Programme Update

Background

In an era of globalization and trade liberalization, widening disparity and loss of social control, women are faced with the prospect of finding common solutions and creative models to advance women’s human rights.

Despite the strides we have made and the success we have achieved there is a tremendous amount of work to be done in order to enjoyment of equal rights and justice by all women, because the corridors of power are being even more jealously guarded by men, because of what we have gained to date. It is therefore critical that the regional women’s movement be vibrant and focused.

The Caribbean Women’s Movement faces many challenges at the start of the 21st century. These include:

• Implementing concrete measures to optimize women’s participation in the formal

• Winning men’s commitment to eliminating violence against women.

• Monitoring and assessing the implementation of commitments made by governments in the Beijing Platform for Action for the Advancement of Women, and other UN Conferences.

• Understanding the differences in age, class, culture, disability, race, ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation among the women it seeks to represent.

• Accessing resources to carry out the organization’s mission for social justice.

When the Beijing Platform for Action was approved by governments in 1995, it outlined twelve critical areas of concern for the advancement of women, and strategies to bring about gender equality. This was a triumph for the women’s movement and its efforts to move women from a position of weak second-class citizens to centre-stage as equal partners in development. However, from research carried out by the Caribbean Association for Feminist Research and Action (CAFRA) and the Caribbean Policy Development Center (CPDC), it appears that trade liberalization has proven to be the greatest threat to the fulfillment of the Beijing Platform for Action. At the time when the women’s movement must work for change it appears to be at its weakest. This has led to a growing belief that there has been serious slippage in the women’s movement in the decade of the 90’s – after Beijing, and the need for strategies to regain ground.

Strategic Plan

CAFRA Strategic Plan for the period 2004-2006 is located within the framework of the Beijing Platform for Action addressing:

a) Gender and Trade b) Women and Poverty c) Women and Health d) Women and Work e) Violence Against Women f) Women in Politics and Decision-Making g) Capacity Building of Secretariat and National Committees

Several ongoing projects within this plan are as follows:

Caribbean Women: Catalyst for Change

Each year the Center for Gender Studies, Barbados organizes a prestigious lecture dedicated to the memory of an outstanding Caribbean Feminist – Dame Nita Barrow. For this year’s lecture, CAFRA has been invited to collaborate and to host a workshop to address questions around Feminism in the region. The moment is opportune, and the workshop will be held during the period 10-14 November 2004 as the educational component of CAFRA’s Regional Committee Meeting.

The agenda will include the following broad themes and questions:

1. Challenges facing the women’s movement – Is it in abeyance? What are the issues – political and economic that women’s organizations have not dealt with? Do they have the capacity to deal with these issues ?

2. Should women’s NGOs focus on a narrow but pointed agenda instead of trying to do everything? How do we engage the views of grassroots women? How do we become an inclusive movement addressing issues of race, class, ethnicity, age, disability and sexual orientation?

Gender and Trade

CAFRA has just completed two significant pieces of research, designed to promote advocacy on issues of poverty, health and works as they affect women.

A. Trade Impact Review
In collaboration with Women’s Edge, Washington, DC, two case studies have been completed in Jamaica and the Windward Island/Trinidad and Tobago, using a Trade Impact Review tool developed by Women’s Edge. The Jamaica Case Study will be launched in June 2004 in Washington, DC, while the other will be launched in late July 2004.

B. Gender Indicators
The project of developing gender indicators on trade comprises six inter-linked phases of community mobilization, research, analysis, tools design, evaluation and training of stakeholders in their use. The project targets men and women in communities, NGOs and CBO leaders, government officials policy makers and international development partners. It mainly sets to develop systematic and objective gender indicators for use as a planning tool to guide Caribbean policy makers in negotiating trade agreements that will enhance the livelihoods of women and their families.

In addition, the following activities will be part of the educational component at the Novemeber 10-14 Regional Committee Meeting

• (i) Training

Each CAFRA member country will be engaged in a survey of a sample of Vendors and Traffickers, to gain information on issues and challenges they face. This information will be shared at a regional meeting on:

• The trade processes in the region – WTO, FTAA, Cotonou and CSME, utilizing the CAFRA Economic Literacy Manual and other relevant material.

• In-depth exploration of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy with particular reference to Vendors and Traffickers, and the movement of people within the CSME.

