Community Forums update - April 2009
Forming women's leadership forums in Ngorongoro
Following the successful introduction of Community Forums in Longido District in March 2009, the Community Forums team facilitated the formulation of women's leadership groups in Loliondo and Sale Divisions of Ngorongoro District.
In April 2009 the Community Forums team led by Ujamaa Community Resource Trust itravelled to Ngorongoro District to help local women's groups form leadership forums as a counterpart to the existing customary leadership institutions. The formation and support to customary leadership institutions is part Community Forum's effort to widen participatory leadership at the village and district levels in northern Tanzania.
In Loliondo and Sale Divisions, Community Forums visited five wards to facilitate the selection of women's representatives for the District and arranged for a meeting of all representatives for May 2009. The representatives were chosen by the women in each ward based on their ongoing commitment to local women's leadership and development in Ngorongoro.
The formation of the team of women leaders generated hope for the positive impact of their participation in District level decision-making on the lives of women and the community as a whole. The women expressed appreciation for the role of the all-men customary leadership institutions in resolving conflict between the various ethnic communities in Ngorongoro. However, the women placed their hope in the new all-women leadership forum to guide the resolution of conflicts related to domestic violence and other gender-based marginalisation. Key partners in the ongoing process of women's leadership institutions are the Pastoralist Women's Council and the Maasai Women Development Organization.