Some time ago, the Women’s Leadership Training School in Colombia’s Chocó region decided to go co-ed, within certain limits. “We admit men, but only those under age 25,” explains Nimia Vargas, the school’s director. “Men older than that have a traditional mindset that poses an obstacle for our operation.”
It was the sort of tactical concession that Afro-Colombian women along the country’s Pacific coast must make to overcome the long series of obstacles—including machismo—that stand between their poverty and marginalization and the education and participation to which they aspire.
For Vargas, one thing is clear: the progress achieved so far is unstoppable. The Chocó Women’s Network, which she helped to found in 1991 and now leads, and the Leadership Training School established with the support of the IDB and various Colombian NGOs in 1996, are creating a core group of industrious women engaged in continuous efforts to secure equal treatment and equal opportunities. Starting from practically nothing, they have been instrumental in helping these women to claim a place as city councilors, representatives, a mayor, and hundreds of trainers whose mission is to produce more women leaders.
Vargas recently visited IDB headquarters, where she spoke to IDBAmérica about the school’s accomplishments and its impact in the Chocó region.
IDBAmérica: You are the leader of the Chocó Women’s Network and director of the Leadership Training School. What is the context in which this dynamic of change is taking place for women in the region?Vargas: Ninety percent of the Chocó region is Afro-Colombian. The region is very poor and underdeveloped, and it experiences severe communication problems owing to its isolation. Until quite recently, women have remained very isolated and subject to sexist traditions. Women’s school attendance rates and participation in local governments were very low. Women lacked the wherewithal to negotiate not only their representation in government, but even their home situations with their husbands. They were not in a position to consider the need to seek training outside the home. They were unaware of how to handle gender issues.
IDBAmérica: What is the leadership school? What does the school teach, and who are its students?Vargas: The Women’s Leadership Training School was founded in 1996 at the suggestion of many women in the Chocó region. Our network sought help from the Colombian government, and we received support from the National Office for Equity for Women and the IDB for the project. At the school, we work with women in the area of ethnic and gender identity. We instruct trainers so that they themselves may become elected delegates to local governments, and may help other women to do the same, thereby gaining access to government assemblies. It is very important for women to develop this sort of knowledge, because once they understand how the local government works and once they know how to take part in it, they immediately develop an interest in participating.
IDBAmérica: Could you give us some examples of what has been achieved so far?Vargas: To date, after 10 months of operations, 67 women’s organizations from 17 municipalities in the Chocó region have benefited from the school and 450 trainers have been trained. We have reached a total of 1,800 women. Also the school is helping women to set up and run 22 production-related projects. The school will support these projects for some time to ensure their continued operation.
In past elections, 30 women have been appointed to public office: 4 representatives and 26 city councilors. We are supporting them in areas such as legislation and negotiation. They must learn to defend their interests and the interests of the women who follow them.
The school is now meeting approximately 75 percent of the needs of the Chocó region in terms of leadership training. The project has given us total autonomy during the first five years. Starting in the sixth year, we will have to raise 50 percent of our resources on our own, requiring us to become self-sufficient.
IDBAmérica: What about men? Is there any attempt to involve them in this movement?Vargas: We admit men under the age of 25 to the school, because men older than that have a traditional mindset that would create substantial obstacles for the school’s work. However, we do train young men in the spirit of gender equity. Some official organizations call on us to come and speak with their staff. We also participate in information and training sessions in schools and community centers. We include men in the process. The situation is improving, but it is slow going.
Some women have worked with politicians, but never as leaders. They always worked as assistants, helping to organize events and discussions, always behind the scenes. We want that to end. Women must learn to negotiate the kind of assistance they are willing to provide and how they will provide it.
IDBAmérica: One of the problems in the Chocó region has been a lack of coordination and mutual support among the various nongovernmental organizations, for example among gender issues organizations. Is this situation improving or are things staying about the same?Vargas: Certainly in the past, the trend was more toward competition than toward working together, particularly when it came to fundraising. Each organization was looking out for its own interests. But it is important to understand that the Chocó is a difficult area, and communication is a problem. You need more time and more resources to bring the various women’s groups closer together. In addition, the organizations have different interests and goals. Some focus on health, others on education, land titling, or gender issues. Some work specifically with production-oriented programs. Today, we are working jointly on issues that we have in common.
IDBAmérica: How does the armed conflict and violence affect the advancement of women, and what is your involvement in the peace process?Vargas: We in the network and other NGOs have already participated in 17 peace roundtables. The government forbids us from dealing with the parties in conflict. But the Chocó region suffers from considerable violence. Afro-Colombians make up more than half the persons displaced by the conflict, but they don’t show up on the national or international radar screens. Displaced women are victims three times over: their husbands are being killed, their sons are being taken away to fight in the war, and they are left behind without money. They suffer tremendous privation when they go into the cities. Displaced persons fall into violence because they have no other way to eat. They are enticed into taking part in violence in exchange for money. I wonder if the IDB and other international organizations have a policy to help displaced persons. It is a very serious problem for us.
We have had other serious problems relating to land occupancy. Law 70 gave considerable ownership rights to Afro-Colombians in the Chocó region, but even today farmers are still being forced off their lands by the army, with bombs.
IDBAmérica: Despite all this, you seem optimistic and ready to tackle the issues. Are the goals you are setting being attained?Vargas: They say that in African culture, the man’s role is to conquer the land while the woman’s role is to consolidate what has been conquered. In the Chocó, we want women to adopt this role. We want them to consolidate their achievements, and to learn to participate in order to improve their self-esteem, and benefit from the fruits of their training. The goal is for them to take on leadership roles without fear.