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CONTENTS YOUNG PEOPLE ORGANISE AGAINST MINING // PAGE 4-5
TOGETHER AGAINST CHILD MARRIAGE // PAGE 6-7
IMPROVING THE NATIONAL SECURITY INSURANCE // PAGE 8-9
YOUNG PEOPLE MONITOR ELECTIONS // PAGE 10-11
EQUAL ACCESS TO WATER // PAGE 12-13
FEMINIST FRIDAY INITIATIVE // PAGE 14-15
MAKE PEACE WIN // PAGE 16-17 2
YOUTH LEADERSHIP ACROSS THE WORLD Every day all over the world we see examples of young people, youth-led movements and organisations that confront the political status quo in order to create positive social change. For 10 years ActionAid Global Platforms have provided capacity building to movements, youth networks, organisations and individuals who promote the agenda of progressive social, political and economic change. Our capacity building is based on our participatory and action-oriented learning principles and guided by our ‘Learning Development Cycle’ – our framework for ensuring common quality standards, local contextualisation and system for monitoring and evaluation. Based on the last decade of experiences we have developed a new expanded learning concept. Here we are increasing our focus on providing continuous support to participants through different learning initiatives and support after a training.
With the shrinking political space for civil society action seen in many parts of the world today, we are also strengthening our focus on connecting young people, networks and movements in communities to foster greater levels of mutual learning, solidarity and action on emerging issues. We firmly believe that the combination of expanded capacity building and greater support to connecting people and causes will allow for a more outcome-oriented approach increasing sustainability and amplifying impact. The cases compiled here offer examples of how our capacity building has had an impact in different countries – how young participants are empowered to act, how young people organise around progressive local and national agendas, and how youth contributes to great structural changes in their societies. These are all different, but inspiring examples of how young people are and should continue to take the lead in pushing forwards agendas about a more just, sustainable and democratic world!
JORDAN PALESTINE BANGLADESH EL SALVADOR
GHANA KENYA ZAMBIA
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YOUNG PEOPLE ORGANISE AGAINST MINING Creative, youth-driven campaigning has contributed to historic law against metallic mining in El Salvador
BACKGROUND
ACTIVITIES
In 2017 El Salvador became the first country in the world to ban all forms of mining. Only 2 % of the country’s original forests are left, and only 3 % of all water coming from natural sources is clean enough to be classified as drinking water.
Since 2011 Global Platform El Salvador has played a key role in the effort to demonstrate to the public the problems of metallic mining as well as to organise and involve young people in the struggle for a more sustainable society.
The ban against metallic mining motivates the establishment and decision-makers to consider new, more sustainable models for financial development. At the same time, this means that the country is able to turn away an industry which in other countries has represented a loss of capital to tax havens, and where parts of the elite benefit from the large legal and institutional holes characterising the governments of many developing countries.
The first youth groups involved in the work against metallic mining in 2011 were formed by participants in trainings offered by the platform. The strategic work of the platform against metallic mining has been rooted in four main areas: 1) Producing thematic environment-related campaigns (water, mining, dams and genetically modified foods), 2) Supporting the campaigns through relevant trainings, 3) Strengthening the young people’s commitment to the struggle against metallic mining and 4) Securing inclusion of young people in public decision-making processes.
OUTCOMES ■■ Since 2011 the platform has launched and coordinated three youth-driven campaigns aimed
directly at banning metallic mining: ‘Stop Cerro Blanco’ (the name of a polluting goldmine shut down in 2014), ‘Ni una mina mas’ (‘No more mines’) and ‘ES libre de minas’ (‘an El Salvador without mines’). ■■ The platform’s first campaign coincided with the formation of Mesa Nacional frente a la Minería
Metálica, an umbrella organisation set up for the specific purpose of banning metallic mining in El Salvador. The platform has caused young people from the ActionAid youth network Activista to be accepted as official members into Mesa Nacional frente a la Minería Metálica. ■■ The platform has trained and supported young leaders, who have become capable of
speaking on behalf of their local communities and as representatives of young people in El Salvador in general. 5
TOGETHER AGAINST CHILD MARRIAGE A group of young feminists from Bangladesh contributes to stopping child marriages through dialogue and information
BACKGROUND In Bangladesh around 52 % of all girls are married before the age of 18, even though there is a law against child marriages. Child marriages often lead to early pregnancies and have a series of harmful effects on the married girls’ health and development, including increased risk of sexual assault, HIV contraction and poorer access to education and jobs. Since 2016 ActionAid’s Global Platform in Bangladesh has offered young feminist leadership trainings addressing, among other things, the issues of child marriage. The aim of the training is to make the participants (both young women and men) believe in themselves as drivers of change capable of organising and confronting structural exclusion of women at local, national and global levels.
