A new project aimed at supporting women fonio producers in Ghana has been announced by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and acclaimed chef Fatmata Binta.  

The project is designed to provide specialized training to approximately 100 women involved in fonio cultivation, enhancing their skills and boosting their productivity and income. Funded by FAO under a Technical Cooperation Project, the training will include hands-on sessions on fonio production, harvesting, packaging and accessing markets. 

Fonio, an ancient, nutrient-packed grain known for its resilience and ability to thrive in less fertile soils, has traditionally been cultivated by women in Ghana. However, it has been undervalued despite its nutritional and environmental benefits. This project aims to change the narrative by focusing on sustainable practices, empowerment, and economic development. The push for better production is part of the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31 which is organised according to the Four Betters: better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life.  

Arslen Bounemra, FAO Representative in Ghana, said: “This project is a pilot that we hope can be scaled up and replicated in other fonio-producing countries. Fonio is a powerhouse ingredient that should be more well-known and consumed more widely.” 

Chef Fatmata Binta is an influential figure in the culinary world having won the 2022 Basque Culinary World Prize, sometimes referred to as the Nobel Prize of cooking. Born and raised in Freetown, Sierra Leone, to first-generation Sierra Leonean Fulanis of Guinean descent, Chef Binta is now based in Ghana and travels the world advocating for fonio and putting African cuisine on the global dining table. 

“Through this project, we are not only preserving a piece of African culinary history but also empowering women to take control of their futures. This is a testament to what we can achieve when we work together for a common good,” she said. 

Project activities will commence in April 2024, coinciding with land preparations for the next growing season. The women farmers have been organised into a group by Chef Binta and are part of a bigger ‘culinary village’ initiative that the chef is working on to highlight African indigenous ingredients.  

FAO and Chef Binta began a close collaboration during the 2023 International Year of Millets (IYM2023) including an Instagram campaign encouraging chefs to cook with millets, and a special Dine on a Mat Fulani culinary experience in Accra with a spotlight on fonio.  

The announcement comes as Chef Binta takes part in the IYM2023 closing ceremony today (March 29) in Rome, Italy, alongside the FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu and other special guests.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of FAO Regional Office for Africa.

Thirty police officers from the Ghana Formed Police Unit of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) have completed a five-day training focused on protecting children’s welfare in armed conflict.

Hosted in Baidoa, the administrative capital of Southwest State, the training was led by the ATMIS Protection, Human Rights, and Gender (PHRG) Cluster in collaboration with the African Union Compliance and Accountability Framework (AUCF), Baidoa Civilian Sector Coordination Team, and the African Union Police Headquarters.

The participating officers from the Ghana Formed Police Unit (FPU), were taken through international and regional legal frameworks on child protection, sexual and gender-based violence, and the vital role of peacekeepers in mitigating the impact of armed conflicts on vulnerable groups. Gender mainstreaming and monitoring and reporting mechanisms were also addressed.

The Senior Protection and Human Rights Officer for ATMIS, Gloria Jaase, said the training was significant in fulfilling ATMIS’s mandate.

“The African Union mandates that child protection issues are integrated into all stages of peace support operations because children are the most vulnerable group in armed conflict situations.”

She said it was important to build the capacity of police officers in the Mission area and also include Somali youths in matters peace and security.

“One of the key highlights of the training is the Agenda on Youth, Peace, and Security, which is important in including young people in peace and security matters in Somalia,” she added.

The Senior Case Management, Processes, and Database Officer for ATMIS at the AUCF, Ferdinand Nintunze, underscored the importance of conducting such trainings for all components in the African Union peacekeeping mission.

“This basic training is important for all African Union peace support operations personnel, including those from the military, civilian, and police components. The knowledge gained can be applied in peace support operations and in their respective home countries,” he said.

The Ghana FPU Logistics Officer, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Rejoice Dogbe, described the training as timely and relevant, providing the officers with the necessary knowledge to understand and execute the Mission’s mandate.

