Wacam in International Meetings
The Associate Executive Director of Wacam participated in a number of events organised by Oxfam America. These activities included planning meeting in South Africa in which the Associate Director shared Wacam’s experiences in its mining advocacy strategies with other partners in Africa. Other activities were organised in the United States of America to coincide with the international women’s day celebrations in Seattle, Washington, Boston and Iowa.
The Associate Executive delivered the opening remarks and was part of a panel discussions in Seattle on mining and community rights to participate and justice and participated in Ghana’s Independence Day with Ghana Association of Greater Seattle (GHASEA). As part of the meetings in Seattle, Oxfam America organised a meeting for the Associate Director with Staff of Senators Patty Murrray and Maria Cantwell Jackson in Federal Building, 2nd Avenue, Seattle, WA to discuss the importance of retaining Section 1504 of Dodd-Frank, and called on the Staffers to support Civil Society position to expedite actions for the development of the implementation guideline for DODD Frank’s Act.
The international women’s day celebration of Oxfam Action Corps in Seattle, the local Oxfam grassroots activist organisation was marked in University of Washington attracted Oxfam grassroots activist supporters, University of Washington graduate and undergraduate students, and other Oxfam allies. The Associate Executive Director delivered brief remarks on the need to build capacities of grassroot organisations in mining communities with special emphasis on women empowerment.
Other women’s day celebrations were organised by Oxfam staff in Boston, and also for local academic/expert; VIP SOP with the objective of sharing examples on how communities/individuals are taking action to deal with EI and introduce trends, some US policy solutions, to deal with HR violations in mining communities.
As part of the trip, Oxfam America honoured two activists of Wacam – Hannah Owusu-Koranteng and Joana Manu with the Right the Wrong International Awards. There was also a ceremony to launch a research authored by Augustine Niber, Hannah Owusu-Koranteng, Daniel Owusu-Koranteng and Emily Greenspan on The right to decide: Free Prior and Informed Consent in Ghana.
The Associate Executive Director of Wacam remarked on the challenges and opportunities of extractive industries to and for women. In the afternoon, there will be two “deep dive” sessions, the Associate Executive Director discussed the Ghanaian land provisions, and the Dodd-Frank provisions that better ensure the land rights for communities and women farmers in developing nations. The Associate Executive Director of Wacam gave the keynote Address to mark the Hunger Banquet organised by Oxfam America in Boston.
The Associate Executive Director of Wacam was a co-keynote speaker along with U.S. farmer Laura Krouse, to mark the Oxfam Des Moines International Women’s Day Closing Event at the Hall of Laureates, 100 Locust Street, Des Moines, IA. Other speakers included Nadine Kone, Jim French, Gina Cummings. Hannah Owusu-Koranteng of Wacam and Nadine Kone, Jim French of Oxfam America had a meeting with staffer of U.S. Senator Charles Grassley and U.S. Senator Joni Ernst on the importance ofretaining Section 1504 of Dodd-Frank, and supporting our policy ask at Des Moines IOWA State.