Photo by Amin Ismail, UNAMID.
Zalingei- From 8 to 9 December, UNAMID’s Communications and Public Information Section (CPIS) held a women’s dialogue for peace for 30 internally displaced women and a football tournament at Hamidiya Camp for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Zalingei, Central Darfur. Through these activities, CPIS intended to build the capacity of displaced women and youth to disseminate messages on the critical need to nurture peace in their communities, to encourage dialogue as an effective tool for conflict resolution, to inform the local communities of UNAMID’s anticipated drawdown and imminent exit from Darfur as well as empowering displaced women to generate income for their families and communities through pasta making. At the end of the training the women received a starter pack comprising pasta making machines and some wheat flour to enable them to start their income generating projects.
Addressing the women’s forum on 8 December, UNAMID’s Senior Women Protection Advisor, Ms. Ruth Kibiti, highlighted the importance of empowering the displaced women to generate income for themselves and their families. “When you go back, train the other women on how to make pasta. This is not only for your family consumption but for you to sell in the market and take care of your family needs. Women’s position in the home is greatly enhanced when she contributes to the well-being of her family,” added Ms. Kibiti,
On 9 December, CPIS facilitated the conduct of the final match of the Football Tournament for youth in Hamidiya IDPs Camp. The knockout matches, involving 16 Football Teams from the different Section of the Hamidiya IDPs Camp, started last October. Over 1500 IDPs attended the event held under theme: “Together for Peace” aimed at promoting peaceful co-existence and harmony among the IDPs communities.
Speaking to the gathering at the final football match, one of the key leaders in the Hamidiya IDPs Camp, Sheik Ahmed Yagoub, expressed his deep satisfaction at this effort exerted by UNAMID “to bring some form of normality, comfort, hope to the IDPs for a future peaceful environment not only in Darfur but the whole of Sudan future and requesting UNAMID to delay its departure for a while longer until that level of peace is attained.”
Ms. Asha Abdalla Mohammed, an internally displaced woman from Hamidiya Camp thanked UNAMID for organizing such activities at the Camp and providing pasta making machines to the women and appealed to the Mission not to exit Darfur at this crucial time until security and protection to IDPs communities in the region is assured.