AFRICAN UNION HOSTS PAN AFRICAN CONFERENCE ON CELEBRATING COURAGE AND OVERCOMING HARMFUL TRADITIONS

Children and young women especially are often the victims of various forms of physical or psychological violence that infringe on their bodily or physical integrity and mental well-being, due to their perceived and actual inferior status in society and the persistence of patriarchal attitudes.
                It is against this back drop that the African Union Commission (AUC) in collaboration with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), will from the 5th to the 7th of October 2011 at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, hold a conference under the theme: “Celebrating Courage and Overcoming Harmful Traditional Practices”. Organised by the Department of Social Affairs of the AU Commission, the objective of the conference is to contribute to continental efforts for the promotion and protection of the rights of women and girls; advocate for the ratification and domestication of the African Union Protocol to the Charter on Human and People's Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and the Charter on the African Cultural Renaissance; as well as highlight aspects of African culture, customs and traditions which hinder development in general and impede the advancement of women and children in particular among others.
                     The conference is expected to increased commitments by national structures, regional, continental and international institutions, civil society organizations and development partners to enhance partnerships in efforts to bring an end to harmful traditional practices (HTPs). The meeting will further advocate for strategies and actions to combat HTPs and promote behaviour change, focusing on best practices and success stories. Participants at the workshop will include African ministers and experts from selected AU Member States, parliamentarians, traditional and religious leaders and representatives of international organisations and civil society organisations. Worth noting that, harmful traditional practices (HTPs) include female genital mutilation (FGM); early marriage; taboos or practices which prevent women from controlling their own fertility; nutritional taboos and traditional birth practices; the sacrifice of children for organs to be used in witchcraft; boy preference over girls; female infanticide; early pregnancy; and dowry price. Some HTPs are practiced widely throughout Africa and others only in limited parts of the continent. The result is death, disability, health complications and psychological harm for millions and millions of Africa's children, girls and women.
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