“This training will not only help me in my duties to protect children’s rights in the Mission but also back at home,” said DSP Dogbe.

Corporal Elvis Osei-Tutu expressed satisfaction with the training and thanked ATMIS for organising the course.

“We’re grateful to ATMIS for empowering us on the necessary frameworks on protecting children’s rights in conflict areas,” noted Corporal Osei-Tutu.

The training in Baidoa, marked the end of a three-months exercise targeting 120 personnel from all the four ATMIS Formed Police Units to promote the protection of children in armed conflict.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS).

The Tunisian authorities’ growing judicial harassment and intimidation of lawyers solely for discharging their professional duties violates their rights and undermines access to justice and effective remedies for victims of human rights violations, said Amnesty International, a day ahead of the verdict in the case of lawyer Abdelaziz Essid who is being tried on spurious charges.

Authorities have targeted at least 20 lawyers representing members of political opposition groups, activists and victims of human rights violations with criminal investigations under bogus charges that range from “offending others”, “accusing public officials of illegal acts without proof or the discharge of their duties as lawyers,” “verbally assaulting a public officer” and “spreading fake news”. The charges fall under Tunisia’s Telecommunication Code, the Penal Code and Decree Law 54 respectively. If convicted, the lawyers could face up to 20 years in prison and hefty fines.

“Undermining the independence of the legal profession and targeting lawyers who represent victims of human rights violations is yet another blow to the right to defence and fair trial rights more generally in Tunisia,” said Fida Hammami, Amnesty International’s Tunisia Research and Advocacy Advisor.

“The authorities must end their judicial harassment of the 20 lawyers who are being investigated solely for the peaceful exercise of their human rights. Lawyers should be able to perform their professional duties and freely express themselves without any intimidation, harassment or fear of reprisals.”

On 29 March, the Tunis Court of First Instance will issue its verdict in the case of Lawyer Abdelaziz Essid who is being tried for “offending others through telecommunications networks” and “accusing public officials of illegal acts without proof,” under article 86 of the Telecommunications Code and article 128 of the Criminal Code, respectively based on a complaint by the Minister of Justice

Essid is one of three members of the legal defence team of six detained political opposition members in the high profile “conspiracy case” who are themselves now being investigated or tried for the statements they made to the media about the case.

The charges against Essid are based on statements that he had made during a press conference claiming that there were discrepancies in the dates and facts in the “conspiracy case” casefile indicating the possibility that the file has been tampered with.

In one example the prosecution opened an investigation against 14 members of the legal defence team of Noureddine Bhiri, prominent member of the Ennahda opposition party, after a complaint against the group from a national guard officer following an argument between the lawyers and the national guard. An investigative judge banned the 14 lawyers from traveling under this investigation.

In four cases the investigations were opened soon after the lawyers had publicly criticized the Minister of Justice or made allegations of corruption against her.

“It is a travesty of justice to target lawyers solely for discharging their professional duties. Everyone, including lawyers, are entitled to their human rights,” said Fida Hammami.

These rights include the rights to liberty, security of person and freedom of expression, as guaranteed under articles 9 and 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and articles 6 and 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights to which Tunisia is a state party.

The UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers has urged public prosecutors “to closely monitor situations and cases in which lawyers might be criminalized for performing their duties. When such circumstances arise, appropriate orders should be issued to prevent public prosecutors from maliciously prosecuting members of the legal profession who criticize State officials and institutions in the exercise of their independence and freedom of expression.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Amnesty International.

Somalia’s parliament should reject any proposed constitutional amendments that would weaken rights protections for children, Human Rights Watch said today.

On March 30, 2024, both houses of parliament are expected to vote on the proposed amendments, which would reduce the age of majority – increasing the risk of child marriage and lowered juvenile justice standards – and possibly permit certain forms of female genital mutilation.

