African Women's Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Conference
--------------------------------------------------------------------
PROSPERITY THROUGH EMPOWERMENT
4th-7th February, 2003
Johannesburg, South Africa
Dear colleagues, friends and supporters,
AMANITARE is pleased to release the second announcement and call for
applications for the "AFRICAN WOMEN'S SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH
AND RIGHTS CONFERENCE: PROSPERITY THROUGH EMPOWERMENT", 4th-7th Feb-
ruary, 2003. Please see below for the second announcement, including
conference agenda, logistics and application procedure appears below.
Note: A formatted version of this document is available from the Con-
ference Secretariat (mailto:conference@amanitare.org), and on our
website from 22nd July.
Sincerely,
Anna Nsubuga
AMANITARE Project Coordinator
mailto:conference@amanitare.org
http://www.amanitare.org
--
AFRICAN WOMEN'S SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND RIGHTS CONFERENCE
"PROSPERITY THROUGH EMPOWERMENT"
4 - 7 February 2003
Johannesburg, South Africa
2nd Announcement
Background
AMANITARE, the African Partnership for Sexual and Reproductive Health
and Rights of Women and Girls, is a Pan-African ten-year initiative
of RAINBO (Research, Action, and Information Network for the Bodily
Integrity of Women). The Partnership's mandate is derived from the
outcomes of the World Conference on Human Rights (Vienna, 1993), The
International Conference on Population and Development (Cairo, 1994)
and The Fifth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995). Its main aim
is to build an influential social movement to institutionalise the
recognition of African women and girl's Sexual and Reproductive
Health and Rights as fundamental to their civil and human rights. The
Partnership currently boasts the active participation of 42 Partners
from 16 different countries spanning all sub-regions of the African
continent.
(For further information about AMANITARE, our mandate and activities,
please visit the AMANITARE website at:
http://www.amanitare.org ).
Conference Objectives
In an effort to realize the Partnership's overall goal, AMANITARE is
organizing a Pan-African conference entitled, "African Women's Sexual
and Reproductive Health and Rights Conference: Prosperity Through Em-
powerment", that will be held from 4th to 7th February 2003 in Johan-
nesburg, South Africa. With its forward-looking agenda, this confer-
ence will provide a rare opportunity to bring together African
Women's Health and Rights movement activists with policy makers, re-
searchers, health care providers, youth representatives, and the me-
dia from all sub-regions of the African continent - creating a unique
forum for debate and creative strategising around Gender and Health
in Africa.
Prominent figures from the field, both regional and international,
have been invited as guest speakers. Details to follow.
The conference has the following five key objectives:
1. To raise awareness around Sexual and Reproductive Health and
Rights issues and to mobilize pan-African public opinion to sup-
port them;
2. To bring together women's organisations, policy makers, research-
ers and health care providers to promote a holistic and user-
responsive approach to Sexual and Reproductive health;
3. To facilitate networking, exchange of information, and skills de-
velopment;
4. To institutionalise the African Women's Health Day to be cele-
brated annually on 4th February; and
5. To celebrate African women's and girl's rights to healthy bodies,
minds and souls.
Conference Agenda
The conference takes place over four days, beginning with a celebra-
tion of African Women's Health Day on February 4th.
Day 1: Celebration of African Women's Health Day, 4th February
Events throughout the day will provide forums for artistic reflection
and creative, cross-cutting dialogue on key issues in African women's
sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). The celebrations
are intended to commemorate the successes and highlight enduring
challenges to implementing the SRHR agenda for Africa.
Express your support
If you will be present at the opening celebrations, or if you are un-
able to attend the conference, consider sending a message of celebra-
tion or solidarity to the conference Secretariat. Messages will be
read at the opening ceremony for African Women's Health Day, and at
points throughout the conference. Please send messages to
jhorn@amanitare.org
Days 2 - 4 The following three days of the conference are sub-
thematic. The provisional programme is as follows:
Early morning activities
The Glenburn Lodge is located in a beautiful and tranquil environ-
ment. We would like to encourage delegates to use the time and space
allocated in the agenda to organise activities and maximise on the
full benefits of these surroundings. Some ideas are jogging, medita-
tion, Tai Chi, yoga, singing and drumming.
