UTC: Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

UTC

07

Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety 15 – 16 October 2015 Nairobi, Kenya

2 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Urban Thinkers Campus Partner Organisation

Disclaimer: The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication pages do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries regarding its economic system or degree of development. Excerpts may be reproduced without authorization, on condition that the source is indicated. Views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat, the United Nations and its member states.

3 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Table of Contents Urban Thinkers Campus in figures ............................................................................................................................................. 4 Introduction to UTC .................................................................................................................................................................... 5 The City We Need Principle(s) addressed.................................................................................................................................. 5 Key outcomes of the UTC7......................................................................................................................................................... 8 Key recommendations................................................................................................................................................................ 9 Key actors................................................................................................................................................................................. 11 Outstanding issues................................................................................................................................................................... 11 Speakers................................................................................................................................................................................... 12

4 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Urban Thinkers Campus in figures

4

75

COUNTRIES REPRESENTED

PARTICIPANTS

7

CONSTITUENT GROUPS REPRESENTED

23

ORGANIZATIONS

5 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Introduction to UTC

The Urban Thinkers Campus took place on 15- 16 October 2015 at UN-Habitat

The meeting adopted the following definition of Safe cities: safe public

Headquarters in Nairobi, focusing on ‘The City We Need is Safe’ principle

spaces where women and girls can move freely, without fear on streets

under the theme: ‘Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety’. It was organized

and work places. This should include access to water and sanitation,

by Polycom Development Project, an affiliate of Huairou Commission. As

electricity, transportation and other public amenities at residences and in

a partner of UN-Habitat’s World Urban Campaign it was supported by the

public locations; they should be supported by gender sensitive policing

Youth and Livelihood Unit, Actionaid International and Global Communities.

mechanisms for reporting violence and obtaining redress such as having safe centers/shelters for survivors.”

Jane Anyango led the Polycom Development Project team while Huairou Commission was represented by Achola Pala and Violet Shivutse. Jane

In-depth discussions were held within meetings of diverse constituent

Anyango in her welcome remarks stressed on the need for meaningful

groups, feeding into debates during plenary and urban thinkers sessions.

engagement with women on issues touching on their lives and the need

Models for reporting gender based violence and mobilizing were presented

to support community initiated project to promote sustainability. The

as effective solutions.

Campus was officially opened by Ms. Christine Auclair, Project Leader of the World Urban Campaign; who provided an overview of the World Urban Campaign and the process of Urban Thinkers Campuses. She mentioned the importance of examining the nine principles of The City We Need as well as the intended key outcomes that should consist in documented recommendations on how to achieve The City We Need is Safe and why, including a requisite policy and legislation framework as well as urban solutions for safety.

The City We Need principle(s) addressed • The city we need is socially inclusive • The city we need is a safe city

6 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Matrix of linkages - TCWN 1.0 vs. new recommendations Principle 1: The city we need is socially inclusive

Principle 6: The city we need is a safe city

Women call for a city in which they are involved in the planning, design, budgeting and implementation of security interventions.

•

Women demand a city in which their safety is guaranteed in both public and private places.

Women demand a city in which they can access information that is timely, comprehensive, accessible and disseminated through appropriate channels.

•

Women demand for the establishment of a coordinated/ comprehensive one stop shop for addressing gender based violence.

•

Women demand for a review of existing safety interventions to ensure women’s issues and concerns are integrated.

•

Women demand a well-lit city to facilitate pursuance of economic activities and to promote enhanced security and the identification of perpetrators.

•

Women demand to be part of development of indicators for safety under the Social Development Goals.

•

Women demand a clean city free of garbage and with proper waste management systems.

•

Women demand inclusive allocation of safe public spaces for pursuance of economic activities.

•

Women demand accessible and secure water and sanitation facilities.

•

Grassroots women and communities demand involvement during dissemination of research findings on safer cities; communities should know the outcome of research.

•

Women demand education on safer cities and their rights.

•

Women demand that the County Government provides temporary safe houses for survivors of gender based violence.

•

•

Women demand that media improves its reporting styles on issues of women and safety in the city.

•

Women demand appointment of more women chiefs in the urban informal settlements.

•

Women demand discrimination free participation in city safety decision making mechanisms such as District Peace Committees, Nyumba Kumi Initiative and Chief’s Barazas.

•

Women will formalize campaigns for making the city safe for women, expand audiences and mobilize more women to participate.

•

Women demand abolition of retrogressive policies and legislation.

•

•

Women are a key stakeholder in ensuring safer cities. Policies for safer cities should be informed by accurate, reliable data from women.

Women will institute Women Action Groups for building women’s solidarity and rapid response/information sharing mechanism to ensure women are kept abreast on community events.

