Ministry of Local Government, the Women‟s Affairs Department, Ministry of Health, UNFPA, Botswana Police Service, University of Botswana, NGO‟s and community based organisations. Kindly refer to Annex A for the full list of participants. Analysis of participants
M % F % Total
Entrant 4 19% 17 81% 21
Official 31 42% 42 58 73
Judge 0 0% 7 100% 7
Donor 2 100% 0 0 2
Partner 19 76% 6 24% 25
Staff 3 34% 6 66% 9
Total 59 44% 78 56% 137
Programme The first National Gender Justice and Local Government Summit was officially opened by the Minister of Local Government, Hon. Minister Siele. The Minister stated that this first national summit was a product of an enduring relationship between his ministry, BALA, Gender Links and the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs through the Department of Women‟s Affairs. He stated that our efforts “should go beyond this summit and must be visible and impact positively on the lives of ordinary Motswana.” Siele applauded BALA for their support to the Ministry of Local Government, in different areas such as their implementation of the gender and local democracy project in partnership with Gender Links. The Minister also extended his gratitude to Gender Links and other partners for their splendid technical support in this area of gender and development. Please refer to Annex D for the full speech.
Minister of Local Government -Peter L Siele & the Assistant Minister of Local Government Hon. Botlogile Tshiretso
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During the opening plenary session, several statements were made to support this effort in sharing best practices in fighting GBV on the local level, including the Director of the Women‟s Affairs Department, Mrs. Mogegeh, and the President of BALA, Hon. Cllr. Rev. M.M.B.W. Moruakgomo. For the full programme kindly refer to Annex B. Over the course of two days 24 organisations presented their best practices in 8 different categories. More information on the presentations and outcomes can be found under Outputs. The summit was officially closed by the acting Permanent Secretary of Labour and Home Affairs, Mrs Kelebogile Kgabi. She stated that she was very encouraged to learn that this event has been a success and that it had been attended by a wide and diverse stakeholder representation. She further noted this was a demonstration of a high level of commitment in all of the parties involved to play a role and lend a hand
to the cause of eradicating Gender Based Violence. The Permanent Secretary highlighted that the timing of this summit could not have been more appropriate, especially that the findings of the Gender Based Violence (GBV) study were launched a day before the summit. For the full speech kindly refer to Annex D. During the summit awards ceremony, the Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Hon. Masisi, delivered the keynote address. Masisi called it a unique event, as in most
cases awards are only linked with events such as sports, entertainment and other achievement events. The Minister said to be impressed by the participant‟s initiatives in all these areas which are of great concern to the government. He congratulated all the participants who presented their projects as he stated they were all winners. Masisi stated he was delighted to learn that the councillors who have completed the various stages of the Centres of Excellence process had been issued with Centres of excellence certificate as this is motivational for other council to be continuing with the process. He ensured the support from his Ministry and that they would be whenever possible, always available as needed. For Minister Masisi‟s full speech kindly refer to Annex D. Outputs During the summit, 24 organisations presented their best practices in 7 different categories; prevention, response, support, local economic development, HIV/AIDS and care work, institutional and leadership. As there was only 1 entry for the Climate change and sustainable development category by Bobirwa Sub-council, they presented during the plenary session and based on the quality of the project it was decided they would join the delegation to Johannesburg representing Botswana in this category. For the full list of presenters and summary of the presentations kindly refer to Annex C. Presentations were made by 10 Local Authorities, 9 NGO‟s/CBO‟s, the University of Botswana and the Botswana Police Service. The majority of
Dancing and Entertainment at the Gender Justice and Local Government Summit
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presenters were female, as only three males were presenting, from the Kweneng District Men Sector Committee, Reanyalana Society and the Gamodubu Child Care Trust respectively. Winners and runner-ups in the 7 categories were as follows: Analysis of awards winners
CATEGORY Winner Runner up TOTAL
M F M F M F
Prevention 1 1 1 4
Support 1 1 0 4
Response 1 1 1 1
Local Economic Development
1 1 0 4
HIV/AIDS and Care Work
1 1 1 3
Institutional - COE
1 0 1
Leadership 1 1 0 2
TOTAL 0 7 2 4 3 19
Three local authorities scooped first prizes; Chobe District Council, Jwaneng Town Council and North West District Council. In the category on climate change and sustainable development, only one council, Bobirwa Sub-District, entered their best practice. They presented during the closing plenary session to share their initiatives with the other participants, and judged by the quality of the presentation, they were awarded a ticket to the regional summit in Johannesburg to represent Botswana in this catagory during the regional summit. In the largest catagory, prevention, with five presentations, the compitition was tough however the Young Women‟s Leadership programme from the University of Botswana won the first prize. The Botswana Police Service with their „Break the Silence‟ campaign won in the support catagory and in the HIV/AIDS and Care Work catagory, the Lobatse based NGO, Bomme Isago, won the award. All the winning presenters were females, and only two of the runner-ups were males.