DAY 2 Theme: Women's Realities: Vulnerabilities, Violations and Vio-
lence
Plenary:
- SRHR: the key to peace, democracy and economic development
- Land rights, inheritance and SRHR
- Family law and culture
Breakaway Sessions*:
- Constitutional law, customary law and individual women's rights
- Gender budgeting, health financing and women's health
- Men promoting SRHR of women and girls
DAY 3 Theme: Services: Rights, Responsibilities and Choice
Plenary:
- Barriers to accessing SR Health services
- Comparing the African regional instruments to international law
- Gender issues within the health sector
Breakaway Sessions*:
- Religion and women's rights: Beliefs, interpretations and percep-
tions
- Pregnancy: choice and safety
- Adolescent sexual rights: reality or fantasy?
DAY 4 Theme: New Generations: Changing the parameters, the ethos for
the future
Plenary:
- Building partnerships within civil society
- Integrating women's rights into public health services
- Investing in the empowerment of women and girls
Breakaway Sessions*:
- Masculinities and gender based violence
- Dealing with violence in health service provision
- Realities of financing women's rights post-Cairo and Beijing
* Abstracts should address issues raised by the breakaway sessions.
However, alternative themes supported by a strong abstract may be
considered for inclusion.
Workshops
There will be two workshop sessions, made up of three or more tracks
each lasting 1� hours. Participants may propose to conduct a one or
two-session workshop on the same day, or a workshop series over two
or more days. Several rooms of various sizes will be available for
workshop activities. The workshops will provide forums for skills ex-
change, practical demonstrations, training, and strategising and will
be designed and run by conference participants.
Suggested workshop topics include:
- Female prevention options for HIV: Microbicides and the female con-
dom
- Lessons from human rights advocacy in Africa;
- Enabling reproductive choice through Information Technologies; and
- Confronting stigma in health services: women with disabilities.
After-dinner activities
Participants are welcome to propose after-dinner activities, where
the conference themes and action agendas are further explored through
film screenings, poetry readings, group discussions and networking
activities.
Displays
There will be an opportunity to display publications and other mate-
rials throughout the conference. Spaces are limited. Please apply
early to avoid disappointment.
Language
The official conference language will be English. Simultaneous inter-
pretation into French will be provided for all morning panels, and
select breakaway sessions and workshops.
Venue
The Conference will be held at the
Glenburn Lodge
Kromdraai Road, Swartkops
P.O. Box 492, Muldersdrift 1747
Gauteng, South Africa.
Tel: +27-11-957-2691
Fax: +27-11-957-2697
http://www.glenburn.co.za
Glenburn Lodge is situated approximately 30 minutes from both Johan-
nesburg and Pretoria.
Accommodation
Competitively priced conference packages have been negotiated for
this conference, including accommodation and all meals. This package
does not include additional charges such as telephone calls, laundry,
or other refreshments. Conference delegates will primarily be accom-
modated at the Glenburn Lodge, with reservations being made on a
first-come-first-served basis. There are several other hotels nearby
that will be used to accommodate any additional participants, par-
ticularly those who register much later in the year. Hotel bookings
can only be made by the conference Secretariat.
Travel
All relevant documents must be obtained before travelling to the con-
ference, including a valid passport, return ticket, visa, and yellow
fever vaccinations (where applicable). Letters to support visa appli-
cations will be provided by the conference Secretariat for all suc-
cessful applicants. As part of the conference package, free return
airport transfers will be provided from Johannesburg International
Airport to the Glenburn Lodge (and any other hotel where the confer-
ence Secretariat makes reservations for delegates). We have selected
South African Airways as our preferred carrier, offering special
fares for conference delegates. We advise booking early as these of-
fers are subject to availability. Delegates can book flights through
Bishop Travel Services, including those who wish to take advantage of
this offer.