ACTIVITIES In 2016 a group of young people from Potuakhali, one of the most remote parts of Bangladesh, attended a Global Platform training in the capital Dhaka. As part of the training they had to draw up an action plan for the activities they would subsequently introduce in their local area. The participants decided to form a youth group striving to introduce gender equality and prevent child marriages. When Sarmin, a 16-year-old participant, returned to her village she started offering trainings to other young people in the area on equality and the risks involved in child marriages. Though the young people were happy with her trainings, the elderly people in the village had a violent reaction to her new self-confidence and determination to confront the local norms. Ironically, the result was that people in the village forced Sarmin’s father to marry her off to set her straight once and for all.
OUTCOMES ■■ Sarmin’s father soon found a husband for her, and to make sure she was under control he
confiscated her mobile phone and grounded her in their house. Because of her young age Sarmin knew that the marriage was illegal, so when she after a couple of days managed to borrow a phone she seized the opportunity and called the other members of the youth group and a trusted school teacher who immediately came to her house. With the help of the local headmaster they managed to pressurise the family and people in the village enough to stop the plans for Sarmin’s marriage. ■■ Sarmin is now a college student able to pursue her dream of becoming a lawyer. She
continues to give trainings to local young people on equality and the prevention of child marriages – now based on her own story. ■■ Since Sarmin put an end to her own child marriage, she and the other members of the youth
group have managed to stop another three child marriages in the area. 6
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IMPROVING THE NATIONAL SECURITY INSURANCE A long-standing unjust social protection system in the Occupied Palestinian Territory was suddenly challenged by Sameer and his friends
BACKGROUND For many years people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), home to 4.8 million Palestinians, have suffered from poor social protection laws. While public sector workers have received some, but very inadequate social protection, most private sector workers have not been covered in the event of old age, disability, death, work-related injuries or maternity leave. The unjust social protection system was, among other things, manifested through missing rights to state pension. In 2016 the highest retirement wage after 30 years of serving in the private sector was less than the minimum wage – meaning that the monthly payment was well below the poverty line.
ACTIVITIES Sameer, a former participant at ActionAid Global Platform Palestine, and some of his friends decided to take matters into their own hands and do a national campaign to improve the conditions of the National Security Insurance. Sameer was able to bring skills obtained at two Global Platform trainings into play. A Governance training had given him insight into the functions and procedures of a governmental system and skills to do advocacy work within this system, while a social media training had provided him with the tools to effectively use social media channels and formats to mobilise people and motivate them to join the cause. Through creative use of social media, Sameer and his friends were able to reach people they otherwise would not have been able to reach due to local restrictions on different movements.
OUTCOMES ■■ The campaigners ended up outlining 13 concrete proposals for changes to make the current
insurance better and more beneficial to the people. The campaign received great support from communities all over the OPT, and people went to the streets to make their voices heard. In the end, after close collaboration with different organisations and community groups, the campaigners met with the relevant government people who agreed to accept 12 out of the 13 proposed changes. ■■ After this very successful campaign Sameer is now working on a new initiative called ‘Yes We
Can’. This initiative aims to empower young people by introducing them to different life skills. 9
YOUNG PEOPLE MONITOR ELECTIONS Corps of young election observers reports several cases of illegal conduct during election in Jordan
BACKGROUND As part of ActionAid’s extensive Local Governance programme in Jordan a special election project was launched in July 2016 aimed at the parliamentary election later that year. The aim was to strengthen the civil society’s and especially young people’s much needed participation in the political process both before the election and in general. More than 70 % of the Jordanian population is below the age of 30. In cooperation with the Jordanian authorities a locally rooted network of 40 young election observers from the local area were allowed to conduct actual supervision of the election in accordance with the OSCE principles. Thus, the project succeeded in giving scores of young people direct affiliation to the political process in a personal, practical and empowering way. The participants were men and women from universities and civil society organisations throughout the country.