• (ii) Exhibition

In order to encourage Vendors, Traffickers and Craftswomen to trade among themselves, a CARICOM Market Day will be organized as part of the workshop. Vendors and ourselves will sell products made by women, from the respective member countries, preferably at the UWI Campus, Cave Hill, Barbados.

• (iii) Women in the Labour Market

This research project will address three important areas of women’s work. With regard to Agriculture, the impact of the use of chemicals on women’s health will be explored. In the area of industry, the impact of conditions of work on women’s health will be explored with particular reference to their work in the export processing zones. The other aspect of women’s work is their involvement as traffickers in fruit, vegetables and manufactured goods, and the constraints under which they work.

HIV/AIDS Intervention/Prevention – Access to Adequate Health care for Sex Workers

Although prostitution is illegal in many countries, the practice continues. Sex workers are at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS and contributing to the spread of the disease, particularly as the illegal activity prohibits them from gaining health care. The CAFRA Projet seeks to conduct research on the prevalence of sex workers in selected countries, and use the findings to engage health officials as to the need for adequate health care for this sector of the population.

Integral to this research and training will be a video on HIV/AIDs produced by Maria Govan of CAFRA Bahamas. Maria interviewed key persons from the CAFRA member countries. The video is therefore rich in regional realities. In addition, CAFRA will use its Training Manual and Position Paper on HIV/AIDS Intervention/Prevention.

ICPD + 10 and MDGs Review

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have been approved by governments to :

1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. Achieve universal primary education
3. Promote gender equality and empower women
4. Reduce child mortality
5. Improve maternal health
6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
7. Ensure environmental sustainability
8. Develop a global partnership for development
   

The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) has commissed CAFRA to conduct research on progress made by governments in implementing the ICPD Platform for Action (1994-2004) in relation to the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs). The report will form part of background documents for the ICPD + 10 NGO Forum and official meetings to be held in September 2004.

Networking

CAFRA recognizes the value of networking as a strategy to achieve objectives. The organization has participated in several strategic Conferences and Seminars as reflected here.

1. Knowledge Fair	India – January 2004	Margaret Gill –CAFRA Chairperson
2. World Social Forum	India- January 2004	Flavia Cherry- CAFRA National Representative, St. Lucia
3. Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States (SIDS)	Bahamas – January 2004	Erin Greene – CAFRA National Representative, Bahamas
4. Caribbean Fourth Regional Conference on Women	ST. Vincent and the Grenadines – February 2004	Carla Bakboord, CAFRA Deputy Chairperson
5. International Seminar Mainstreaming Gender Equity in Health Sector Reform	Washington DC, April, 2004	Jacqueline Burgess
6. IGTN Steering Committee Meeting	Geneva – March 2004	Nelcia Robinson, Coordinator Caribbean Gender and Trade Network (CGTN)
7. Launch of the Cotonou Research	Trinidad and Tobago – April 2004	_Margaret May Macaulay, CAFRA Immediate past chairperson
8. Assembly of Caribbean Peoples	Martinique – May 2004	Flavia Cherry – CAFRA National Representative, St. Lucia
9. 7th Commonwealth Women’s Affairs Ministers Meeting (WAMM)	Fiji – May28-June 3 2004	Michelle Golding CAFRA Regional Committee Member, Jamaica
10. Globalization and Trade Conference	Dominican Republic – June 2004	CAFRA Regional Committee Members – Carla Bakboord, Sandra Clenem, Patricia Hackett, Ife Harris, Christaline Merrifield, Anita Joseph, Erin Greene, Elpidia Moreno, Flavia Cherry, Sarah Malave Lebron, Margaret May Macaulay, Cecelia Babb.
11.Beijing+10 Sub Regional NGO Forum and Official Meeting	Mexico – June 2004	Michelle Golding, CAFRA Regional Committee Member, Jamaica
12. ICPD+10 Sub Regional	Puerto Rico – June 2004	Margaret Gill- CAFRA CAFRA Chairperson Jeanne Henriquez, Sarah Malave Lebron, Casandra Marta, Asha Mungra

Haiti – Victim of Natural and Man-Made Disasters

CAFRA joined with concerned people of the region in expressing outrage at the man-made disaster, which left the people of Haiti without a democratically elected leader, and with suffering masses of people, in particular, women and children.

CAFRA’s planned mission to Haiti is even more timely in the light, of the human tragedy affecting people on the borders of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, caused by the natural disaster of flooding.