CATEGORIES AND AWARDS
Prevention Winner: University of Botswana, Young Women‟s Leadership Project and UB club The YWLP was formed at the University of Botswana, to address gender and GBV issues by and with young women at the campus. As the young female students face a number of
Category: Prevention (Gender Violence)
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challenges during their time of studies, including issues of self-discovery and GBV by peers and teachers, the club provides a safe place for women to speak out and get guidance on how to deal with the challenges and how to be the young leaders of tomorrow.
Response Winner: Jwaneng Town Council Through its Social and Community Development programme the council offers marital and relationship disputes counselling. They deal with disputes that are characterized by assault, abuse and domestic violence. Social workers recognised the need of such counselling as the issues trickle down from the couple to the family to the community. Next to counselling, they embark on theatre and drama groups, house-to-house campaigns, community information campaign etc.
\ Support Winner: Botswana Police Service‟ Break the Silence‟ This is a project initiated by the Botswana police social welfare unit with the purpose after the realisation that Gender Based violence cases had a traumatic effect of police officers who attend to such cases. These cases included those of murder and suicide. Interventions include: Debriefing sessions, provision of psycho-social support to officers who are exposed to the crime scenes of murder-suicide and information, education on gender issues through the in-house Botswana Police magazine. Furthermore, police stations are required to report to the Psycho-social support unit on a quarterly basis in relation to their intervention in relation to GBV issues and the commissioner has availed a budget for gender activities.
Local Economic Development Winner: North West District Council
Category: Response (Gender Violence)
Category: Support (Gender Violence)
Category Five: Local Economic Empowerment
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Tebogo Letshabamang from North West District Council presented on their project to promote Local Economic Development in Shorobe, to bring about economic lively hood amongst women this project focuses on basketry. They link the project to the various touristic destinations in the district, to encourage tourists to purchase their goods.
Care Work and HIV/AIDS Winner: Bomme Isago The association was formed by HIV positive women to address the sexual and reproductive health rights and challenges faced by women infected and affected by HIV. They embark on advocacy and community outreach to educate communities but also to better educate policy maker by giving human faces and voices to the issues.
Leadership Winner: Ludo Margaret Mosojane Ludo Mosojane was advocating for gender issues during her work as Customary Court President and she has shown a passion and zeal to have customary laws reviewed to make them gender-neutral.
Institutional Winner: Chobe District Council Chobe District, as a famous touristic destination and a trade corridor to Zambia and Zimbabwe, faces specific problems such as prevalence of sex work and HIV /AIDS. They have mainstreamed gender in their organisation through sensitization of the leadership and development of a gender action plan with BALA and GL. They hold frequent workshops and kgotla meetings on GBV, as the councils has availed P25 000 per annum for workshop and
Category: Care Work and HIV/AIDS
Category Eight: Leadership
Category: Institutional/COE
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training. The community is as a result highly sensitized on gender issues; there is an improved report system on GBV, and participation of men on gender issues. As M&E tool the councils is using the balance score card instrument and GBV case management system.
Outreach The summit received good media coverage from the newspapers and was covered by the Botswana Television in the BTV Evening News on Sunday 25th of March. This coverage was much appreciated as Gender Links also launched their GBV Indicators Study the day before the summit, for which also media coverage was given. For a full list of media coverage and scans of the articles, kindly refer to Annexes E and F. Outcomes Overall, the first national gender justice and local government summit in Botswana was a success, as it received a wide range of support from local authorities, relevant ministries, NGO‟s and CBO‟s and other stakeholders working in fighting GBV. The Minister of Local Government, as well as the Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, delivered key-note addresses and the acting Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs closed the summit. Participants as well as presenters agreed the summit provided a platform to share their initiatives and learn from each other. This is reflected in the outcomes of the evaluation of the summit, which show that the participants rated „learning opportunity‟ and „networking opportunity‟, together with „programme content‟ the highest.
One of the participants stated that “the presentations in Local Economic Development, Support and HIV/AIDS category, showed me there is a lot to learn from them as how they involve policies into their activities, and support was also showing how to team up and support vulnerable groups”. Another participant wrote “Congratulations to Gender Links and BALA for their courage to fight, educate and transform communities. A plan should be put in place to train more people in leadership positions on causes of GBV especially cultural attitudes and practices”.
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The evaluation findings also showed that some of the participants found the presentations too competitive and more emphasis should be on knowledge sharing and learning more about the projects. One participant suggested that next time only the judges should be allowed to ask questions and comment, as some of the members of the audience can be biased. For a full report of the evaluation feedback refer to Annex I. Lessons learned After the summit, a team of Gender Links and BALA staff compiled a SWOT-analysis of the event, to discuss the strengths, weaknesses and lessons learned to be able to do even better during the next annual summit. Some of the key lessons learned included the importance of a clear division of labour for all staff and adhering to this during the event. Another lesson learned was that next time the judges, chairs, voting officers and the audience need a more in-depth briefing on the processes during the presentation session and voting criteria should be shared with the participants beforehand. BALA and Gender Links agreed that the sustainability of this annual event is dependant of their fundraising activities and it was suggested that a fundraising committee should be formed to undertake fundraising activities and ensure sustainability of the event. For the full SWOT-analysis please refer to Annex G. Next steps The summit was attended by local authorities that were already enrolled in the COE process, as well as by councils who have not yet started the COE process. As the momentum and enthusiasm was high after the summit, Gender Links and BALA agreed to engage the new councils in the COE process so that all councils are involved in the process. Furthermore, as none of the councils have completed the 10 stages of the COE process yet, Gender Links and BALA will go back to the COE councils to complete these stages with them. To assist in this process, the gender focal points in all councils will be trained during a „Training of Trainers‟ workshop, to assist councils with the completion of the 10 stages and ensure effective implementation of the gender action plan, as well as to monitor and evaluate progress. For a full list of all the current and future COE‟s refer to Annex H.
