The forum that started on Monday 15th December 2008 is an opportunity for women’s rights networks and organizations to come together and discuss priorities and set a common agenda around thematic areas, especially in emerging issue areas such as international trade, agreements, migration and trafficking, food insecurity.

The main objectives of the forum are to:

1.       To review current priorities, capacities and gaps in the context of on-going engagement with regional and sub-regional bodies and linkages with national level action for gender equality, women’s rights and empowerment

2.      To support the sharing of knowledge and deepening of technical expertise on key women’s rights issues in the context of a changing global and regional policy environment, and crises

3.      To increase knowledge on the AU policy and institutional framework, policy processes, linkages with national governments, and identify opportunities for enhanced and effective participation in policy formulation and implementation at regional and sub-regional levels

4.      To agree on priority areas, targets, strategy and action plan for women’s rights advocacy and roles for different stakeholders.

Participants have been taken through to global and regional advocacy strategies and campaigns, the AU structure, policy procedures, policy processes and opportunities to enhance their understanding so that they can advocate from an informed point of view. On day three of the forum strategies to demanding accountability were developed on macro economics and trade policies; land and agriculture; migration and trafficking, violence against women and protocol and solemn declaration, peace and conflict resolutions.

Participants to the forum include representatives from regional and sub-regional women’s rights networks and organisations working on various thematic areas such as VAW; reproductive health and rights; HIV/AIDS; ICTs; land and water rights; trade, migration and trafficking; peace building and conflict resolution; media; economic empowerment; education; food security; LGBTI issues; legal rights and services; political participation; and civil, social, political, economic and cultural rights.

In an effort to enhance better understanding between Anglophone and Francophone networks, UNIFEM made a special effort to introduce French language training sessions during it's meetings. English speaking participants will be introduced to basic French and equipped with self-training materials.