Femme Artisanes de la Paix (FAP) has been operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for 11 years. They collectively fight against all gender inequalities. This cumbersome social cause is met with a unique focus on the impact of socio-economic disparities among adolescents and young girls in the country.
“We believe that gender-based inequalities will be reduced if we stopbehaviours and practices between parents and their children that foster unequal attitudes”
Another factor that sets FAP apart from other advocacy-based organisations, is that they create women– led initiatives to give back agency and empower young girls through their active participation in peace and development processes.
The Intersectionality of Gender-Based Discrimination
The inequalities between women and men passed on from parents to children constitute the social causes that FAP seeks to reduce. In DRC, gender-based discrimination exists under the backdrop of various social contexts, such as the prioritization of the education of boys rather than girls, early pregnancies, forced marriages, violence against girls/women, lack of employment by women alongside many other deprecating conditions that undermine the full enjoyment of a dignified and autonomous life for all children and youth.
To improve the living conditions of many young women in their respective communities, FAP works with groups of girls aged 14-25, as well as adult women in initiatives revolving around citizen participation in local governance, social cohesion, socio-economic empowerment of the girl/woman, and sexual and reproductive health rights.
Our Partnership
Social and financial education has been a significant player in opening programmes targeting more gender-inclusive curricula and promoting initiatives like the Visionary Girls Programme. This initiative has been successful due to its aim to strengthen the education of girls aged 14 to 25 on various life skills. As expressed by members of FAP, some girls supported by the programme are now able to take initiative, speak in public, defend their opinions and protect their bodily autonomy. FAP works towards empowering many young women and equipping them with the knowledge to confront the gender gap.
As the Visionary Girls Programme evolves, our partnership in 2022 enabled us to jointly support this initiative by fostering the development of gender– specific content enriched with social and financial curricula. This gender perspective on education also led FAP to choose the Aflateen, Aflateen+ and AflaYouth curricula, as the guiding resources for mobilising youth leaders towards building a more equitable world.
“We are excited about the methodology and programmatic aspects of the Aflatoun courses as a whole, especially the constitution of materials / materials on financial education for children“
