As part of the project “Enhancing Gender Equality and promote Women Participation in local Governance in West Bank including east Jerusalem and Gaza Strip” MIFTAH, in partnership with the GIZ-implemented program “Program for Empowering Women in Decision-Making”, which is funded by BMZ, recently capped off a series of three days Weekend Solutions workshops . A large group of 110 influential leaders at the social and political levels participated. The group was recently formed by MIFTAH to advocate for gender issues in the districts of Jerusalem, Nablus, Hebron in the West Bank, and Khan Younis and Rafah in the Gaza Strip. The aim of the initiative was to lead a social movement for promoting women and youths’ participation in public life in a way that contributes to the development of gender-related strategic development approaches in local communities. This is through developing initiatives that shed light on the importance of the political and social participation of marginalized sectors of women and youth to guarantee social justice.
MIFTAH project manager Najwa Yaghi said these Weekend Solutions workshops were the second stage in a number of interventions that brought together influential leaders and youth social activists to identify the most outstanding obstacles that prevent social and political participation of women and girls, and ways to overcome these obstacles through a group local initiatives that focus on the importance of integrating women and youth into public life. These are the most important interventions necessary for local development and for promoting the principles of democracy and good governance in addition to curbing social alignments manifested in discriminatory practices, most of which are directed towards women and youths.
MIFTAH’s Gaza coordinator, Shadia Al Ghoul said a series of interactive workshops were held with various community figures and sectors such as academics, members of local committees, representatives of factions, heads of civil society organizations, socially-active youths and farmers from the Khan Younis and Rafah districts. She maintained that the workshops addressed the different unifying ideas and ideologies through the establishment and consolidation of the concepts of gender, social change and LGU specializations. Furthermore, Al Ghoul said local realities and women’s participation in LGUs was examined and diagnosed through pinpointing the key impediments in order to produce and work ono social initiatives in the next phase. She said the participants were very involved and interactive during the meetings and showed an enthusiasm to work with the aim of changing social realities and integrating women and youths into the circle of social development.
Facilitator Feedback
Facilitator for the Jerusalem group, Oday Abu Karsh said the meetings were aimed at developing a participatory vision among the socially-active groups, decision-makers and politicians at the workshop in order to combat gender-based exclusion and identify the gaps in structural frameworks that prevent women from active participation. He also said they were aimed at determining social obstacles and stereotypes that hinder women and youths participation in the political and public spheres.
Furthermore, the workshop identified the approaches for formulating a strategy capable of providing a supportive environment for women and youth participation in regulatory frameworks, namely government institutions. It also identified several initiatives that would be implemented in 2017 to support efforts related to combatting geographic and gender-based discrimination from which the Jerusalem district suffers in particular.
Facilitator and trainer for the Hebron group Ruham Nimri, said the weekend solution workshops were important in that they offered an opportunity for participants to plan and work towards creating initiatives for their communities compatible with social needs regarding women’s and youths’ political participation. A total of 17 male and female participants attended from the Hebron districts of Saeer, Dura and Bani Naim, all of whom are social activists. The participants included youths, head of local councils and women activists.
Nimri added, “The group interacted very well with the training. Both young men and women actively participated.” He said the group produced three initiatives that include youth and women in specific regions in the Hebron area. The activities in these initiatives, he explained, highlight the importance of women and youth participation in political life including educational meetings and media activities.
Meanwhile, trainer Hanan Jayousi said her experience with MIFTAH had been excellent given that it targets youths, who comprise approximately 30% of the Palestinian society. She said these were sectors that were vital and important but not always considered or targeted by institutions. Neither do they give ample attention to their role as agents of change. “Hence, the fact that MIFTAH targets these sectors and focuses on such activities is a huge achievement,” Jayousi said.
She also had positive feedback concerning weekend solution workshops “There was practical and pragmatic management of the workshops which allowed the participants to express their own experiences and plans. Hence, they were able to develop tangible and practical visions and apply what was proposed in the discussions, which was wonderful.”
