RECOMMENDATIONS

As the impact of BGS has demonstrated, women have a strong desire to access non-traditional education. However, this cannot be done without the proper infrastructure. All departments of vocational education must be open to women without restrictions. The opening of these departments should be properly advertised and disseminated through effective channels. Additionally, women participants and vocational training staff need longer training periods so that students are more equipped to transition into the employment market. In order for this to happen, funding must be made available to vocational training institutes to ensure that they are able to enroll a larger number of students, have better equipment and classrooms, and increase staff salaries. In the same breath, gender sensitive curricula must be designed and implemented to accommodate women trainees. This report asserts that during this critical time in Sudan’s trajectory, it is crucial that government officials are held accountable for promises regarding women’s education. Furthermore, it is imperative that the powerful words of the revolution ‘freedom, peace and justice’ are not used loosely and are translated into more political guarantees for women.

As indicated above, women’s safety is a serious concern in both education and employment spaces, therefore necessitating the implementation of sexual harassment policies as part of the bylaws of all vocational training centers, to be adhered to by staff and students alike. These policies must be geared toward supporting the safety of women in public and private spaces.

Women participants spoke of the need for social change regarding gendered employment and women’s rights, in general. The best way to accomplish this is through awareness raising workshops, media, and by other means. In acknowledging this, this report concludes with the need to support and protect spaces for feminist organizing through resources and the maintenance of open civic space for activities. Finally, SIHA calls on the transitional government to ratify essential instruments relating to women’s rights including, but

not limited to, the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol) and the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).