•

•

Implement the two thirds gender rule in determining representation in both public and community based initiatives.

Women will tap into good practices e.g Wamama Tunauwezo to mobilize grassroots women to facilitate women’s participation in the Safer City discourse.

•

Women will explore use of alternative/social media coverage on women and safer cities.

•

Identify and use media houses/networks that are predisposed towards women’s issues and work with them to champion women’s cause.

7 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Key outcomes of the UTC

Key recommendations

It was noted that women are involved in ensuring safety in urban

Recommendations address the fundamental ways for optimizing women

settlements mainly through the Nyumba Kumi Initiative in which they are

in ensuring safety in the city. They are the following: 1) achieving social

part of the leadership committee. This includes the women’s leadership

inclusion of women in policy formulation, implementation, monitoring and

in peace initiatives and cross learning visits through the Wamama Tuna

evaluation; 2) collecting data for decision making and policy formulation

Uwezoplatform in Mathare, Kibera and Mukuru areas of Nairobi. They are

with women as key stakeholders in data collection and informing on

also actively involved in Mombasa where women provide early warning for

interventions; 3) promoting gender responsiveness in the provision of social

impending crime, insecurity and gender based violence. Nonetheless, the

services (water, electricity, health, waste disposal, business premises,

meaningful engagement of women in ensuring safety in the city is weakened

police posts, land policies) with women as key informers of the design and

by exclusion due to: disability, illiteracy, living with HIV, intimidation by men,

implementation processes; 4) providing platforms for grassroots women to

ethnicity, nepotism, poor documentation of issues, deficient information and

define and sustain campaigns as well as raise their safety issues, noting

biased media coverage, among other key factors. The Kenya Community

that grassroots women and initiatives require capacity building on the

Development Foundation may consider funding Polycom Development

effective articulation of issues; 5) promoting the voice of civil society/

Project to roll out Crowd Data Sourcing and Wamama Tuna Uwezo models

grassroots groups to challenge government bodies to deliver gender

in Nairobi’s informal settlements.

responsive services in the informal urban settlements. The mobilization of various groups through organized and sustained advocacy is key in ensuring women’s engagement and access to safer cities; 6) supporting community initiated projects to promote sustainability and ownership. 7) Gender responsive budgeting.

8 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Women are calling for a city in which safety is guaranteed in both

should be institutionalized. In Kenya, the County Government should provide

public and private places through a well-lit city in order to facilitate the

temporary safe homes for survivors of gender based violence and appoint

pursuance of economic activities, promoting enhanced security and the

more women chiefs in urban informal settlements.

identification of perpetrators. This can only be realized by mapping of hotspots for harassments. Women should be involved in the planning,

Women are key stakeholders in ensuring safer cities. Policies for safer cities

design and implementation of security interventions and establishment of a

should be informed by accurate, reliable data from and on women. Devolved

coordinated and comprehensive one stop shop for addressing gender based

system of government should be encouraged as well as the representation

violence. There should be review of existing safety interventions to ensure

of women in both public and community based initiatives. Campaigns

women’s issues and concerns are integrated.

for making the city safe for women, expanding audiences and mobilizing more women to participate should be formalized (referencing Wamama

Women demand a city where they can access information that is timely,

Tunauwezo). Women Action Groups should be established for building

comprehensive, accessible and disseminated through appropriate channels.

women’s solidarity and rapid response as well as information sharing

This can be achieved through the establishment of community resource

mechanism to ensure women are kept abreast on community events. To

centers. Women should be part of the development of indicators for safety

achieve that level of participation, one should tap into good practices to

under the Sustainable Development Goals, in order to include the allocation

mobilize grassroots women in the Safer City discourse. The media houses/

of safe public spaces for the pursuance of economic activities.

networks should be identified and used for addressing women’s issues and championing women’s cause. Grassroots women and communities

Women are calling for a clean city, free of garbage with proper waste

request to be involved in the dissemination of research findings on safer

management systems in place, as well as accessible and secure water and

cities; communities should be aware of the outcome of research work.

sanitation facilities. They call for a true participation free of discrimination

Media should be encouraged to improve their reporting styles on women

in decision-making mechanisms such as District Peace Committees,

and safety issues in cities.Women groups should also explore the use of

Nyumba Kumi Initiative and Chief’s Barazas. Retrogressive policies and

alternative (online) communication channels, like social media coverage on

legislations should be abolished. Education on safer cities and their rights

women and safer cities.

9 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Key actors

Outstanding issues

The proposed actions can be recapitulated under these major themes: policy

There is a need to consider pooled funding for women rights defenders from

and legislation formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation;

donors and local governments. In order for women to sustain demand for

infrastructure development; information dissemination; evidence based

safer cities, advocacy resources are required to facilitate these efforts in

data for decision-making; and, sustained mobilization and participation.

an organized manner.

