International Women’s Day 2021
Every year on March 8, we celebrate the achievements of women. However, do you know how the date was decided? The story is dated back to 1917 after women gained suffrage in Soviet Russia; March 8 became a national holiday. Since then, this day was predominantly celebrated by the communist countries and socialists movement until […]
International Day of Peace 21 September
2020 Theme: Shaping Peace Together Each year the International Day of Peace is observed around the world on 21 September. The UN General Assembly has declared this as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, through observing 24 hours of non-violence and cease-fire. This year, it has been clearer than ever that we […]
SWIMMING AGAINST THE TIDES; A WOMAN’S STRUGGLE TO REDEEM HER CHILDHOOD AMBITION
The twenty-year-old mother of 2 hopes to gain experience and master her skills to the level of becoming a Tailoring Skills Instructor. It is a skill she believes every woman should have, either for commercial purposes or for domestic use, mending clothes of family members. As a young girl, Hodan Abdikarem Yusuf was determined to […]
LOST DREAMS RESTORED AND VALIDATED THROUGH GECPD’S TEACHER TRAINING PROGRAM
As she attends to customers in her retail shop, Hawa Jamaac Liban is content that she has realized her lifetime dream and at least made her contribution to society. Even though she no longer teaches, most of her customers -some of whom are her former students- refer to her as teacher in her current occupation. She has been working […]
STRENGTH OF A WOMAN; CHALLENGING SOCIO-CULTURAL STEREOTYPES THROUGH PRACTICAL ENGAGEMENT
SHE always has one of the busiest days. If she is not providing counselling, support and advocacy for survivors of GBV and other human rights abuses, she will be busy interacting with and giving encouragement to fellow young women, engaging with elders or community members to understand what their needs are and what they […]
‘DAYS OF OUR LIVES’; A YOUNG GIRL’S AMBITION TO DRIVE CHANGE THROUGH LITERATURE
At only age 11 and in primary 6, she has already started living her dream of becoming an author. None of her parents ever attended school, but today she proudly displays her collection of written inspirational poems on issues ranging from education, culture and women rights. She says it is the only means she can […]
A top court in Somalia upholds death sentences for rapists
GAROWE, Puntland – A court in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland state has on Sunday upheld death sentences against three men found guilty of gang rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl, Garowe Online reports. The Federal State’s second-degree court in Garowe city supported the first-degree court ruling last May, saying the decision was “fair and justice” as […]
GECPD WELCOMES THE APPOINTMENT OF ZAMZAM ABSHIR TO THE NEW COUNCIL OF GALKAYO
Galkayo, Puntland, March 26th, 2019. Galkayo Education Center for Peace and Development Executive Director’s congratulatory message to Zamzam Abshir Samriye on her election as a Galkayo District council member. Ms. Zamzam has become a pillar at GECPD. I have known her for years as […]
Somalia: Gang Rape and Murder of 12-Year-Old Girl Sparks Outrage in Somalia
By Nita Bhalla Nairobi — Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region passed the country’s first Sexual Offences Law in 2016, which criminalises rape, sexual harassment and online sexual offences The gang rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl in Somalia has sparked outrage, demonstrations and calls for authorities to use a landmark 2016 law to secure justice, […]
Commemoration of the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting
International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation is a United Nations-sponsored annual awareness day that takes place on February 6 as part of the UN’s efforts to eradicate female genital mutilation introduced in 2003. Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the […]