We were in Gambia!

Article compiled by Network Coordinating Team. Email:  advocacynetworkkenya@gmail.com

Our member, Benter Mboya, recently attended the 85th ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) courtesy of the International Commission of Jurists – Africa Regional Programme, which supported all her travel logistics. ICJ-Africa have previously engaged the Network when, together with the United Disabled Persons of Kenya, they hosted a consultative forum with us on barriers that women and girls with disabilities face in accessing justice. We were thus happy that they also supported our members, logistic-wise and technically, in taking part in sessions by the ACHPR. 

The ACHPR is a regional monitoring mechanism that forms part of the African Union, established under the African Charter. It is mandated to promote and protect human rights in Africa.  

Benter Mboya, a grassroots leader, is a woman with a disability who hails from Kisumu County and works as a village administrator.  "As a Network that brings together women with disabilities-led organisations, we are increasingly happy and encouraged when our members are afforded such opportunities to advance their advocacy in regional platforms," noted Elizabeth Mang'eni, the Network Communications Liaison.

Many of our members run small self-help groups that are informal and doing great work at the community level. Benter, for example, runs an organization known as Kilo Disabled Self-help Group, a grassroots organization that works on diverse issues, including access to sexual and reproductive health services by women with disabilities. They also address issues of violence, including sexual and gender-based violence, and as Benter offers, ‘our major work is to see that the rights of women and girls with disabilities are secured.’

For Benter and many other women leaders with disabilities running informal groups, accessing spaces like the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights in Gambia can seem so far away.  It is one of the things that we are aware of as a Network, and by us coming together, it has been easier to meet partners who support our members to access such spaces that they could not otherwise access. “I am so happy that the Network proposed me represent them in Gambia,” said Benter.

How the journey went

We were curious to know about Benta’s journey to Banjul, Gambia. As a wheelchair user, initially, Benter was apprehensive about flying so far away. Her journey from Kisumu to Banjul lasted about 14 hours, with some stops along the way, which was useful for her in terms of getting rest. What was also really useful for Benter is that a colleague from ICJ-Africa enquired earlier during bookings on the specific accommodation needs she required at airports, hotel, and conference rooms to make her travel and stay comfortable and productive. The ICJ-Africa host also arrived in Banjul earlier, which was easier to check and ensure accessibility of spaces, like hotels, movement from the airport to the hotel and to the conference center, and as Benter attested, ‘this was thoughtful of them as it supported my journey to be smooth.’

At the Network level, we checked with Benter on a regular basis, and she shared with us the proceedings in Banjul. At Network level, we strive to ensure an effective internal communication model where a member can update others on the goings-on in the spaces they are in, to support collective growth. 

Sessions attended

In one of the side events where Benter spoke, she made a plea to ensure that caregivers of children with disabilities are also afforded advocacy spaces where they can address issues related to children with disabilities. She mentioned the discrimination by association that caregivers of children with disabilities face, as well as stigma and isolation. In her rural community, Benter continues to work with caregivers of children with disabilities from informal settlement schemes, where she attests to the many challenges that they face as they raise their children with disabilities. 

Benter attended other different sessions, both public sessions as well as side events, such as one on Making Disability Rights a Continental Pledge co-organised by ICJ-Africa. The side event called for accelerated ratification of the African Disability Protocol and its Implementation, and the role of the various actors, including OPDs. Benter also got the unique moment to have a brief side chat with Commissioner Hon. Marie Louise Abomo, who is also the Chair of the Working Group on Older Persons and Persons with Disabilities, a special mechanism of the ACHPR.

We are inspired that, through this period, the ICJ-Africa hosted a consultative forum with OPDs and other stakeholders on An OPD Handbook: Engaging African Human Rights Mechanisms to advance disability rights, which, once finalised, will be critical in supporting our organisations in engaging with these mechanisms.

Warm people 

With an extremely busy calendar, Benter was able to find a few minutes to visit the beach. This was both relaxing and refreshing, and a chance to tour Gambia.  ‘I found the Gambian people to be so warm and welcoming,” said Benter, adding that this made her enjoy her stay the more. 

Having recently returned, Benter is appreciative of the connections she made while in Gambia. She is keen to keep these connections and open more opportunities for women and girls with disabilities. 

Benter by the beach

“I am so happy that ICJ-Africa supported my travel to Gambia, as well as ensuring that I could travel with my aide. This made my participation meaningful,” said Benter. She added, “Thank you also to the Network through which this engagement happened.”