The key actors involved

a) The Kenya National and County Governments These are the duty bearers who are obligated to address the safety needs

Urban solutions

of women, children and youth by developing and/or reviewing progressive

Crowd Data Sourcing is a real time digital platform for mapping and access

policies, legislations and infrastructure development in a gender responsive

to various aspects of life, especially sexual harassment or abuse in public

manner. The Constitution of Kenya accords the County Government the

spaces. The platform was introduced by Red Dot organization in September

responsibility to receive and approve plans and policies for the development

2015. Data collection on the platform should focus on three aspects:

and management of its infrastructures, institutions, and other aspects which have a direct impact on the development and implementation of

• What happened?

gender responsive legislations and policies as recommended above.

• When did this happen?

• Where did it happen? (The specific land mark)

b) National Parliament and Members of County Assembly These are legislators and are the only ones who can repeal retrogressive

The categories of abuse one can report under include: ogling/facial

and discriminatory policies and legislation as well as enact progressive

expressions/staring; taking pictures; catcalls/whistles; commenting;

ones.

indecent exposure; touching/groping; sexual invites; stalking; rape/sexual assault; others.

c) Women

The use of this tool has been piloted in Kibera and has entailed creating

Women are the key stakeholders and need to put forth continuous, systematic

awareness of forms of harassment and increased their reporting. Delegates

and proactive articulation of issues. Women have the responsibility to take

were taken through a demonstration of the tool on maps.safecity.in

an active, meaningful role in initiatives for ensuring safer cities.

World Urban Campaign @urbancampaign

d) Community media

Oct 16

the urban safety, and employ women, youth and child friendly means of

Community tools for safe cities are urban solutions for #TheCityWeNeed - Achola Pala @HuairouConnect #UrbanThinkers

obtaining and reporting safety issues.

https://twitter.com/urbancampaign/status/654988869599907840

They should raise the profile of women who are positively impacting on

e) Researchers They need to build the capacity of women to inform research agendas, collect and collate data as well as disseminate findings. They need to liaise with Governments for research-informed policy and the formulation of legislation, their implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

World Urban Campaign @urbancampaign

Oct 16

#UrbanThinkers Nairobi Closing & Thanks by @HuairouConnect @polycomdev @ urbancampaign - Women Have The Power!!! https://twitter.com/urbancampaign/status/655005885744443396

10 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

The advantages of using the tool are three-fold: communities are informed

Wamama Tunauwezo

on which public spaces are safe or unsafe for women and girls; it provides

Wamama Tunauwezo is a mobilization methodology that enables people

real time information, readily accessible to all; it can be used widely and

to form a strong voice to influence change through structures that promote

is reliable.

easy flow of information. It is premised on individuals reaching the people closest to them. Polycom mobilized 200 women whom in turn mobilized

The delegates recommended the model since it is practical one that

10 others to ensure there is no violence in Kibera. The 200 women work

highlights the various forms of gender based violence.

together. The neighborhood of Kibera is subdivided into of 4 regions under 1 leader each. Each leader reaches 10 women who in turn reach 4 others.

Strengths •

Bridges gaps in access of technology as it has an offline capability,

Weaknesses •

making it usable in places such as schools •

The information captured is broad and varied including aspects such as

It is internet based which is challenging for those who do not have smart gadgets and internet connectivity

•

what, where and when of incidences

The use of Crowd Data Sourcing is dependent on availability of electricity

•

The reports can be made by anyone apart from survivors

•

It has the option to report anonymously thereby ensuring confidentiality

•

It provides a platform for lobbying based on data/evidence provided

•

The information verification mechanism is unclear

•

It facilitates identification of hot spots and prevalence of incidences

•

The service turnaround time following reports is unclear

•

It allows for disaggregated information

•

The tool is unknown beyond its current users

•

It can be used to identify GBV trends

•

The tool is participatory

•

The response to reports cannot be real time given that information is picked weekly

Suggestions on how to bridge current gaps of Crowd Data Sourcing •

Expand the range of ambassadors and users of the tool to include women and other actors.

•

Position feedback boxes in areas such as churches, huduma (service) centers and barazas (public forums), as an alternative or in addition to internet based reporting.

•

Create awareness on the tool in order to promote widespread use. Community media can be used to make the tool Kenyan-owned. The initiative should also work with the media to create information, education and communication (IEC) materials for it.

•

Link information from the tool to chiefs, the police and policy makers.

•

Incorporate reports/suggestions of users and survivors on enhancing safety initiatives.

•

Initiate complementary reporting interventions on the tool such as toll free helpline, bulk short messaging system (SMS).

