Angola Alliance Focal Network, PMA to take forward MOU signed with Government departments

The Platform for Women’s Action in Angola – Platforma da Mulheres Accao (PMA) will in March take forward implementation of the Memorandum of Partnership signed in August 2011 to strengthen the existing commitments between and within the Ministries of Gender, Justice and Members of Parliament on the implementation of key provisions of the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development. The MOU comes at a good time where Angola is chairing the Southern Africa Development Committee until August 2012.

The MOUwas signed on the backdrop of the Angola launch of the 2011 SADC Gender Protocol Barometer in August last year ahead of the SADC Heads of State Summit. The partnership pact is underpinned by recommendations made in the SADC Barometer by the Southern Africa Gender Protocol Alliance. PMA will provide government ministries with capacity will enable them to implement and disseminate the SADC Gender Protocol within their government strategic plan and in line with the Angolan context. Oxfam Great Britain has pledged to continue supporting the work.

By way of background, PMA coordinates the work of the Southern Africa Gender Protocol Alliance and became active in the Alliance 2011.

Established in 2006 following an international women’s conference in Luanda focusing on women’s participation in politics, PMA has work to increase women in key political decision-making positions. PMA has used the Women Can Do It programme (WCDI) to get women into the political arena and has participated actively in the development of a handbook on female leadership. PMA also played a crucial role in the book, “Heroines without names -Angolan Women’s Peace Book” – a collection of stories about the Angolan situation of women during the war and their role in the peace process.

PMA organised a national conference on women’s participation in elections, before the elections in 2008, and is actively working to mobilise women to participate in politics and elections, both at central and local levels. PMA coordinates joint actions for women polling participation and representation conducted by women’s organisations in the provinces of Cabinda, Huila, Malanje, Huambo and Kwanza Sul. PMA also conducts training in national budget analysis, so people can follow how the large revenues from natural resources, especially oil, are distributed.