Annex A: Participants List
COUNTRY GENDER JUSTICE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT SUMMIT AND AWARDS PARTICIPANTS‟ LIST
Country: Botswana
Venue: Fairgrounds Conference Centre Gaborone Date: 30-31 March 2012
Surname Name Designation Category Organisation Country Sex E-mail Fax Phone
Institutional Category President of BALA, Hon. Cllr. Rev. Mpho Moruakgomo
Winner and runner up
20:30 Vote of thanks GL Botswana Manager, Keabonye Ntsabane and BALA Deputy Secretary Ludo Matshameko
20.45- 22.00 Entertainment
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ANNEX C: SUMMARY OF ENTRIES
CATEGORY NAME COUNCIL/ ORGANISATION
Brief description of the case study
F/M
Designation
Prevention Andrew Thatayaone Selwe
Kweneng District Men Sector Commitee
Sensitisation program targeting males in issues of GBV and HIV/AIDS
M Chairperson (police)
Prevention Boitumelo Anna Mogapi-Haggie
Kweneng District Gender Commitee
Community sensitisation committee on GBV issues and HIV/AIDS
F District Officer and Chairperson of KDGD
Prevention Lisa Jamu Stepping Stones International
Provides an after school programme for orphaned and vulnerable adolesents aged 12-18 years
F Executive Director
Prevention Godisang Mookodi
Young women's Leadership Project and Club UB
Address GBV issues at a period where self discovery is for young women at tertiary level is really setting in.
F Senior Lecturer UB
Prevention Letlhogonolo Mabua
Merapelo Ya Dikereke Steering Committee
Community sensitisation group to address community on GBV issues
F Committee Chairperson
Response Nurse Oaitse Jwaneng Town Council
Address conflicts and misunderstanding between co-habiting couples
F Principal Sociol Welfare Officer I
Response David Morwaagole
Reanyalana Society
Project to address issues that come with cohabitation, sensitization of the community and counseling
M Techincal advisor and counsellor
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CATEGORY NAME COUNCIL/ ORGANISATION
Brief description of the case study
F/M
Designation
Support Morwadi Dintwe
Kweneng Gender Committee
Activity to bring survivors of GBV and their families together to remember the victims of GBV and give them hope
F Secretary KDGC
Support Segomotso G Machola
Lobatse Town Council
Psychological support for the GBV survivors an victims
F Social Welfare Officer
Support Keletso Ramoswaana
Gantsi District Council
support for orphaned and vulnerable children
F Councillor / Commissioner
Support Thatatsotlhe Nwokoro
Botswana Police Service
"Break the Silence" Campaign and psyco-social support and counselling services
F Senior Staff Officer Social Welfare
Local Economic Development
Kutlo Charity Mophalane
Lobatse Town Council
Community mobilisation through kgotla meetings, workshops, exhibitions and S&CD rehabilitation skill training programme
F Home Economics Officers
Local Economic Development
Dineo Kefilwe Segobai
Kgatleng Distict Council
Strategy on government procurement procedures to promote local economic empowerment and provision of support to youth in catering and other markets
F Social Welfare Officer
Local Economic Development
Lingani Tjiyapo
North West District Council
Empowerment for local people to get nto the tourism industry
F Senior Economist
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CATEGORY NAME COUNCIL/ ORGANISATION
Brief description of the case study
F/M
Designation
Local Economic Development
Elizabeth Taolo
City of Francistown Council
Rehabilitation project that mainly enrols disempowered women from the destitute programme to empower them to set up their own business
F
HIV/AIDS and Care Work
Gasegale Sengwaketse
Steps Southern Africa
Advocacy organisation concerning the reproductive health and rights of people living with HIV(PLHIV)
F
HIV/AIDS and Care Work
Boingotlo Gupta
Bomme Isago Association
Address the Sexual Reproductive and Health rights and challenges faced by HIV Positive women.