•

Include service delivery information for survivors so they can know where to access services.

•

Collaborate with ongoing efforts such as Map Kibera to avoid duplication of mapping efforts and ensure complementarity.

•

Campaign and lobbying for use of Crowd Data Sourcing during international days.

•

Domesticate the tool for use in Kenya’s urban informal settlements.

11 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Strategies that have made the methodology work include: 1) building

other informal settlements in Nairobi. Currently, the methodology is in use in

capacity of women with leadership, 2) building on the connectors for

Kibera and Korogocho and has been instrumental in passing on information.

women, 3) using dividers positively (multicultural celebrations of ethnicity, they sing a lot and have an anthem), 4) tracing of women leaders.

The delegates thought the methodology is community led and driven have emanated from the grassroots.

Polycom plans to expand the methodology through 50 women leaders in 5 Its strengths, weaknesses and suggestions for improvement are captured below:

Strengths

Weaknesses/Challenges

•

It reaches many people as fast as possible.

•

Cheap to use as women mobilize a few other women.

understand the community. People are diverse and have different

•

It is not a self-centered initiative; all have a place and are

personalities and the leaders and members of the methodology

involved in mobilization.

need to understand the people in their cell and hear their agenda

•

Before and during use of the methodology, one has to

of communication.

•

Using Wamama Tunauwezo it is easy to engage community

•

members at large, and one can mobilize within a large geographical scope.

•

Information flow is made easy and systematic.

•

Its use creates and promotes women’s leadership capacity,

given that members meet on weekends.

•

• •

Clusters may have different issues/concerns for communication.

How do you deal with multiple issues?

•

confidence and self-esteem •

Dealing with a large number of mobilizers may be challenging

It may be prone to miscommunication due to misinterpretation of message which is passed by mouth.

The methodology creates bonds as it incorporates money

•

May be open to stakeholder interference/capture of agenda.

saving aspects and also uses ethnicity positively.

•

There could be inconsistency in mobilization

It is also uses as a mentorship and socialization platform

•

Risk of message dilution is high as it is unwritten.

given that members meet weekly.

•

Membership and mobilization is based on voluntarism and

It is a community initiated method and therefore can survive

therefore the methodology may be unsustainable.

with very little resources.

Suggestions on how to use Wamama Tunauwezo •

The methodology can be introduced in schools and facilitate discussions among girls and with stakeholders.

•

Women can use it to engage with county and national governments and for monitoring progress of implementation at grassroots level.

•

It can facilitate community awareness and understanding of advocacy issues.

12 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

Speakers Jane Anyango, Polycom Development Project, Expert - Habitat III Policy Unit 5, UN Women Civil Society Advisory Group Member Christine Auclair, UN-Habitat Agnes Midi, ActionAid International Housing and Physical Planning Jessica Njui, African Youth Trust Jane Godia, African Women and Child Feature Pauline Kariuki, Vice President East African Poultry Farmers Association and National Chairperson, Kenya Selessor Odipoh, Kenya Community Development Foundation (KCDF) Hon. Rachel Kamweru, MCA Nairobi City County Carole Nyambura, Gender Consultant Hon. Owino Kotieno, MCA Nairobi City County Rose Nyawira, Nairobi Environmental Sanitation & Hygiene Violet Shivutse, Huairou Commission, UN Women Global Civil Society Advisory Group Member Jane Godiah, African Women and Child Feature (AWCF) Carole Nyambura, Gender Consultant Achola Pala, Huairou Commission

13 Urban Thinkers Campus: 07 – Engaging Women in Ensuring Safety

List of all countries present 1. Kenya

3. Uganda

2. USA

4. Rwanda

List of organizations represented 1.

Polycom Development Project

13. Global Communities

2.

Huairou Commission

14. Kibera women for peace and fairness (KWPF)

3.

UN-Habitat: Youth 21

15. Development Through Media

4.

ActionAid International

16. Multimedia University

5.

Nairobi County Legislative

17. Pamoja Fm

6.

Nairobi County Executive

18. Touch Their Heart (T.T.H)

7.

African Youth Trust

19. Women Action Group Mukuru (WAG)

8.

African Women and Child Feature

20. Sauti Mombasa

9.

East African Poultry Farmers Association

21. Usalama Forum

10. Kenya Community Development Foundation (KCDF)

22. Maendeleo ya wanawake - Mathare

11. Nairobi Environmental Sanitation & Hygiene

23. Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims - SUPKEM.

12. Groots Mathare

http://huairou.org/habitat-iii

United Nations Human Settlements Programme P.O. Box 30030 Nairobi 00100, Kenya World Urban Campaign Secretariat www.worldurbancampaign.org Email: wuc@unhabitat.org Tel.: +254 20 762 1234

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