40 years old, Qaali Mire Sahal lives in Warshiekh district -Middle Shebelle- Somalia is the chairlady of Warsheikh women association and also lead member of non-state actors in Warshiekh district. She is one of direct project beneficiaries –GESI. This is her story:
“Now I feel different because this project helped me a lot, and CED provided me an opportunity to participate in project’s activities like: campaigns, platform dialogues, civic engagement trainings, I learnt that social inclusion is so essential and that women perspectives should be included in political processes, leadership, good governance and decision-making in public concern. The inclusion and participation of young people enhances their capabilities, proves their full potential to contribute to their wellbeing as well as their societies well-being in general.
Currently, I am engaged in mobilizing my community and elders in particular to convince them to help me to win seat in Warsheikh district council. In fact, building on more knowledge and experiences gained from CED GESI project, I have managed to attract public support from many important social groups of my community.This gave me a lot of motivations and moral support and that is why I am going to contest to become a member in the upcoming Warsheiklocal council.
The most obstacles women face in Somalia is that of political participation and leadership. Somalia has deeply rooted cultural obstacles and I have grown up and spent most of my life where patriarchy ceils every angle of livelihoods system in the entire society. Amidst the resultant breakdown of law and order, displacement, poverty, migration, and deep instability, the women and youths – like other vulnerable groups in society have been entirely excluded from political participation processes and decision-making.
Women are excluded from clan decision-making, but we want to convince our local community leaders and prove to them that we as women candidates can do the same or even better than what men can do. In Somalia, women’s leadership roles are often confined to domestic needs rather than the political level and Somali women’s participation in national politics and in decision making processes have been hampered by lack of representation in grass root clan authority structures. As women association, we are planning to set up a network for women candidates to promote gender equality, and to work with traditional elders for greater women’s participation in political decision making. The participants also recommended that more leadership and mentorship trainings for women should be carried out across Somalia.”
