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Eradicating violence against rural women begins with empowerment.

 

 

By Roseline Tabu

 

In rural areas in Kenya, the triggers for violence are closely related to the agricultural cycle. For example, conflicts often arise over access to land for cultivation, frequently leading to physical violence – particularly against single, widowed or divorced women. Also, for married women, this is the time when women confront their husbands to provide money for fertilizer, seeds, and tilling. Since most rural women lack income, they are forced to push their husbands to provide for this important season. These confrontations always turn ugly and the women are subjected to violence.

 

Deep in the quiet Matungu Sub-county of Kakamega County is a group of grassroots men and women dedicated to tackling Gender-based violence. Ordinary Touch Volunteers, OTV, as it’s popularly known is one of the few CBOs dedicated to eliminating gender-based violence. For Ordinary Touch Volunteers (OTV), gender-based violence is both a fundamental human rights issue and a serious impediment to health, food security and nutrition.

 

And violence against women has a strong negative impact on crop production, food security and family well-being.

There are several reasons for this. First of all, most victims of gender-based violence are between the ages of 15 and 45, the age group that does much of the agricultural labour. In addition, injuries and illnesses that result from violence may reduce work capacity over the long term, cutting productivity and depleting household assets. In many African countries, the victims of gender-based violence are also stigmatized and excluded from community activities, including access to knowledge and training.

 

Economic and social empowerment
OTV realized that eliminating violence against women and girls in rural communities begins with empowering them through improved livelihoods, healthcare, access to education and opportunities for safer, more dignified lives. Many programmes and projects help to prevent gender-based violence through support for women's livelihoods in smallholder farming, livestock-keeping and rural entrepreneurship. By enabling greater access to land, credit and other productive resources, these initiatives accelerate the economic and social empowerment of rural women. In the process, they allow women a greater degree of safety from harm. For instance, during every planting season, OTV holds public meetings dubbed "Back to the farm rallies" in which it provides seeds and fertilizer assistance to the vulnerable women and families. 

 

Since these women lack access to conventional banking, OTV’s table banking has helped these women to save their monies and invest in farming projects of their choice.H

“The table banking has literally replaced Merry-go-arounds!” Says Mr. Geoffrey Oduor, OTV’s Program Manager. “These unbanked rural dwellers are capable of saving and accessing credit from OTV without much bureaucracy. They are accessible to unsecured loans, three times their savings without collateral”.

 

Legal help

Because violence against poor rural women often involves access to land and resources, their safety can also hinge upon learning and asserting their rights. As a result, some OTV initiatives help to prevent violence directly through the enforcement of women's legal rights. Volunteer legal professionals hold educational seminars to educate the women on their rights, help them to apply for government projects and teach them prudent business management skills.

 

Members listening to the legal advice.

 

"If it were not for these people who know the law," says Rose Okumu, a widow and mother of six, "I would probably have lost my kids' land."

Rose is one of more than 40 women who have benefited from the Legal training and assistance sessions.

 

Facilitators share their newly acquired knowledge and new legislation with women leaders, who in turn spread awareness within the population. As a result, it is becoming easier to advocate more effectively for vulnerable women and girls. The men have become aware of these and domestic violence is going down.

"There has been a distinct improvement in our collaboration with police officers," says Engineer Patrick Were, OTV’s Executive Director. "Previously, these officers maltreated victims. They did not wish to hear their complaints. Now victims are treated with respect."

 

For OTV, this is just but the beginning. OTV seeks to team up in future with other organizations and like minded individuals to begin projects to eradicate gender-based violence. There can never be success in tackling gender-based violence without tackling economic empowerment.

 

Roseline Tabu is a freelance iournalist dedicated to social justice.