Women and youth in action: Autonomy and resilience in Burkina Faso
The Confédération Paysanne du Faso (CPF) has reached a significant milestone in the ongoing effort to empower women farmers in West Africa. On August 11 and 12, 2023, in Ouagadougou, in the meeting room of ABMAQ, the CPF organized a national self-assessment workshop of the Support Program for the Resilience of Women in West Africa (PARFAO). This pivotal event was held in close collaboration with the Network of Farmers’ and Agricultural Producers’ Organizations of West Africa (ROPPA).
Since its launch in April 2020, PARFAO, with the support of ROPPA and its national platforms including CPF, has focused on creating economic opportunities for women, restoring and sustainably managing natural resources, and strengthening the capacity of women to influence public policies.
This workshop was conceived as an exercise in introspection, aiming to assess the progress of the program since its inception. It provided an opportunity for the participants and project partners to delve into the data collected from the project beneficiaries, and to assess the project’s relevance, coherence, effectiveness, and sustainability conditions. The workshop also facilitated the identification of the major achievements of the project and pinpointing the experiences to be capitalized on.
A critical part of the workshop was devoted to identifying the weaknesses and shortcomings of the project, which will serve as a basis for future improvements. The participants actively engaged in a dialogue with public authorities on the issues of women’s resilience, thus marking an important step towards increased collaboration between state and non-state actors.
Participatory exchanges through group work were at the heart of this workshop. They allowed women farmers and other stakeholders to share their experiences, express their concerns, and enrich the results derived from the field data collection. These discussions brought to light the strengths, weaknesses, constraints, and best practices of the project.
The workshop also served as a platform to consider the conditions for replicating the project in other regions and defining future prospects. Among these prospects, the development of a strategy to extend the project to other countries in West Africa, and strengthening advocacy with authorities for the integration of resilience and gender approaches in public policies were strongly emphasized.
In summary, the PARFAO self-assessment workshop organized by the CPF was not just an exercise in reflection but a milestone towards a future where women farmers in West Africa are more resilient, more autonomous, and more influential in decision-making spaces that directly affect their lives and communities.
Fatimata KONE
Communication and Knowledge Management Officer
ROPPA