ACTIVITIES More specifically, the election observers’ corps was tasked with supervising the election and reporting any illegal conduct after the election. In addition, they had a duty on the polling day to report episodes to the election officials in two populous constituencies in Amman and Zarqa, where the teams were stationed. During the training programme focus was on the scope of the election observers’ task, on how to produce an official election report and on what to focus on at the polling stations. To prepare the election observers for the task the training included both class teaching and role playing, giving them a chance to learn various scenarios. The task also included supervision of the election campaign prior to the election.
OUTCOMES ■■ The election observers’ corps reported several cases of irregular conduct on the polling day.
On a few occasions the election observers intervened directly and activated the election officials to rectify the illegal conduct at the polling stations. ■■ Election material from the independent election commission was collected and distributed
throughout the country to generate attention to the election and to acquaint especially young people with the system. ■■ In cooperation with the Jordanian authorities ActionAid prior to the election introduced an
outreach initiative targeted at four different universities. Through information campaigns and debate events they succeeded in generating attention to the election. ■■ Since the parliamentary election the election project has strengthened and expanded its
contact with local associations as well as to the UNDP in order to eventually create permanent networks of young volunteers to further strengthening social commitment and political 10
JORDAN
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EQUAL ACCESS TO WATER Young activists gather decision-makers and ensure fair distribution of water resources in Kenya
BACKGROUND Back in August 2015 ActionAid Kenya, Global Platform Mt. Kenya and a network of committed young people in Nanyuki formed the Mt. Kenya Youth Hub. This youth-driven hub has given young people in Laikipia County a much needed place to meet, discuss and coordinate political initiatives and activities. A campaign training supported by the Global Platform enabled young people from the Youth Hub to identify a series of local political issues and decide to launch a campaign on equal access to water. Like large parts of eastern Kenya, Laikipia County suffers from long periods of draught and water shortage. Young people from the Mt. Kenya Youth Hub have succeeded in generating attention to the right to water and contributed to concrete changes in access to and the distribution of water resources benefitting inhabitants at risk. At the same time, young people in the area are increasingly recognised by local decision-makers as opinion formers and actors in political decision-making processes.
ACTIVITIES In October 2016 young people from the Mt. Kenya Youth Hub conducted a series of research activities in villages in eastern Laikipia on access to and the distribution of water. They concluded that the distribution of water rations and pricing were irregular and had negative consequences for the inhabitants of several villages in the area. The young people followed up on the activities via the successful online campaign #forgottenmajority and a three-day workshop attended by inhabitants, lawyers and government representatives, among others. As part of the campaign they presented the local government with a series of concrete proposals for a fairer distribution policy.
OUTCOMES ■■ So far the young people’s efforts to secure equal access to water has resulted in the imple-
mentation by the local government of several of their proposals. ■■ The local government has standardised the price of drinking water sold in kiosks. ■■ Previously the villages were not informed of the basis for the given distribution of water. The
campaign has led to a greater level of information to ensure transparency. 13
FEMINIST FRIDAY INITIATIVE Once a month for more than a year these young activists have gathered people with different backgrounds to put feminism on the Zambian agenda
BACKGROUND Changurufaru Chibesa is a young lawyer from Lusaka. Changu, as everyone calls her, felt the unfair consequences of sexism on Zambian women, when one of her lecturers proclaimed while teaching that ‘there is no rape in marriage’. It alarmed her in many ways. The statement itself was one thing; even worse was the fact that it came from an educational authority. Changu felt an urge to take a closer look at the extent of the problem and at how Zambian law addressed the problem. She ended up dedicating a lot of her time to the subject and decided to focus on it in her final thesis called ‘A feminist perspective on marital rape in Zambia’. As a self-proclaimed introvert person, Changu felt that she was unable to share her views on the subject with others to discuss the importance of gender equality in Zambia.