F Executive Director
HIV/AIDS and Care Work
Direpang Segosebe
Time of Relief Care for the Old Age Pensioners F Nursing Officer
HIV/AIDS and Care Work
Bongani Madikwe
Gamodubu Child Care Trust
Takes care of the kids and out of school kids
M Project Coordinator
Climate Change and Sustainble Development
Thato Selelo Bobirwa Sub District
Responsive to address climate change
F PR Officer
Leadership Ludo Margaret Mosojane
YWCA The work of Ms Ludo Margaret Mosojane in advocay for gender equality
F
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CATEGORY NAME COUNCIL/ ORGANISATION
Brief description of the case study
F/M
Designation
Leadership Rachel Bulhe Jeremia
Chobe District Council
Leadership of Rebecca Banika, first woman to seat as a member of Ntlo ya Dikgosi
F Council Secretary
Institutional COE
Tshepang Kgoomotso Senwelo
Chobe District Council
The process of Gender mainstreaming within Chobe District Council
F Systems Analyst
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ANNEX D: PRESS RELEASES AND MEDIA LOG
PRESS RELEASE
Announcing the: FIRST NATIONAL ANNUAL SOUTHERN AFRICA GENDER JUSTICE AND LOCAL
GOVERNMENT REGIONAL SUMMIT AND AWARDS 365 DAYS OF COLLECTIVE LOCAL ACTION TO END GENDER VIOLENCE:
“Yes, we must!” Botswana In-country summit: 30 - 31 March 2012 DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION/S: 24 February 2012
Synopsis The Botswana Association of Local Authorities (BALA) and Gender Links (GL) will be holding the first In-country Gender Justice and Local Government Summit and Awards in Botswana on the 30-31st of March 2012, in Gaborone. The summit was initiated after two years of successful participation of Botswana in the Regional Gender Justice and Local Government Summit and Awards, held in 2010 and 2011 in Johannesburg South Africa. Winners of the In-country awards will represent Botswana in the Regional Summit 2012, to be held in Johannesburg 23-25 April 2012. BALA and Gender Links have been involved in nationwide interventions on gender mainstreaming in Local Government, through the running of trainings that are meant to sensitise elected political representatives and their staff in local authorities on gender issues. Currently, the two organisations are working with 18 councils that are implementing „gender action plans‟. Under the banner “365 days of collective local action to end gender violence: we must” the summit will bring together representatives of local authorities to share their best practices and include key note addresses by experts in the field of gender violence at local government level and gender justice. While the summit call is open to all councils and Community Based Organisations, the summit is specifically targeting the local councils that are part of the Centres of Excellence Initiative to submit entries for good practise in mainstreaming gender at the local level. The summit aims to bring together local government councillors and officials, relevant government ministries, NGOs and other interested groups that work with local government authorities from the region.
This will be the first time that a national summit in Botswana will be held, and that will have the winners at the in-country summit participating and competing at the regional summit. The summit will feature awards on good practices in ending gender based violence, provide an opportunity to document and disseminate these good practices as well as give incentives to local authorities to innovate new and effective strategies for combating violence against women. Gender Links will only be able to sponsor successful applicants to the summit. Other interested delegates wishing to attend are warmly invited and cover their own expenses. When?
Deadlines Key dates
Submissions 2-March 2012
Funding • Gender Links will cover cost of the in-country summit winners as well as those
shortlisted in countries that are participating directly at the regional summit. • Other interested participants and self-funders are welcome to attend the summit but
will be required to cover their own expenses.
What you need to submit? Completed application form Photos (In high resolution), newspaper
articles, clippings, etc. Any other documentation that can
strengthen your application, e.g. CD‟s, DVD‟s, testimonials, etc.
In the case of leadership submissions, at least three testimonial references, one from outside the organization.
How to submit your application? Applications can be submitted via email, post or hand-delivered. Where? Applications can be submitted to our Botswana country facilitator: To Keabonye Ntsabane Gender Links Country Manager - 3188250/71749644
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SPEECHES Official opening speech by Minister of Local Government, Hon, P. L. Siele
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Republic of Botswana
MINISTRY OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT
The Peoples Ministry
____________________________________________
REMARKS ON THE FIRST GENDER SUMMIT - GABORONE
____________________________________________
By
Peter L. Siele Minister of Local Government
30thMarch, 2012
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Director of ceremonies The President of BALA Their Worship the Mayors Honourable Council Chairpersons Coordinator of BALA Women‟s Commission Regional Executive Director of Gender Links Executive Secretary of BALA Botswana Country Coordinator of Gender Links Director of Women‟s Affairs Directors of Civil Society organisations Honourable Councillors Distinguished guests Ladies and Gentleman 1. It is a pleasure for me to have been invited to open the first ever Gender summit in
Botswana hosted by the Botswana Association of Local Authorities (BALA) in partnership with Gender Links. I am informed that the theme for this Summit is „365 days of local action to end gender violence‟.
2. The summit is a direct response to the expectation that countries in the SADC region that are part of the gender and local democracy project hold country specific gender summits as a precursor to the regional summit to be held in Johannesburg, South Africa in April this year.
3. Director of Ceremonies, I am informed that Botswana has participated in all of these
regional summits where in 2010 she got position one through Sowa Town Council and in 2011 got position one through Kgatleng District Council. Allow me Director of Ceremonies, to commend the two Councils which hoisted Botswana flag high.
4. Ladies and Gentlemen, we are here to witness the fruits of an enduring relationship
between my Ministry, BALA, Gender Links and the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs through the Department of Women‟s Affairs.
