03-12-2024 | di COOPI

From crisis to growth: empowering women in Bol as a key to peace and development

 

In Bol, the capital of the Lac region, the calm waters of Lake Chad contrast with the tensions and conflicts that have long troubled the region. It is within this context that an innovative project has emerged: the ‘Gender and Peace: Let's mobilise for an inclusive peace-building process’ project led by COOPI - Cooperazione internazionale in consortium with ACORD and CELIAF and funded by the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (UNPBF) and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO/ISF).

This project is committed to building strong links between communities, with a focus on inclusion and gender equality. Building the capacity of women's organisations and networks and promoting the socio-economic activities of women and girls are the main objectives of this initiative. In particular, one of the key activities of this project is the creation of a revolving fund to finance income-generating activities for women.

Halimé, a 35-year-old member of the KOUDIATY women's association, lives in an outlying district of Bol. Divorced and the mother of five children, she has always struggled to make ends meet. The situation was made all the more difficult by the fact that climatic crises and attacks by non-state armed groups (GANE) in the region have disrupted the local economy, increasing poverty and insecurity.

Abdoulaye Halimé is taking part in a series of training courses on financial management, the development of income-generating activities, women's leadership and community peace. Thanks to these sessions, she is not only acquiring management skills but also a better understanding of the importance of peace and collaboration between the different communities in the region.

Thanks to the revolving funds set up by the project, Halimé received a loan of XAF 50,000 from her association and decided to start trading in condiments (onions, chillies, pepper, tomatoes, cucumbers, dried fish, etc.). She chose this activity because she already knew about vegetable processing and preservation techniques from her mother.

Thanks to the training she received, she applies effective marketing techniques (word of mouth, selling at auctions, etc.), and buys produce in the production areas before selling it fresh and/or processed on local markets. Little by little, her small business is gaining notoriety. The women in the group, impressed by her success, began to ask her for advice, and some joined her to learn vegetable processing and preservation techniques that not only prevent losses but also add value to the processed products.

Halimé's success has had a significant impact on her family and community. The income generated by her business enables her family to have a more stable diet, pay her children's school fees and better provide for their medical needs. She has even managed to repay the initial loan from the revolving fund, enabling other women to benefit from this opportunity.

On a social level, Halimé has become a symbol of peace and collaboration. Her commitment inspires other women to take part in the gender and peace project, creating a virtuous circle of empowerment and cooperation.
Halimé illustrates how access to a revolving fund, combined with appropriate training and community support, can transform the life of a woman and, by extension, that of an entire community. Her story shows that the economic empowerment of women is not only a vector for economic development, but also a powerful tool for promoting peace and social cohesion in regions affected by conflict.

COOPI has been operating in Chad since 1976, adopting a multi-sectoral approach. In the Lac and N'Djamena regions, it provides emergency education to displaced children and local communities, offers psychosocial support to victims of trauma, and promotes peace-building, with a focus on women's empowerment, gender-based violence and discrimination, and conflict prevention.