Forum for African Women Educationalists The Gambia chapter (FAWE-GAM) began a one-week training workshop held at St. Thereses Upper Basic School in Kairaba Avenue on December 14th, 2009.
Speaking at the occasion, Barry Wells, the United States ambassador to The Gambia, said education is a tool that once gotten can never be taken away. He revealed that in some countries, there are times the girls and women are not given much responsibilities, but now this has changed because girls and women have started raising their voices. He urged the children especially girls to learn how to speak for themselves.
Speaking on behalf of the school administration, Zono Jammeh welcomed FAWE-GAM to the school and also thanked them for choosing their school to hold such training. Emily Sarr, chairperson of FAWE-GAM, said Tuseme is a Swahili expression that is translated in Emglish as ‘let us speak out’. In this respect he noted the founders thought it fit to call an outreach programme that aimed at empowering girls to overcome their inhibitions and voice out their concerns in public.
She disclosed that it is a fact that the socialisation process in Africa is one that restraints the female voice and so the education of girls in the classroom is affected by their inhibitions and inability to speak out. “Researches had shown that one of the factors behind poor academic performance by girls was that girls were not sufficiently involved in discussions of problems affecting them and their proposed remedies,” she revealed.
In conclusion, Sarr said that the other consideration include the fact that Tuseme works well to enhance the human rights of girls and women, and that with courage and proper communication skills, girls and women are more likely to speak up about sexual harassment and other violations of their rights as well as seek redress. Addressing the students, Ousman Saidykhan, the facilitator, advised the children to participate so that they learn as much as possible.
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