During the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence,discover seven Equipop partner associations committed to combating gender-based and sexual violence in West Africa. In 2016, seven young women created the Club des Jeunes Filles Leaders de Guinée (CJFLG) to provide girls with a safe and secure space where they can talk freely about the violence they experience and the changes they want to see in their society. Today, the Club has 11 employees and more than 500 members across the country.
[vc_column width= »1/2″]The Club aims to foster a movement in which girls, whether members or not, can make their voices heard and learn about their rights. Its members work to improve the sexual and reproductive health of adolescents and young people: access to information on menstrual health and contraception, the right to control their own bodies, and the fight against gender-based and sexual violence.
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The Club also prepares young girls to participate in decision-making at all levels—community, local, governmental—and particularly on issues that concern them. Young members are thus active both in the management of the association and in the activities it carries out: raising awareness within communities, empowering their sisters, mobilizing artists, advocating with the authorities, supporting and caring for victims of violence, etc.
"We want to start a big revolution for girls. We want them to not always have to say yes. We want them to be able to speak up and say what they think. We want them to be able to enjoy and fully exercise their rights, no matter what. We want to create the conditions so that girls don't have to endure an oppressive system and can create their own system, according to their ideas and passions." Kadiatou Konaté, co-founder of CJFLG
FOCUS ON THE GUINEAN GIRLS' FORUM Every year, the CJFLG organizes two days of activities—panels, exhibitions, theatrical or poetic performances—that highlight issues specific to the rights of women and girls. The first edition in 2021, "Young girls, victims yesterday, agents of change today," put girls at the center of the fight against violence. The theme for 2022, "Sexual violence in Guinea: what are the solutions?", amplified girls' voices, highlighted the responsibilities of the various stakeholders (government, youth associations and movements, media), and identified obstacles and priority actions in the fight against sexual violence.
Equipop's sisterly support Youth organizations struggle to obtain direct funding. The CJFLG advocates for flexible funds that are adapted to the realities of different communities, geographical areas, and populations. Through its strategic partnership with Equipop, the Club was able to manage a €20,000 fund for the first time, while benefiting from support and capacity building. Bolstered by their experience and now with access to more opportunities, the Club's members have incorporated direct funding for other youth initiatives into their strategic plan. At the same time, they are in turn supporting the associations that sponsor them so that they can learn how to find and manage funds. Proud to be able to take action against gender-based and sexual violence Guinea does not have funds to support victims of gender-based and sexual violence. One of the Club's greatest sources of pride is its ability to respond, in part, to this need. For two years now, they have been offering financial support and holistic assistance (legal counsel, healthcare, psychological support, accommodation, etc.). A strategic turning point The Club's members are driven by strategic thinking. Looking ahead, they want to strengthen their commitment to sex education for girls, expand their reintegration and economic empowerment activities to all young girls who are victims of violence, and reinvent ways of combating female genital mutilation, the prevalence of which remains high despite strong mobilization by civil society.