5. The intention of the partnership on gender and local democracy is to contribute
towards the realisation of one of the National Vision 2016 pillars of a Moral and Tolerant Nation and in this context advocating for tolerance by both women and men so that there would be harmony or peaceful co-existence between the two genders.
6. The other intention is to ensure compliance with international instruments which
Botswana is a signatory to, such as the Millenium Development Goals with partcular attention to goal number 3 which advocates for gender equality.
7. The convention of the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women which
we are also a signatory to is another compelling factor. All these efforts are a clear testimony to the country‟s commitment towards the realisation of the noble goal of addressing gender equality in all spheres of human development.
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8. Director of Ceremonies, while we are celebrating our efforts as Local Government in
mainstreaming gender at the local level, we have to also note with sadness the ever escalating cases of Gender Based Violence. For example, according to a study that was conducted by Women‟s Affairs and Gender Links, more than two thirds (67%) of women in Botswana have experienced some form of gender violence in their lifetime and nearly 29% of them have experienced Intimate Partner Violence in the twelve months preceding the study.
9. These statistics are disturbing and that is why Gender-Based violence remains an
issue of concern and hence the need for us as the Ministry of Local Government to play our role in whichever way we can in alleviating or addressing this challenge. It is through the Ministry of Local Government, that our citizens interface with their Government. This therefore makes us strategically placed to reach out to our communities in giving the message about the importance of combating gender based violence and hence our deliberate effort to mainstream Gender Based Violence in our day to day work activities in a quest to combat it.
10. Director of Ceremonies, I must however caution that this kind of project cannot
only be undertaken by Government alone; it must be a collective effort in which everybody must play a part.
11. Though your commitment to this cause is not in doubt, I urge you all that it should go beyond this summit. It also must be visible and impact positively on the live of an ordinary Motswana.
12. I wish to take this opportunity to applaud BALA for their support to my Ministry in different areas such as their implementation of the gender and local democracy project in partnership with Gender Links. A number of workshops have been held on gender and local democracy in various councils countrywide with the full participation of Honourable Council Chairpersons, Mayors, and Honourable Councillors.
13. Your participation goes a long way in demonstrating political responsibility, will and ownership. This is commendable and I implore you to continue doing so.
14. I also wish to extend my gratitude to Gender Links and other partners for their splendid technical support in this area of gender and development.
15. As you all prepare for the regional summit that would be held in Johannesburg, South Africa, we implore you to represent your country the best way you possibly can and I wish the best of luck to those who will be representing Botswana.
16. Director of Ceremonies in conclusion, I wish you all fruitful deliberations. With
these few remarks, it is now my honour to declare this Summit officially open.
17. I thank you.
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Official closing speech of the National GJ&LG Summit by the Acting Permanent Secretary of Labour and Home Affairs, Mrs Kgabi Official speech at the closing of National Gender Justice and Local Government Summit Botswana – by Acting Permanent Secretary of Labour and Home Affairs Mrs Kgabi Director of ceremony, it gives me great pleasure to have been accorded the opportunity to provide closing remarks at the first ever Gender summit for Botswana. It is very encouraging to learn that this event has been a success and that it had been attended by a wide and diverse stakeholder representation. This is a demonstration of a high level of commitment in all of us to play a role and lend a hand to the cause of eradicating Gender Based Violence. This is very truly commendable and we thank you for this. It further indicates that the seeds ploughed by the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs, through the Gender Agenda have „indeed germinated‟ and are indeed bearing fruits. Allow me Director of Ceremony to thank the organisers of this event (i.e. BALA, Gender Links and Women‟s Affairs Department) for having seen it opportune to organise the first ever Gender summit for Botswana. May I also extend our gratitude to the sponsors of this event, being UNFPA and the American Embassy. Ladies and Gentlemen, I would have committed a grave mistake if I could fail to appreciate the efforts put by the Ministry of Local Government and other partners as well as the media in making this whole event a success. Bagaetsho! May I state that the timing of this summit could not have been more appropriate especially that we were launching findings of the Gender Based Violence (GBV) study this past Thursday. The results and outcomes of the said study indicate that 67% of women in Botswana have experienced some form of Gender Based Violence and 29% relate to experiences of intimate partner violence in the 12 months preceding the study. This reflects the gravity of GBV in Botswana and therefore calls for intense measures to combat it. I need also to encourage that in the course of combating GBV we shall at all time remember its role in fuelling HIV/AIDS. On this note let us continue to preach against GBV as in doing so, we also make same strides in containing the spread of HIV/AIDS. Director of Ceremony! One should however derive solace from the fact that we have a stakeholder commitment to address this challenge of Gender Based Violence as evidenced by your participation. The presence of the Honourable Councillors representing all local authorities in Botswana, civil society and individual members of the society participating in this event, is indicative of a level of commitment that we desire. This gives one hope that we can stem the tide of Gender Based Violence and have a violence free society; an ideal which is consistent with the National Vision Pillar of “A moral and tolerant society”.
