It is my absolute pleasure and joy to present to you our 4th edition of the SOAWR Journal, a collection of various moments from 2023 and our continued spirited fight for the rights of women and girls. In 2023 we were able to celebrate twenty years of one of the world’s progressive women’s rights treaties and publish a report that provides an overview of where we are 20 years later.
SOAWR continues to steer the narrative of ensuring gender equality and that our women and girls can safely enjoy their guaranteed rights as provided under the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (the Maputo Protocol). Since its inception, SOAWR has worked tirelessly to protect the rights of women and girls. Through this Journal, we get to share the experiences of some of the work the Coalition members have done and to celebrate their achievements.
2023 was an exciting year for the SOAWR Coalition as we marked the 20th Anniversary of the adoption of the Maputo Protocol. The colourful celebrations in Nairobi, Kenya in July 2023 were a culmination and celebration of over two decades of the hard work of SOAWR members, AU Member States, the African Union Commission, and development partners in positively impacting the lived realities of millions of African women and girls through the Maputo Protocol.
A big thank you to our amazing partner, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, and other partners who have walked with us on this journey of working to ensure the protection of the rights of women and girls in Africa for the last four years. It is my delight to welcome you to read this Journal, which is a milestone in the advancement of our purpose. With each turn of the page, we invite you to reflect on the momentous journey of the Coalition in 2023 and invite you to join us in advocating for the universal ratification, domestication, implementation, and accountability of the Maputo Protocol. It is our time to reshape society, invest in a better and stronger future, and champion gender equality.
Faiza Jama Mohamed, Director – Africa Office,
Equality Now, SOAWR Secretariat