The WFD, in partnership with the International Disability Alliance (IDA), has continued its Deaf Women’s Rights Training project to empower deaf women in six Southern African countries: Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Throughout the six-day programme, participants strengthened their knowledge and leadership skills on the realisation of Economic, Social and Cultural (ESC) rights, gender-based violence prevention and response, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).
The workshop also focused on leadership development, advocacy strategies, stakeholder mapping, policy engagement, and the development of national advocacy action plans to support participants in advancing the rights of deaf women in their respective countries.
The workshop emphasised practical learning through interactive exercises, case studies, advocacy simulations and peer learning. During the final days, each country delegation developed a national advocacy action plan, identifying concrete priorities, key stakeholders and first steps for implementation upon returning home.
A highlight of the workshop was an inspiring dialogue with a deaf woman candidate for the Parliament of Zambia, Ms Euprhasia Mbewe, who shared her leadership journey, the challenges she has faced as a deaf woman in politics, and the importance of increasing the participation of deaf women in public decision-making. Participants engaged in an interactive discussion, drawing valuable lessons for their own leadership journeys.
The workshop also strengthened regional cooperation by encouraging participants to support one another beyond the training through continued networking, peer learning, and collaboration.
This training forms part of a broader WFD initiative to strengthen the leadership of deaf women in Southern Africa and promote the realisation of their economic, social, and cultural rights through rights-based advocacy at national and regional levels.
