Women's Empowerment in Africa

This week was all about women empowerment, we had a women's workshop for four days and it was my first time to experience it. I did not know what to expect and how it will turn out...

The workshop was led by HAF empowerment trainers - Amina El Hajjami, Fatima Zahra Laaribi and Ibtissam Niri. I had the chance to see them do a wonderful job and still learn more about what they do for HAF. The workshop tackled seven key areas of our lives: emotions, relationships, work, body, money, sexuality and spirituality.

Some concepts were harder to understand and talk about than others and it was apparent how differently Moroccans and Americans view certain things due to cultural backgrounds. It was admirable to see the UVA interns trying to understand and put themselves in our shoes as Moroccans. Even though I am Moroccan, I still learned a great deal from the other Moroccan university students that joined us. Seeing how challenging was for some of them to move from small villages to the cosmopolitan city of Marrakech to study and pursue their studies and dreams. Listening to their stories during this workshop changed my perspectives...

During the four days of the workshop, participants dreamed, imagined, described and drew to express themselves, danced, stood in a circle and shared their respective final thoughts within the group while holding candles…The circle was a perfect way to end our four days together; the women of the group farewelled each other with big hugs and kisses.

The workshop's past four days had a strange effect on me. I felt as if I were friends with the fellow participants for many years. We were able to know each other's personal stories, experiences and perspectives. Each and everyone's tales conveyed and taught lessons and motivated new insights and ideas. Sharing has tremendous positive effects on personal beliefs and should bring and lead to change.

SCATTERED. For the past week, I’ve been trying to put into words, or just one word, what the four-day women’s empowerment workshop meant to me and I feel scattered just trying. All at once, the workshop was challenging, easy, meditative, analytical, goal-oriented, present-focused, relaxing, irritating, draining, and energizing. I’ve written down a lot of my thoughts already, so to make the most out of this one page I have listed quotes, questions, and observations most salient to me from the Imagine Workshop. Perhaps scattering these thoughts, with no rhyme or reason or theme or order, may present a clearer image of the conversations had during those four days than I could’ve explained in a neat narrative.

Change is good, and it needs to be constant. | “My development, without limits.” (Fatima Zahra, Moroccan participant) | I know that this workshop is focused on internal change and working on all the things that we can control within a society that is largely out of our control; however, should we believe that we always need to change to fit our institutions? Social empowerment and development should have a lens of focus that includes actionable change to take in solving structural gaps and institutional gender inequity. Both should change. | What makes your personality powerful? | “You should speak to the realest person you know, and the realest person should be yourself.” (Vic, American participant) | As a woman, you have to love yourself—fully. Loving what you do, giving value to what you do, and acknowledging that what you can’t do yet is achievable if you’re willing to be persistent. | Limiting Belief (Sexuality) #3: Sexuality should be confined to reproduction. How can we turn this around, without imposing Western, secular values and respecting cultural values? | “Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit and the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.” (Kahlil Gibran)