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Allow me Director of Ceremony to reaffirm that my Ministry stands ready to offer support and assistance through the Department of Women‟s Affairs which has been working closely with both BALA and Gender Links in the Gender and Local Democracy Project. I have also learnt that this summit is a precursor to the Southern Africa Regional Summit which will be held in Johannesburg, South Africa in April 2012. In that Conference, there will be participants from this very Summit, who will represent Botswana at the Regional Summit. I therefore wish them the best in their endeavours, and hope that they represent the country well, and do us proud. I thank you. Keynote address at the awards ceremony by Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Hon. M. Masisi
RREPUBLIC OF BOTSWANA - OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
April 2, 2012
From: Dr. Jeff Ramsay, DPS Government Communication
Remarks by the Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public Administration,
the Honourable Mokgweetsi Masisi at the Gender Links BALA Awards Ceremony and Dinner Dance 31 March 2012
Director of Ceremonies, Honourable Ministers and Members of Parliament Members of Diplomatic Corps Gender Links Deputy Director BALA President Acting Permanent secretary from Ministry of Labour and home Affairs Mayors, Chairpersons and Town Clerks of Councils present here Ladies and Gentlemen 1. It is my pleasure to give the key note address at this unique Local Government and Gender Justice Summit and Awards Event - organized by Gender Links and Botswana Association of Local Authorities (BALA). I call this event unique, as in most cases awards are only linked and associated with events such as sporting, entertainment and other achievement events. 2. You all have presented your outstanding projects on a broad scope of gender violence and justice, under the categories of Prevention, Support, Local Economic Development, HIV/AIDS and Care work, Response, Leadership, Climate Change and Sustainable Development and Institutional Center of Excellence through which you shared your
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valuable experiences. I am impressed by your initiative in all these areas which are of great concern to the government. I congratulate all of the 24 participants who presented their projects and as far as I am concerned you are all winners. 3. I have further been informed that the 8 winners of tonight will be sponsored to participate at the Regional Summit in Johannesburg where all the winners from the SADC countries will come together and share on a regional level. I wish the best of luck to you and encourage you to share best strategies we have in Botswana for addressing GBV. For those who are going to be awarded prizes today, I encourage you to continue implementation of those projects and for those who did not make it motivate you by saying that there is always another day - to me this summit and the awards presentations was not about competition but the sharing of best practices. 4. Director of Ceremonies, I have been informed that this initiative of having the national summit here in Botswana and presentation of awards was recommended by BALA during the Regional Gender Justice and local government in 2011 in Johannesburg. The Johannesburg summit brought together 231 participants from 11 Southern African countries, sharing best practices on fighting gender violence in their local communities. 5. Director of ceremonies, tonight's event preceded by the summit, comes at an appropriate time when the Gender Baseline Violence Indicators Study, conducted by the Women Affairs Department and Gender Links, was launched earlier this week - on the 29 March 2012 to be precise. The study revealed that of all women interviewed in the study - 67 % had experienced some form of gender based violence in their lifetime, while 44 % of all men said they perpetrated some form of violence. The most common form of gender violence experienced by women is violence by an intimate partner; with 62% women reporting experience in their lifetime and 47% of men disclosing perpetration. 6. Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to once again remind you that the theme for this year of 16 Days of Activism on GBV was "Connecting girls - inspiring the future", which means 'together we can stop violence and have happy families'. This is a critical message to us as Batswana , because up to date we still have women losing their lives at this rate due to GBV, rape being at increase , defilement and incest being experienced within families - this means we need to find better strategies of intensifying the campaign . 7. We also need to embark on in-depth research such as the one I have been informed by Gender Links on GBV indicators. I understand during this summit, for one and half days Councils and NGO's presented projects in the following categories such as Prevention, support, HIV/AIDS and Care work, all these are challenges to my government and your councils to ensure that we win the battle raising awareness to our rural community. Let me say I have confidence that we will achieve this as already your participation at this large number shows motivation and commitment. 8. Director of Ceremonies, I am so delighted to learn that the Councilors who have completed the Gender Justice and local government process have been issued with
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Centres of excellence certificate and motivational for other council to be continuing with the process. Let me take this opportunity to ensure that the support from our office, will whenever possible, always be available as needed. 9. Director of Ceremonies, ladies and gentlemen, before concluding I wish to commend the Council members who have worked tirelessly to raise awareness in the area of GBV culminating into this event tonight. Beyond this, we all bear a responsibility for our voices to be heard loud in condemning GBV or even creating awareness. This will in the long run impact on our fight against HIV/AIDS which research has proved to be linked to GBV. This is one fight we cannot afford to lose! Thank you,
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Media log - Media coverage and tracking sheet
Date of interview/ article
Name of media Print, radio, TV
Article title/ Title of show Web address (for online article)
Entered on back end form
16 April 2012 Botswana Daily News