Participation and Costs
This conference will be an exciting and unprecedented opportunity for
professionals and activists from various fields to witness first hand
what others are doing, dispel myths, create common grounds, plan
joint projects, and realise the complementary nature of our work. We
intend for this conference to be the first step in creating an on-
going forum and opportunity for progressive forces in Africa to come
together and support each other in their joint efforts to raise the
health, social, and civil rights status of women and girls.
A non-refundable registration fee of US$ 150 is to be paid in advance
by all successful applicants. Delegates will need to secure their own
funding in order to attend the conference. This fee covers the costs
of all conference materials and the Gala Dinner.
Approximate costs for attendance per delegate are as follows:
Airfare - US$ 1,000 (Average only, depends on country of origin.)
Ground transportation - US$ 40.00 (Return transport home to domestic
airport.)
Incidental fees - US$ 200.00 (Including visas, inoculations, etc.)
Hotel* - US$ 450.00 (24hr conference package X 6 days incl. all
meals)
Pre/post conference per diem - US$ 80.00 (US$ 40 X 2 days)
Registration fee - US$ 150.00
TOTAL - US$ 1,920
* Figures based on accommodation at Glenburn Lodge. Amount may vary
for late applicants who are accommodated elsewhere.
Bursaries
A very limited number of bursaries are available, in part or whole
payment of registration fee, transportation, accommodation (on a
shared room basis) and all meals. The bursaries are provided in order
to encourage participation in the conference by women's rights activ-
ists and grassroots organisations that would not otherwise have the
means to attend. Preference will be given to applicants who have sub-
mitted abstracts to hold workshops or other skills sharing activities
during the conference, particularly those from Africa, Asia, the Car-
ibbean and Latin America. Although bursaries will be made available
to applicants from other regions, participants are encouraged to seek
funding from other sources to attend the conference. A fundraising
pack has been prepared for all successful applicants to assist with
this.
Applicants should complete the relevant forms and attach a letter ap-
plying for support, detailing their professional status and motiva-
tion for the award of a bursary. These applications should be re-
turned to the conference Secretariat before 20th September 2002. Suc-
cessful applicants will be notified in writing by 5th October 2002.
Applications
Applications to attend the conference are welcome from activists,
health service providers and researchers working in grassroots or-
ganisations, non-governmental organisations, professional associa-
tions, Government Ministries and agencies, donor and/or international
organisations. The application form should be completed and returned
to the conference Secretariat no later than 20th September 2002.
Abstracts
We also invite you to submit abstracts for 15-minute presentations to
be made in the breakaway sessions and for the skills ex-
change/development workshops (1 � hours). We particularly welcome
submissions that offer new and progressive perspectives on issues re-
lated to women's and girls' Sexual and Reproductive Health and
Rights, as outlined in the agenda above. Those wishing to submit an
abstract should complete both an application and the relevant ab-
stract form and return them to the conference Secretariat by the
deadline of 20th September 2002.
All forms must be returned to:
AMANITARE Conference Secretariat
RAINBO Queens Studios
121 Salusbury Road
London NW6 6RG United Kingdom
Tel: +44-20-7625-3400
Fax: +44-20-7625-2999
mailto:conference@amanitare.org
http://www.amanitare.org
For further travel information please contact:
AMANITARE Conference
Bishop Travel Services
Shop 11, Constantia Office Park
Cnr 14th Ave. & Hendrik Potgieter
P.O. Box 7316
Weltevreden Park, 1715
Tel: +27-11-675-2017/18/20
Fax: +27-11-675-2014
Mobile: +27-82-4433-939
mailto:bts@galileosa.co.za
or
mailto:melanieb@galileosa.co.za
--
To send a message to AFRO-NETS, write to: afro-nets@usa.healthnet.org
To subscribe or unsubscribe, write to: majordomo@usa.healthnet.org
in the body of the message type: subscribe afro-nets OR unsubscribe afro-nets
To contact a person, send a message to: afro-nets-help@usa.healthnet.org
Information and archives: http://www.afronets.org