لقاءات تشاورية نفذتها 'مفتاح' بمشاركة واسعة لشخصيات قيادية مؤثرة لمناصرة قضايا النوع الاجتماعي
تاريخ النشر: 18/03/2017
بقلم: مفتاح
ضمن مشروع "المشاركة السياسية للمرأة في الحكم المحلي من خلال تعزيز المساواة بين الجنسين" اختتمت المبادرة الفلسطينية لتعميق الحوار العالمي والديمقراطية "مفتاح" بالشراكة مع برنامج "تمكين النساء في صنع القرار" المنفذ من قبل التعاون الألماني GIZ، بتمويل من ال BMZ، سلسلة من اللقاءات التشاورية على مدى ثلاثة أيام، بمشاركة مجموعة واسعة من 110 من القيادات المحلية الفاعلة على المستويين المجتمعي والسياسي التي شكلتها مفتاح مؤخراً لمناصرة قضايا النوع الاجتماعي في محافظات القدس، ونابلس، والخليل بالإضافة إلى محافظتي رفح وخانيونس، بهدف قيادة حراك مجتمعي باتجاه تعزيز مشاركة النساء والشباب في الحياة العامة، بشكل يساهم في تطوير التوجهات الاستراتيجية التنموية في المجتمع المحلي ذات العلاقة بقضايا النوع الاجتماعي، من خلال بلورة مبادرات من شأنها تسليط الضوء على أهمية المشاركة السياسية والمجتمعية للفئات المهمشة من النساء والشباب بما يضمن تحقيق العدالة الاجتماعية.
عن هذه اللقاءات التشاورية، تحدثت نجوى ياغي مديرة مشاريع في "مفتاح" فقالت: بأن هذه اللقاءات التشاورية مع القيادات السياسية والمجتمعية تعتبر المرحلة الثانية من جملة التدخلات التي جمعت القيادات المؤثرة والفاعلة والشباب الناشط للوقوف على أهم العقبات التي تحول دون المشاركة السياسية والمجتمعية للنساء والفتيات وآليات تذليلها من خلال قيادة مجموعة من المبادرات المحلية التي تحمل رسائل تتضمن أهمية دمج النساء والشباب في الحياة العامة باعتبارها من أهم التدخلات اللازمة في عملية التنمية المحلية وتعزيز مبادئ الديمقراطية والحكم الصالح، والحد من الاصطفافات التي تنعكس بممارسات تمييزية أعلبها تكون موجهة ضد النساء والشابات..
أما منسقة "مفتاح" في قطاع غزة، شادية الغول، فقالت، بأنه تم عقد سلسلة من الورشات التفاعلية، بمشاركة شخصيات وقطاعات مختلفة مجتمعية مثل أكاديميين ، اعضاء لجان محلية ، ممثلو أحزاب، رؤساء مؤسسات المجتمع المدني، شباب فاعل مجتمعيا، ومزارعون، من محافظتي خانيونس رفح ، تناولت بمجملها توحيد الافكار والايدولوجيات الفكرية المختلفة من خلال تأسيس وتأصيل مفاهيم النوع الاجتماع ، التغير المجتمعي ، اختصاص الهيئات المحلية. كما تم دراسة وتشخيص الواقع المحلي ومشاركة النساء في الهيئات المحلية من خلال تحديد المعيقات الأساسية ، والخروج بمبادرات مجتمعية يمكن العمل عليها خلال الفترة القادمة ، في حين تميزت اللقاءات التدريب بالتفاعل العالي من المشاركين فيه، وإظهارهم الحماسة والرغبة بالعمل، بهدف تغيير الواقع المجتمعي المحدد لإدماج النساء والشباب في دائرة التنمية المجتمعية..