Print Media Centre spread (Gender Links and BALA 1ST National Gender Justice and Local Government Summit)
02 April 2012 Botswana Daily News
Print Media Ghanzi District Council Chairperson Mr Tlharese, Minister of Local Government Mr Peter Siele and Mogoditshane/ Thamaga Sub District Council Chairperson at the GJLG Summit in Gaborone
Uploaded on back end form
04 April 2012 Global Post Print Media Minister Masisi advocates for women Uploaded on back end form
06 April 2012 The Voice News paper
Print Media Centre spread (Celebrating Gender Justice)
Will provide the document
02 April 2012 Botswana Daily news
Print Media UNFPA Country Rep,Ms Aisha Camara presenting an award to UB young women leader ship club at gjlg summit in Gaborone Botswana
Uploaded on back end form
01 April 2012 BTV News TV BTV Evening News – headline on the summit awards ceremony, covering the speech of Minister of Presidential Affairs, Masisi, Kubi Rama and some
To get tape from BTV
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Date of interview/ article
Name of media Print, radio, TV
Article title/ Title of show Web address (for online article)
Entered on back end form
of the winners
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ANNEX F: EXAMPLES OF MEDIA COVERAGE
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ANNEX G: SWOT ANALYSIS
Categories Strengths Weaknesses Solutions
Communication Template for power point presentations People had most information beforehand on how to present and what to expect
No clarity on amount of allowance before the summit Briefing of judges and chairpersons should be more in-depth Communication on process of presentation sessions
Timely and in-depth briefing of judges, chairpersons and participants so everyone understands the processes and rules of the presentation sessions
Time Timing of the event was good, 2 days is sufficient
Second day of the summit was on a Saturday, which made that some people had other commitments
Plan event during working days
Transportation Covered by the local authorities and NGO‟s; their willingness to contribute was excellent
N/A N/A
Participation
Participation of local authorities was overwhelming as delegates from 18 councils participated, especially the leadership was very supportive, for example they availed their staff and transport even during the weekend. During the second day of the summit there was also a political congress taking place, but the high number of participants confirmed their commitment to the process.
Participation of the presenters was good, but some need more training on their presentation skills as they were talking and reading from the slides
More training on presentation skills
Registration Registration forms were in place No confirmation on the exact numbers and names from the councils before the event Two different registration forms
Make sure that councils submit a list of their participants before the summit BALA and GL to have one
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Categories Strengths Weaknesses Solutions
from BALA and GL registration form that adheres to both their organisational requirements
Voting processes N/A Confusion on the voting process, who is allowed to vote and who is not Training of voting officers
To brief everyone participating on the voting process and in-depth briefing for voting officers Share voting criteria with the presenters
Summit in general Overall the event went well; especially considering it was our first national summit. There were a lot of logistics involved seen the large group of participants which generally went well. The conference venue and services were satisfactory.
N/A N/A
Team work Division of labour agreed upon before the event was not followed by GL staff, as GL was allocated to undertake different tasks that were not specified beforehand Side meetings by GL during the presentation sessions made BALA staff feel they did not get any support during the sessions and were left alone
Adhere to agreed division of labour during the event No side meetings during presentation sessions by hosting organisations, they can be done during tea-break, lunch or after the sessions
Management Generally management was ok N/A To take up the solutions as per this evaluation for the next summit
Finance Adhered to budgets More focus on sustainability of this annual event
To start fundraising for next year‟s summit, form a fundraising
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Categories Strengths Weaknesses Solutions
DSA not sufficient to cover travel and accommodation costs for the presenters
committee and embark on fundraising activities to make the annual summit a sustainable project and not be dependent on ministry‟s funding
Logistics Generally went well, weaknesses and solutions in this area covered in the above.
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ANNEX H: list of councils in Botswana - highlighting future and current COE‟s (Black = old COE model, red is new COE model)
Council Existing COE Future COE
Gaborone City Council x
Francistown City Council x
Lobatse Town Council x
Jwaneng Town Council x
Selebi Phikwe Town Council x
Sowa Town Council x
Ghantzi District x
North East District x
Kgatleng District x
Chobe District x
South East District x
Kgalagadi District x
(Southern District; 4 sub-districts)
Moshupa Sub District x
Mabutsane Sub District x
Good-hope Sub District X
Kanye Administration Authority X
(Kweneng District; 3 sub-districts)
Molepolole Sub-District x
Mogoditshane Sub-District x
Lethlakeng Sub-District x
(North West District; 3 sub-districts)
Maun administration Authority x
Okavango Sub District X
Gumare Sub District X
(Central District; 7 sub-districts)
Serowe Administration Authority X
Palapye Sub District X
Mahalapye Sub District x
Bobirwa Sub District X
Tutume Sub District X
Tonota Sub District X
Boteti Sub District (Lethlakane) x
TOTAL 23 6
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ANNEX I: PARTICIPANTS EVALUATION FEEDBACK WORKSHOP EVALUATION FORM Event: National Gender Justice & Local Government Summit Venue: Boipuso Hall, Gaborone Country: Botswana Please score the following 1-10 where 1= very poor; 10 – excellent
SCORE OUT OF TEN
1. PROGRAMME DESIGN 8
2. PROGRAMME CONTENT 8
3. DOCUMENTATION 7,8
4. FACILITATION 7,5
5. GROUP WORK 7,7
6. OUTPUTS 7,6
7. OUTCOMES AND FOLLOW UP PLANS 7,1
8. LEARNING OPPORTUNITY 8,4
9. NETWORKING OPPORTUNITY 8,5
10. ADMINISTRATIVE ARRANGEMENTS 7,5
Which session did you find most useful? Why?