“Somalia’s parliament should resist efforts to weaken constitutional protections for children, especially girls,” said Laetitia Bader, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “Somalia’s donors should press the government to carry through on its claims that it is taking significant steps to meet its international human rights commitments.”

Somalia’s 2012 provisional constitution has been under review for nearly a decade, but efforts to finalize the review have picked up since late 2023. In February, the Independent Constitutional Review and Implementation Commission sent parliament suggested amendments to the provisional constitution’s first four chapters, which includes articles on the age of majority and on the criminalization of female genital mutilation.

Under Somalia’s provisional constitution, a child is defined as a person under the age of 18. The proposed amendment states that the term child “refers to a person under the age of 15 years of maturity while the age of responsibility is 18 years, as defined in the law of the Federal Republic of Somalia.” Adopting this standard would be contrary to Somalia’s obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which defines a child as anyone under 18.

The proposed amendment to set the age of “maturity” at 15 would place girls in particular at greater risk of child marriage, which affects their health, notably reproductive health, their access to education, and their protection from other forms of abuse, Human Rights Watch said. Girls Not Brides, an international group that works to prevent child marriage, has reported that 17 percent of girls in Somalia were married before by 15, and 36 percent by 18.

The proposed amendments also include physical development as the determining factor in a person’s majority. This is contrary to international standards, which call upon governments to make determinations of adult competence based on “emotional, mental and intellectual maturity,” and not physical maturity.

The proposed amendments distinguish the 15-year age of maturity from an 18-year age of responsibility, suggesting that everyone under 18 would remain protected by juvenile justice standards. However, in practice, this new age of majority risks reinforcing existing ambiguities in Somali law around the age of majority that could heighten children’s vulnerabilities, Human Rights Watch said. Children in Somalia have long been subject to arrest, detention, and custodial sentences as adults, including in capital cases.

During President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s first term in office, Human Rights Watch found that authorities across Somalia had treated boys suspected of affiliation with the armed Islamist group Al-Shabab as adults in violation of international law. Intelligence agencies threatened, beat, and in some cases tortured boys in custody. Military courts have also tried children as adults.

The proposed constitutional amendments also raise concerns regarding other harmful practices, such as female genital mutilation (FGM). The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has reported that Somalia has one of the highest rates of FGM in the world with 99 percent of girls and women ages 15 to 49 having undergone genital cutting.

Somalia’s provisional constitution is ambiguous with respect to female genital mutilation. It states that: “Female circumcision is a cruel and degrading customary practice and is tantamount to torture. The circumcision of girls is prohibited.” However, the provision does not define female circumcision, which may or may not be interpreted to mean the same thing as female genital mutilation.

The constitutional review should ensure that a complete ban on all forms of FGM is enshrined in the constitution, which would facilitate the government’s development of a legislative and policy framework to eradicate all forms of FGM, Human Rights Watch said.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has classifed four types of FGM. All forms of female genital mutilation are a form of violence and discrimination against women and girls, involving the partial or complete removal of external female genitalia or injuring female genital organs without medical cause. It has no health benefits and leads to immediate and long-term harm for women and girl’s physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health, including death in some cases.

Human Rights Watch research in various countries across the world shows that women and girls experienced fear before being cut, and the cutting had a serious toll on their health, including excessive bleeding, shock, infection, complications during childbirth, complications during menstruation, lack of or reduced sexual pleasure, infertility, and other long-term gynecological issues. Depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and psychosexual problems are also common.

UN human rights treaty bodies have repeatedly called on Somalia to pass legislation criminalizing all forms of this harmful practice. In 2021, the Somali government committed during its review by the Committee on the Rights of the Child to “eradicating traditional harmful practices.”

“Somalia’s parliament appears poised to adopt amendments to the country’s constitution that could subject generations of children to harmful practices,” Bader said. “Constitutional reform should instead assist the government to better protect the rights of children.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Human Rights Watch (HRW).