ماذا قال الميسرون..؟
من ناحيته، قال ميسر اللقاء التشاوري لمجموعة القدس عدي أبو كرش، أن اللقاءات التشاورية ، هدفت إلى تطوير رؤى تشاركية بين مجموعات الناشطين الاجتماعيين وصناع القرار والسياسيين المشاركين في ورشة العمل، لمناهضة الاقصاء المبني على أساس النوع الاجتماعي، وتحديد الفجوات في الأطر البنيوية التي تمنع النساء من المشاركة الفاعلة، إلى جانب تحديد المعيقات الاجتماعية، والصور النمطية باتجاه تلك الشراكة.
كما عملت الورشة على تحديد توجهات عمل استراتيجية، قادرة على توفير بيئة داعمة لمشاركة النساء والشباب في الأطر النظامية سيما مؤسسات الحكم، إضافة إلى تعريفها بعدد من المبادرات التي سيتم تنفيذها في غضون عام 2017، لمساندة الجهود المتصلة بمناهضة التمييز على أساس الجغرافيا، أو النوع الاجتماعي، والتي تعاني منها محافظة القدس على وجه التحديد.
أما رهام نمري، ميسر ومدرب مجموعة الخليل في اللقاءات التشاورية، فأكد أن هذه اللقاءات مهمة كونها تتيح الفرصة للمشاركين، للتخطيط بالمشاركة والعمل على وضع مبادرات في مجتمعاتهم المحلية تتلاءم واحتياجات المجتمع بما يتعلق بمشاركة النساء والشباب السياسية، وحضره 17 مشاركا ومشاركة من مدينة الخليل، سعير، دورا وبني نعيم، وجميعهم من الناشطين المجتمعيين، ومنهم من هم في سن الشباب ورؤساء مجالس محلية وناشطات نسويات في المواقع.
وأضاف:" كان تفاعل المجموعة مع التدريب جيد جدا، وكانت المشاركة فاعلة من قبل جميع المشاركين من الشباب والشابات، وقد خرجت المجموعة بثلاث مبادرات، تضم مجموعات من الشباب والنساء في مناطق محددة من محافظة الخليل وتتضمن مجموعة من الأنشطة تبرز أهمية مشاركة النساء والشباب في الحياة السياسية تتضمن اللقاءات التثقيفية والنشاطات الإعلامية.
بدورها، وصفت المدربة حنان جيوسي، تجربتها مع "مفتاح بأنها ممتازة، كونها تستهدف فئة الشباب التي تمثل نحو 30 % من المجتمع، وهي فئة حيوية وهامة لا تنظر لها سائر المؤسسات ولا تستهدفهم بشكل ممنهج، كما لا تعير اهتماما لدورهم كوكلاء للتغيير، وبالتالي فإن استهداف "مفتاح" وتركيزها على هذه الفئة بأنشطة من هذا القبيل، هو إنجاز كبير يحسب لها.
وفي تقييمها، قالت جيوسي:" كان هناك إدارة عملية وبراغماتية وعميقة، جعلت المشاركين فيه يعكسون تجاربهم وخططهم، واستطاعوا أن يبلوروا رؤى بشكل ملموس وعملي، وترجمة ما يطرح من نقاشات، وهو أمر بديع ورائع".
MIFTAH releases 2021-2022 comparative actual spending reports for the social and security sectors, including social justice and gender indicators
Date posted: April 04, 2023
By MIFTAH
MIFTAH recently released 2021-2022 comparative actual spending reports for the social sector (health, education, higher education and scientific research, social development and labor), and for the first time, the security sector (Ministry of Interior and National Security). The reports were based on annual financial data released by the Ministry of Finance in Palestine for 2021-2022 and on an accrual basis.
The data showed that the Ministry of Interior and National Security had the highest percentage of actual spending in 2022, accounting for 22.8% of overall public expenditures, or ILS3.68 billion. This was a slight increase from the Ministry’s share in 2021. Meanwhile, actual spending on the education sector (Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Scientific Research) stood at 21.5% of overall public expenditures, or ILS3.48 billion. This was also an increase from the education sector’s share in 2021, which was 20.6% of public expenditures.