All sessions I attended were equally useful, since it was a learning curve and of
its first kind
Group presentations, because they were exposure to more ideas and expertise.
Group work ,because we had a good environment to share our best practices
Presentations and Judges feedback, it was a learning experience
Group work, has an element of interaction and bench marking
North West presentation on Local Economic Development because of tourism
angle the project has
Leadership presentation because it is a cross cutting edge
Parallel presentations because we shared the experiences
HIV/AIDS and care work because the project is still on going
The one on Leadership, because I have learnt how women of women of
influence, used their positions of authority to bring a positive change in their
society
Bommeisago the project has covered a wide area and involves the community
Prevention presentation was interesting to learn what other people are going
through and doing to fight the problem of GBV.Brought about awareness on
issues of gender based violence.
Kubi presentation on the GBV findings in Botswana as it gave us an idea of
where we are as a country in GBV fight
Local Economic Development, support and HIVAIDS presentations as there is a
lot to learn from them as they involve policies, support was also teaming up with
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how to support vulnerable groups. It can also be used as a tool to address
gender imbalance with response to participation of women in the economy.
Rea nyalana projects as it educates and make people aware of what marriage is,
educates and make people aware at what marriage is and the outcome of
marriage and its importance.
Which session did you find least useful?
Presentations were rushed and that more emphasis was on competition than
learning
All sessions were important
Poem &choir were time consuming
Questioning there, were irrelevant questions asked by the voters
Climate change
None
No mechanism put in place for networking or knowing each other
Protocol score card
Official opening
All sessions were equally useful
I can‟t remember
3. How will you apply what you have gained from this engagement?
I will have to network with organisations I have met and start interventions
based on leanings we get from here.
Work
I will start projects on GBV in our district
Improving the way I have been working
Share with our councils in different structures of GBV and inform policy
formulation based on GBV through councils.
Capacity building for CDC, plan and execution of projects
Advocating for GBV committees within the CDC.
Benchmark in Southern African Countries (SADC) Johannesburg.
Share what I have learned with my colleagues in different units of the Botswana
Police service. Youth, Women network, public relations and crime prevention
units.
I am going to do my own project which I will enter in the next Botswana
Summit.
I will stand up and voice out on GBV and make a difference and create
awareness to women in my district.
Given the second chance to write my presentation next time it will be car and to
the point.
To run workshops in order to sensitise the community
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Change my information on gender mainstreaming.
It will help strengthen what our committee have been doing
I will adhere to the comments that were made and use them to help make our
organisation more efficient.
Share with others and also participate more on GBV initiatives.
From networking and presentations I will be able to upgrade my own projects.
I will sell the ideas to my organisation and when there is buy in we should
incorporate and mainstream some into our strategy.
Make observations in the district and analyse
Bench marking
From here implement the GBV action plan.
Community mobilization on GBV, public education and encourage people to come
up with strategies to fight GBV.
Feedback after presentation gave us a picture of the mind-set of urban people,
hence were require adjustment of approach and beliefs so that we accommodate
views diversity.
Continue to mobilise people in my district.
To give more emphasis in mainstreaming gender issues in my organisational
strategies and fight against GBV.
Networking was good and some people have agrees to work together with my
organisation.
I will start networking
Identify a project and apply it.
Any other comment
Keep it up
We would like to be part of this project more often to improve our organisation
Need to give presenters the amount of time they will have in Johannesburg
The workshop was good, the participants were active in their presentations and
have leaner a lot,
Congratulations to Gender Links and BALA for their courage to fight, educate and
transform communities. A plan should be put in place to train more people in
leadership positions on causes of GBV especially cultural attitudes and practices.
We should have more male figures to create a balance in the way issues will be
judged. Some judges provided feedback by just pointing out areas of
improvement and did not acknowledge the strength displayed by the presenter.
Logistics were poorly organised
Communication and involvement of all district on time, budget for activities
The summit was empowering especially the figures given on the level of GBV in
Botswana. It has alerted me that we have a lot to do.
None
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Such forums should be made as public as possible to attract more participants
GBV is a serious problem that needs all to be involved
Only judges should be allowed to seek clarity by asking questions. The audience
should not be allowed to vote as they are always biased, they do not vote of the
bases of the presentation content t preference of presenter
Keep on doing the sessions
Almost all projects have shown good initiatives and relevance to GBV.
Giving comments by judges just after presenting can influence the decisions that
the general voters can take.
All presentations are good and meaningful in their areas
Organisations should try to extend their projects to remote areas by holding
workshops there.
I am going to network with gender links more effectively. I will further undertake
benchmarking with best practices I observed
If councils can do it so as CDC
Follow up‟s should be intensified
Presentations are too competitive in nature; they should be more sharing of
information because we would like to learn more.
Summit was useful, was a learning curve for me.
This form was the most informative to me regarding GBV, especially the GBV
indicators study they launched in partnership with the department of WAD.