ACTIVITIES Changu’s first meeting with ActionAid Global Platform Zambia was when she participated in a feminist leadership training. The training gave her a chance to meet with women and men with different backgrounds and provided her with practical perspectives on her studies and passion for the topic. She found herself rediscovering feminism through a different lens while learning about other young people’s views on gender roles and stereotypes. Her personal cause suddenly became a joint cause. It gave her the space and confidence to develop different ways to spread the important message. After the training and a process of self-discovery Changu conceptualised and initiated a new monthly event called Feminist Friday together with a group of activists she had met during the training. The first Feminist Friday was held on March 31, 2017 and hosted at the Global Platform.
OUTCOMES ■■ Feminist Friday is the first space exclusively dedicated to feminism in Zambia – a space where
women and men can meet to discuss feminism, share experiences and prepare strategies for incorporating feminism into different spheres of society. The monthly event has from time to time struggled with misinterpretation and low attendance. But through creative methodologies it has slowly gained momentum and managed to reach more people. Today the event is increasingly being visited by men, which was a main goal right from the start – to emphasise that feminism is relevant to everyone. ■■ Feminist Friday has run every last Friday of the month – and will continue to do so. And
Changu and the rest of the activists behind the event are planning to continue their efforts to put feminism and equality on the Zambian agenda for as long as it takes. 14
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MAKE PEACE WIN Under this slogan a group of young campaigners helped ensure peaceful elections in Ghana
BACKGROUND Since 1992 elections in Ghana have experienced some level of violence. Especially northern Ghana has been the scene of violence often connected with competition for chieftaincy rights between conflicting tribal factions. In 2002 this resulted in the killing of one of the influential chiefs, which triggered a two-and-a-half-year curfew on two cities in northern Ghana. Before the 2016 elections there were concerns that election day violence would cast shadows on the democratic process. Just before the election 16 young people from Ghana and The Gambia participated in campaign training at ActionAid’s Global Platform in Ghana. The participants decided to focus their campaign on the role of youth in promoting peaceful elections and on giving young people campaign skills to organise peaceful elections under the campaign slogan ‘Make peace win’.
ACTIVITIES As part of the campaign training, participants learned about voters’ rights, the electoral processes and conflict management. They initiated education of first-time voters in vulnerable communities and conducted a series of radio discussions about the topic and the opportunity of other young people to act as peace ambassadors. Also, they did a survey on the motivating factors of youth electoral violence, which enabled them to target the key messages of the campaign. One of the biggest challenges they managed to overcome was to organise a successful engagement meeting between various youth groups (political and non-political) and different official stakeholders. This gave the young people a chance to make their voices heard and resulted in a joint commitment to ensure violence-free elections. The campaign culminated in a big peace march and concert, where a petition for ensuring that the elections would be peaceful was handed over to the National Commission for Civic Education and Peace.
OUTCOMES ■■ Representatives of political youth groups, local political party leaders and religious leaders
signed a commitment to ensure peaceful elections by speaking and acting positively to promote peace, refraining from engaging in or inciting any violent behaviour, respecting other people’s views and accepting the election results gracefully. ■■ After the training, most participants continued to promote the cause through different activities,
such as street theatre about electoral violence, and some registered as election observers. ■■ Two participants from The Gambia ended up playing an active role in the youth-led campaign
#GambiaHasDecided, which helped organise Gambians to take a stand and demand the resignation of the former president, putting an end to his 22-year rule. 17
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RECLAIMING PUBLIC EDUCATION IN GHANA Watch the story about Salamatu Shiraz and her fight for young girl’s right to education in Ghana. 18
FAIR MINIMUM WAGE NOW! In 2016 a higher minimum wage was finally approved by the Government of El Salvador. Watch the story about how it all happened.
Dolly
FIGHT THE GARBAGE The story about how two girls from Bangladesh took matters into own hands and invented a new community-based system for collecting garbage. 19
Global Platforms is ActionAid’s network for youth-led activism. We support youth networks, movements, organisations and individuals who promote the agenda of progressive youth-led change around the world. Through capacity building and support to various youth-led initiatives, we seek to promote young people as drivers of change towards a more just, sustainable and democratic world.
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