Moreover, actual spending on the Ministry of Health also increased in 2022, comprising 15% of overall public expenditures, at a sum of ILS2.4 billion. This was higher than in 2021, where its share was 14.4%. As for the Ministry of Social Development, actual spending was still low, amounting for 6.2% of overall public expenditures in 2022, compared to 5.8% in 2021. The Ministry of Social Development’s actual spending in 2022 was approximately ILS1 billion. As for the labor sector, actual spending on this sector in 2022 was 0.31% of overall public expenditures, while in 2021 it was 0.28%. Actual spending on the labor sector in 2022 was ILS50.1 million.
Upon review of actual spending reports of the targeted ministries from a gender and social justice perspective, it is clear that actual spending on the Ministry of Social Development does not coincide with the scope of its responsibilities as the forerunner of the social sector in Palestine, including its programs for combatting poverty and the protection of poor and marginalized social sectors. Moreover, non-compliance to the disbursement of payments for poor families within the CTP continued according to estimates, whereby only two of four installments for 2022 were disbursed, one at minimum value. This adversely affected the financial security of the most underprivileged and marginalized sectors of society, in addition to the insufficient estimated budget and actual spending on the social protection program, in spite of its importance in providing protection and social services to battered women, children, special-needs persons and the elderly.
The data also pointed to the low percentage of women working in the security sector, which stood at 6% of the total number of workers in this sector, while they comprised 46% of the civil sector. This shows a gap in actual spending on the security sector from a gender perspective, given that the lion’s share of actual spending in 2022 was on salaries and wages. Hence, women only benefited very little from these allocations, which were nearly ILS2.9 billion in 2022.
The data also indicated that the development expenditures for the Ministry of Labor were only ILS4.5 million in 2022, even though planned development expenditures were ILS32 million, which is much higher. This casts a shadow on gender-related programs and projects, which were allotted sizeable budgets within development expenditures, such as creating sustainable opportunities as alternatives for Palestinian men and women working in settlements, for which ILS10 million were earmarked.
Even though there was an increase in actual spending in 2022 at the targeted ministries in general, this increase was mainly concentrated on salaries and wages. In spite of the importance of providing a decent life for employees, there is still a need to increase spending on development expenditures, since they are at the forefront of developing government services, including the nationalization and institutionalization of various social services.
MIFTAH concludes town hall meetings on political participation and citizens’ rights for women and youth
Date posted: January 09, 2023
By MIFTAH
Ramallah – 29/12/2022 – Within its efforts to promote democratic values and the peaceful transfer of power within the Palestinian government system, MIFTAH’s field advisory team completed over 100 town hall meetings in the second half of 2022. The meetings were held in coordination and cooperation with CSOs, LGUs and grassroots organizations and targeted women and youth in several West Bank and Gaza Strip districts. The objective of these meetings was to raise awareness among the electorate on the electoral system in Palestine and on civil society demands to increase women and youth participation in local and general elections as candidates and voters, on the premise that this boosts their presence in decision-making levels and involves them in public affairs.
The town hall meetings included several exchange visits between LGU members in the various districts. The women shared the experiences and challenges they faced after becoming council members. The meetings focused on the concept of citizenship within a broader definition of the various forms of political participation and the importance of involvement from youth and women in public life. They also pointed to the different forms of democracy and the main pillars of the democratic society Palestinians seek to create. The participants furthermore discussed the various forms of electoral systems and shed light on the gaps in electoral laws regarding the presence of women and youth.
The participants pointed to the importance of periodic legislative and presidential elections and the danger of the ongoing absence of the PLC on matters pertaining to civic peace. They also warned against the absence of oversight and accountability, maintaining that the defunct PLC has contributed to shrinking civic space and public freedoms and therefore, the ability or desire to become involved in political life, especially for women and youth. In most of the meetings, the participants also indicated that the absence of a regular democratic process in Palestine contributed to the overall exclusion of youth from participation and to the marginalization of the role of women in Palestinian political decision-making.
