'Women’s Councils: models, skills and voice for a just society in Eritrea’
A joint programme by ISCOS of Italy, National Confederation of Eritrean Workers (NCEW) and local authorities have trained more than 300 women representatives in 5 regions, such as Maekel, Debub, Anseba, Northern Red Sea and Gash Barka regions of Eritrea.
The main objective of the ‘Women’s Council project is to ‘Promote the principles of non-discrimination, gender equality and women empowerment encouraging increased promotion, protection of social, economic and cultural rights in Eritrea. Its main purpose of the action is to build social, economic and cultural platforms/processes accelerating new opportunities for disadvantaged outreach women to achieve equal access to productive employment and decent work, playing an active role in conflict prevention/resolution for building a sustainable peace in Eritrea.
The women affairs of the National Confederation of Eritrean Workers have organised a training for 5 confederation of workers in the regions on gender equality, leadership and management, women and health and membership of women in NCEW, as well as, about the history of workers’ movement in Eritrea and the legal provisions of workers’ organizations.
Women in the in-formal sector and disadvantaged workers trained across the country in basic social, cultural and economic rights. In addition, knowledgeable and skilled councillor women in trade unions and vulnerable communities trained. Each council represented by 100 women delegates from the region with a total number of 300 women trainees;
Poor women, 30 by number in the informal sector economically empowered to establish small income generating businesses and 50 women headed households in rural areas enabled to improve livelihoods through provision of sheep and goats for reproduction.