As part of the VAW campaign, in May 2010 SIHA Network awarded small grants to seven women’s organizations in the region to finance projects aimed at advocating against violence against women in the Horn of Africa region. These topics were; access to justice for women, encouragement of leadership among the young women and the promotion of peace.

The 7 beneficiary organizations were: Barwaaqo Voluntary Organization (BVO) in Hergeisa, Somaliland, Circus in Ethiopia for Youth and Social Development in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Somali Women Research Action Group (SOWRAG) in Somaliland, New Sudan Women Federation (NSWF) in Juba, South Sudan, Coalition of Grassroots Organizations (COGWO) in Mogadishu, Somalia, Women’s Action for Advocacy and Progress (WAAPO) in Somaliland and Organization of Bender Djedid for Socio-economic development in Djibouti.

The project carried out by Barwaaqo Voluntary Organization promoted women’s access to justice and leadership among young women.  BVO carried out the preplanned activities of the project and these involved a leadership workshop, elders, university students and women elite debate and community orientation awareness which were all successfully implemented in the capital city of Somaliland; Hergeisa, the most populated city in of the country and project target area.BVO also developed and printed leaflets bearing slogans encouraging Somaliland citizens to promote women’s rights, equality to justice for all, peace and stability in the country during the elections.

The Circus in Ethiopia project was aimed at encouraging the young women in Ethiopia to participate in leadership and the decision making process.  A training of trainers’ workshop was held to educate the young women and girls on the basic concepts and understanding of leadership. 30 participants who are in line for positions of leadership were trained. The main topics of the training included; theories of leadership, characteristics of a leader, levels and foundations of influence, the most important keys of leadership, communication and behavior change.

SOWRAG project looked into capacity building for the young women and potential leaders because it is important for them to access justice and advocate for fair justice. These women were educated on their basic human and legal rights.  In this respect, SOWRAG conducted a three day workshop for 20 young women potential leaders in order to train them in women’s human rights and basic advocacy skills so that they would be able to carry out advocacy campaigns on women’s access to justice. The workshop facilitator shared the international instruments that affect women and explained that CEDAW and UDHR were the most relevant and significant treaties in the protection of the rights of women. SOWRAG also held 2 public debate sessions in Hergeisa and Berbera. There were 40 women participants; 20 participants in each session and they were from women NGOs groups, women lawyers association and the Ministry of Justice to discuss thoroughly the existing challenges to women’s access to fair justice. The participants were guided to reveal and expose more about their experience, resources and discussions through brainstorming, group discussions and case studies. The participants in the end provided recommendations on the measures that could be employed to ensure access to fair justice

In South Sudan, the New Sudan Women Federation project trained women and youth in the Bahr Al Ghazel region and Rumbek county of South Sudan on their legal rights and this was done through meeting and awareness creation.  NSWF wanted the women and young girls to know that they deserve to be respected and this could be achieved through the women learning about their rights, having these rights fulfilled, their contributions in communities acknowledged and their development supported and promoted. NSWF planned one public debate on women’s rights and VAW issues, they also arranged for 6 sensitization meetings for the women on their legal and human rights. Some of the topics discussed by the women during the public debate included; Abusive marriage customs like payment of high dowry, arranged marriages or forced marriages and early marriages, Return of dowry upon death of a husband, Multiple polygamy denying property ownership rights to the women, Negative social and cultural attitudes towards women like mourning rituals that degrade women and eating habits that marginalize women. Wife inheritance in the event of a husband’s death; A widow has a right to raise her children regardless of whether she wishes to be inherited or not.

The women of the Benadir region and the women of COGWO campaigned for peace in the war torn region of Somalia. A two-day workshop was held to discuss the role of women in the peace process and to exchange ideas on issues related to community development through a peace campaign. COGWO assessed the impact of the workshop and held a meeting with the districts commissioners and the Women Peace Campaigners in the four districts of Benadir region. A COGWO action plan has been created to implement these activities. Furthermore, COGWO organized radio debates to promote awareness of the women peace campaign. The participants in the debate included; COGWO Lawyers, civil society organizations, Women activists and religious leaders. The topics up for discussion were; young girls/child labour and child soldiers, the responsibility of the police towards the citizens , how the rights of women/girls can be protected- the main focus was on the ways of arrest, search, investigation of suspects and how they are treated while in detention.  The direct beneficiaries of the radio programs were the local FM radio primary audiences of Benadir region.

The goal of the WAAPO project was to increase access to justice for women in post conflict and vulnerable communities as well as to eradicate the culture of impunity. The project activities were carried out in Togdheer and Hergeisa, Somaliland. The stakeholders involved in the project process were community elders, religious leaders, judiciary and law enforcement officers and civil society groups. The ministry of family Affairs and Social Development was at the centre of the project activities. Increased awareness and building the capacity of the above mentioned stakeholders was the cornerstone of the project. WAAPO held a 3 -day training on the policies that promote women’s access to justice participants drawn from Women coalitions in Daami and State House Districts, Somaliland Women’s Lawyers Association (SWLA), Sexual Assault Referral Center (SARC) Ministry of Family Affairs and Social Development (MoFASD) and police officers. After the workshop, WAAPO established a task force committee that would work as pressure groups and also a information sharing hub for all VAW stakeholders, will be reduced overlapping between organization and will also be organized a consultative meetings for ministries and the parliament on the issue of VAW.