Cameroon: CHRDA Equips Women, Girls on IT, Fascinators Skills

By Boris Esono Nwenfor [caption id="attachment_104848" align="alignnone" width="1080"] Dr Violet Fokum, Executive Director of CHRDA[/caption] BUEA, March 1 – To promote women’s inclusion in technological development, the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa (CHRDA) is presently training some forty-seven (47) women and girls on basic computer and fascinator skills. The two weeks intensive program at CHRDA’s head office in Buea is in prelude to the Women’s Day celebration. The IT training is being done in partnership with the Cameroon Institute of Technology. The 2023 edition of International Women's Day celebrated will be celebrated under the theme “DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality.” According to the UN Women, the theme for this year aligns with the priority theme for the upcoming 67th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW-67), “Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls”. “We aim to empower these women with soft and hard skills that they can use for their empowerment. It is all about how we can help women to be economically empowered to help themselves, their families and their communities,” Dr Violet Fokum, Executive Director of CHRDA told Pan African Visions. "We decided to provide them with free training on basic accessories and fascinators that they can leave here and start-up small businesses and subsequently help them." The focus for basic computer skills is on Microsoft office (Microsoft word), How to use emails, online applications and others.  The volunteer trainers are training these women on how to design accessories for personal and commercial use. There are currently 25 women being trained on fascinators and about 22 being trained on IT. “The expectation is that, when these women leave here, they should be able to start doing some of these fascinators and start selling,” Dr Violet Fokum added. “We are not only teaching them these skills but also telling them how they can do marketing online. We are also giving them lessons on how they can market themselves online and how they can get a larger market that can help them sell their products." [caption id="attachment_104849" align="alignnone" width="1080"] The focus for basic computer skills is on Microsoft office (Microsoft word), How to use emails, online applications and others[/caption] "Aside from going to school, I need this skill as a woman to help me to have my income without demanding maybe from parents or assistance from brother,” Belucia Ambo Adam, a participant told Pan African Visions. “Coming here is a great privilege for me because I will be able to learn the skills and from there, I will be able to mix some and market them.” "This training from CHRDA is another way to fight gender-based violence because when women are empowered, there are fewer chances of them being violated or deprived of certain things that they would have been able to do for themselves," Elsie Foletia, Executive Director of Women Orientation Association said. it will be my joy to see these women producing these caps and putting them out in the market for people to buy. About CHRDA The Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa (CHRDA) is an independent and apolitical non-governmental organization. The Centre is a non-profit making organization created purposely for the promotion, protection and respect for human rights and democracy. To achieve these goals, CHRDA complies with national and international laws governing non-governmental organizations and their activities. CHRDA’s work ranges from human rights monitoring, documenting and reporting humanitarian aid, and provision of pro bono legal aid to victims of human rights violations, free vocational training to the population, advocacy, sensitization, and a host of other activities