Presentation of activities

PRESENTATION OF MAMA ODARI'S ACTIVITIES

1. CLIMATE JUSTICE (FIGHT AGAINST GLOBAL WARMING)

As part of this activity, MAMA ODARI strengthens the capacities of women and girls in various techniques for combating global warming and preserving forest ecosystems by setting up green palaver huts in the villages concerned, similar to the palaver huts of traditional (customary) chiefs, locally called "LUBUNGA". The green palaver huts are in fact spaces intended not only for capacity building meetings but also safe and public places for women to meet. It should be noted here that women and girls do not participate in the meetings held in the LUBUNGA: these are exclusive sexist places.

Instead of women "holding" their meetings standing up and/or going to the fields or the river, MAMA ODARI gave them this opportunity to have their own meeting spaces in which they now meet to discuss their rights as well as to be able to invite their local leaders (traditional chiefs: customary leaders) to hold them accountable and submit their points of view or suggestions on various points relating to respect for the human rights and dignity of women and girls.

In fact, in application of the principle of not harming "do no harm" unlike the LUBUNGA of traditional chiefs often built of straw in the middle of villages, the green palaver huts when they are led by women members of inter-ethnic committees of female peers (CIPF) and their meetings are held under the shade of trees, symbol of respect and protection of trees.

2. ECONOMIC EVOLUTION OF WOMEN

MAMA ODARI contributes to the economic recovery of women: small farmers in rural areas; heads of single-parent families; victims of gender-based violence; beggars from SOPEKA (a type of begging practiced in the DR Congo); people living with disabilities; and young girls who are victims of early marriage and who have been forced to return to their parents. Other categories of women affected by our economic recovery activities are girls who have dropped out of school because of their parents' poverty, as well as girls at risk of being forced into marriage, often without their consent (these are child marriages practiced according to the customs and traditions of the area concerned) or early unions, before the legal age of 18.

We also carry out advocacy actions with local authorities so that the law is applied against this type of marriage of which girls are victims as well as the mobilization/awareness of communities (population) through the media such as radio; to sensitize them against child marriages and early unions authorized by traditional social norms.

Given this evidence, some women and girls engage in SOPEKA begging (acronym in Lingala, which is a type of begging practiced in the DR Congo: which translates to "give me a donation") and prostitution in brothels in the city, an activity which exposes them to multiple cases of sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS.

To overcome this situation, MAMA ODARI introduces women and girls from rural communities to the innovative solidarity mutual savings and credit technique (MUSO INNOVEE). What you need to know first is that vulnerable women small farmers in rural areas do not have the guarantees (or mortgages) required by bankers. MUSO is an appropriate solution, it is a community-based technique for combating poverty. Through which, women and/or girls are formed into groups of at least 5 women to a maximum of 10 women, trained in community savings and credit techniques. This technique at the women's group level is done in two wooden boxes in blue and red.

Therefore, members of each MUSO make two different types of contributions:

• the first type of contribution is that which is made in the blue box intended for contributions (savings) or reserve funds for future granting of credits between colleagues-members of the group;
• The second type of contribution is that which is made in the red box intended for mutual aid of solidarity (during various happy circumstances: marriages, births, dowries, etc. or painful ones: mourning, illness, losses, etc.). In fact, the contributions of the red box play the protective role of the savings-credits of the blue box.

To combat fraud and embezzlement, the boxes held by the mutual solidarity groups (MUSO) are locked with padlocks with two keys guarded by two women different from those who guard the boxes. The mutual solidarity credits are rotating and interest-free and do not require any guarantee. MAMA ODARI has already established 157 assets across the province of Tanganyika.

To encourage the best mutual solidarity group (MUSO) to debit to grant credit to its members; MAMA ODARI provides them with financial support. This support is deposited in a third “fictitious” green box.

B. SCHOOL AND SPORTS SUPERVISION FOR CHILDREN

As part of the participation in the process of preparing a good future for our brother children, especially those from poor families in unsanitary neighborhoods, who have lost all hope of accessing normal schooling, our association MAMA ODARI takes special care of them by offering them a chance to be able to follow a normal primary school curriculum by providing them with school supplies (notebooks, pair of shoes, pens, pencils, briefcases, uniform) and by paying their school fees.

For those from villages surrounding the town of Kalemie, especially those located in villages where school infrastructure was destroyed by the belligerents during the tribal-ethnic conflict between Bantus and Pygmies, we supervise them in catch-up classes located under tarpaulin, just to bring them up to speed.

As the level of vulnerability of these children differs, that is, those from poor families, some of whom beg on the city streets, and those living in villages where accessibility to schools is a serious problem; to each of these categories of children, we provide an appropriate school support solution that satisfies them all.

For some students, we support them in traditional education and for others, we use the inverted classroom method, otherwise known in English: flipped class.

Over the past nine years to date, our association has supported the schooling of 123 children, including 83 in traditional education and 40 in inverted classes. These same students continue to receive support for their schooling from our association.

• Sports supervision for children

In the wake of the academic supervision that we provide to the children we meet, our MAMA ODARI association provides sports supervision to another category of children in order to allow the harmonious development of their bodies as well as to facilitate their excellent means of socialization.

This is how we organize inter-school, inter-district and inter-community football sports tournaments as part of peacebuilding between children of different ethnic groups and social classes. To properly stimulate the children, we have our own cadet football teams (girls and boys), which are trained and morally monitored (psychological supervision) by a coach and head of the project: sport for peace of our association.

• Impacts of school and sports supervision of children

19 children (10 girls and 9 boys) supported by our organization since 2016, some (4 girls and 4 boys) among them have reached the final year level.

83 children (47 girls and 36 boys) from poor families study regularly without hindrance and have the opportunity to complete their primary education cycle.

40 children (27 girls and 13 boys) who did not have easy access to schooling are following the inverted classroom method course: inverted classroom, which allows them to improve their knowledge through regular and practical follow-ups.

6 children who are members of our cadet team (the dove) have now become members of 2 football teams playing in the junior category and are well-liked.

Our cadet team participated in the Zawadi Cup organized in Arusha, Tanzania in 2016 under the auspices of ROLLINGSTONES-ECAYFA and won the bronze medal.

Our cadet girls team participated in 2017 in the Peace Cup tournament organized by Search Common Ground/Kalemie and received 2 number 4 balls as a gift.