Surca: Foro interdisciplinar por la igualdad de las mujeres del ámbito rural

From 13 to 18 November, in Moya (a municipality in the north of Gran Canaria), rural women from the Canary Islands and Africa will strive for equality during the second interdisciplinary forum for the equality of women from rural environments.

Rural municipalities present a series of common factors that directly influence development and economic and social sustainability, and have a particular impact on the position of women in their family, social and professional environments, as well as in their economic and moral situation.

All this results in a lack of opportunities for women; they have little representation in positions of responsibility and decision making; low affiliation to social security; the male ownership of properties that should be of shared ownership; difficulties in accessing new technologies and training opportunities; a lack of public social health infrastructure; a lack of awareness of strategies for marketing, planning and legal/business advice; and they succumb to the pressure that the family and social environment exert over what is considered to be acceptable female behaviour.

Casa África is collaborating with this meeting by contributing the participation of Awa Tounkara, Executive Secretary of the Association of Women Lawyers of Senegal. She will be one of the leading national and international experts addressing issues such as mediation, health and equality in the rural territories of the Canary Islands and Africa, analysing the difficulties and common problems between the islands and the African continent through different NGOs and women’s associations from Senegal, Gambia and Burkina Faso.

The forum is open to anyone who wants to participate, but prior registration is required.