The town hall meetings stressed on the importance of pressing for legislative, presidential and local elections in all West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza Strip districts. They also endorsed the demand for equality in electoral laws, starting with raising the women’s quota to a minimum of 30%, raising the candidacy age and lowering the threshold. They urged Palestinian factions to assume a key role in the process of inclusion for women and youth in the public sphere and to prevent the progression of tribalism in the democratic process. The attendees emphasized the importance of monitoring the performance of LGUs in their interaction with local communities and the consistency of their meetings. Finally, they said female council members must be given the opportunity to exercise their role in their respective councils as equals to their male counterparts.
MIFTAH holds town hall meetings on an annual basis as part of its awareness campaign on citizens’ rights and the promotion of the democratic approach for a peaceful transfer of power, in addition to the involvement of women and youth in elections as both candidates and voters. Each year, through these town hall meetings, MIFTAH aims to reach the widest possible segment of the electorate and the different social sectors in all parts of Palestine.
MIFTAH completes training workshop in the Gaza Strip on family protection and advocacy
Date posted: January 05, 2023
By MIFTAH
Gaza – 2/1/2023 – MIFTAH recently completed a training workshop on measures and regulations on family protection in the Gaza Strip. The workshop was part of MIFTAH’s strategic objectives to prioritize family issues in communities and to support local institutions in increasing awareness on citizenship and constitutional rights for Palestinian women and on combatting all forms of GBV and discrimination in Palestinian society.
The workshop’s objectives included providing institutions with important information on the legislations, laws and measures for family protection in effect in the Gaza Strip, in a bid to enhance the oversight role of CSOs in holding accountable official parties responsible for enforcing these measures and legislations. The training also included offering institutions the necessary mechanisms for managing digital and media campaigns to press for the ratification of laws and legislation that protect women’s rights.
The discussions focused on a number of points, including legal (including sharia law) rebuttals to claims from parties opposing legislation, including the Family Protection Law. They also discussed how applicable this law would be in the Gaza Strip once ratified by the President.
The participants unanimously agreed that they supported adoption of the law, giving no credence to the claims of more extreme elements in Gaza on the Family Protection Law. They called on MIFTAH to hold general, open meetings with the public to introduce them to the law and its importance, so that they could defend themselves from the extremist discourse surrounding it.
Opinions and impressions
One of the participants, Latifa Shatat, said such training workshops were crucial for every Palestinian, male and female. “It is great we are pressing for protection laws such as the Family Protection Bill. This law will have tremendous impact on society as a whole. I can say from experience as a social and mental health worker that protection is the most important element in our work, especially in cases involving women and children, who are the most vulnerable social sectors. I commend MIFTAH and anyone who participates in spreading a culture of nonviolence, protection, justice and equality.”
Meanwhile, Haifa Al Araj said the training offered important details about the Family Protection Law and also ways of conducting initiatives and activities that could produce positive results in mobilizing support it.
Another participant, Hatem Abu Ta’a, said the training was a new starting point for him as an institution director in terms of integrating the demand to implement the Family Protection Law in all advocacy and lobbying activities and programs. He said he became more aware of the impediments to the law’s implementation at the official and social level, saying, “This training reminds us to renew our calls to demand implementation and ratification of the law at the official level.”
Meanwhile, Mahmoud Abu Rabee said ratification of the Family Protection Law would be a huge step, for women and children especially. “This law will amplify women’s voices and their ability to access help with stronger and more supportive centers throughout the homeland. As a strong supporter of this bill, I want to stress on the importance of civil society institutions explaining the clauses in the bill pertaining to CEDAW and to also focus on working with parties that oppose the law in particular.”
The training workshop is part of MIFTAH’s “Policy dialogue and Good Governance” Program, which aims at influencing public policies and legislation in favor of protection for citizens’ rights in Palestinian society, based on the principles of social justice and respect for human rights.
