What happens when young disabled activists get to design and run their own advocacy projects? And what happens when young disabled people get to choose who and what gets funding? This session will give a short introduction to participatory grant making, how it can be done and how it can shift control. Using a real-world example from Tanzania, you will hear directly from young disabled activists as grant makers, and as leaders of their own advocacy projects, and from ADD International and YDAR network coordinators as facilitators of the process.
We will showcase two of the advocacy campaigns that have received funding through the YDAR project.
1. Digital advocacy for youth with disabilities is one of the YDAR winning campaigns that aims to provide awareness to the society on the matter of disabilities at large. Run by Yumna Mmanga Omar, Fakihat Omar Abubakar, Jamila Borafya Hamza and Zakia Daudi, it provides knowledge to young people with disabilities on the positive manner of using social media and other digital platforms in ensuring that the awareness of people with disabilities right’s is well-transmitted.
2. Tackling negative attitudes towards people with disabilities is one of the YDAR winning campaigns that aims to dispel negative, societal views of disability. Run by Eva Joseph Masanilo, it will do this by launching a wide-spread awareness campaign, involving meetings with parents of people with disabilities, radio and TV coverage, flyers and a music video. The key strategy is to provide a better education to the community, in order to understand the true nature of persons with disabilities.
Date and time: Thursday, 9th November at 3:00-4:30pm EAT (12:00-1:30pm London; 8:00-9:30am Washington, D.C.)
Registration: Please register for the event via Eventbrite, and we will give you the Zoom link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/participatory-grant-making-and-advocacy-by-young-disabled-activists-tickets-748895956967?aff=oddtdtcreator
Speaker Bios
Yumna Mmanga Omar is a young girl gifted with albinism and has been using her uniqueness to make positive impact in the isle. She is the unrivalled director of the Watoto International Film Festival (WIFF) Zanzibar that involves film screening, children forum, fair exhibition, arts, performance and school filming, which is steered by dynamic group of energetic and innovative young leaders. Yumna, is a teacher by profession but her passion for community development led her to be the founder and chairperson of the All About Albinism Campaign (AAACA) Zanzibar, a local non-governmental organization that aims in spreading awareness and understanding on albinism in Zanzibar. She is the victorious recipient of several awards like outstanding youth in social work 2019 in the annual Zanzibar youth awards. She was also awarded the titles as Best Muslim Women Disability Change Makers in 2021/2022 and as a Tanzanian Sheroe in 2020/2021. Yumna is currently working as an inclusive education officer at the department of inclusive education and life skills in the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training Zanzibar and has a dream of seeing people with disability taking their rightful places in the society.
Fakihat Omar Abubakar was born in Zanzibar and has an intellectual disorder and physical disability since she was a kid. As a child, she was a slow learner yet she never gave up, she kept on working hard, and completed her certificate in IT. She also trained herself to do graphics design, and her interest is in writing, too. She eventually started her Instagram page, and now she is composing poems and quotes to inspire people. By doing that, she got a chance to volunteer in the Organisation of Women with Disabilities in Zanzibar as an IT assistant. There she also attends seminars that teach new skills based on gender equality and challenges of people with disabilities and how to deal with the difficulties in general. She also personally helps people with disabilities, she still wants to develop new skills. She is interested in reading books and writing books.
Jamila Borafya Hamza was born and raised in Zanzibar. As a young blind girl she faced various challenges towards having self-acceptance and confidence. She never gave up on herself and kept on working hard. During her secondary education she used to participate in school clubs and youth councils that motivated her to make significant efforts in the political arena. Eventually she has proceeded with Business Operation Assistance Studies (BOA) in VETA level, yet advocating for the rights and opportunities of people with disabilities that made her to be awarded several certificates. Jamila is talented in writing and reading poems, which enable her to get a little income. Jamila has a dream and expectations to be a political leader for the sake of defending the rights of people with disabilities.
Zakia Daudi, a citizen of Tanzania, is 24 years old. She is an advocate for economic and social development who is driven to stand up for the wellbeing and advancement of her community residents in all sectors. She is a member of the Zanzibar Youth Council and currently one of the council chairpersons serving at the local administrative Division unit (Shehia). She is keen to advance her career in community development, leadership, and social and economic rights activism. She is currently working as a program officer in Social Protection and Disability Rights at the Organization of Women and Girls with disabilities in Zanzibar (JUWAUZA). She is very determined and hardworking in her career. Zakia holds a Bachelor Degree in Management of Social Development from Mwalimu Nyerere Memorial Academy at Karume Campus Zanzibar.
Eva Joseph Masanilo was born in Geita region, Tanzania. I was born on 2nd January 1998. I am a person with visual impairment (total blindness). I have Bachelor Degree of Education in Adult and Community Education acquired in University of Dar es Salaam. I am the first fully blind person to pursue French as a subject from ordinary school level to university level In Tanzania. As a person with disability, I saw and experienced different challenges facing us in the community, mostly the challenge to deal with negative attitudes of the community towards people with disabilities. I was inspired to provide education in the community to eliminate these negative attitudes.
Vanessa Herringshaw is Head of Participatory Grantmaking and Movement Support at ADD International. She is working to establish grant making that is led by persons with disabilities in the Global South, and to support strong collaboration and movements. Her focus has always been voice, justice and collaborative action. Before coming to ADD, she was Director of the Transparency and Accountability Initiative, Director of Advocacy and Support at the Revenue Watch Institute, and Head of Economic Policy at Save the Children UK. She lived for four years in Nepal working on community health. She loves to dance!
Elineca Ndowo is a dedicated development professional with several years of experience working with International Non-Government Organizations in various donor funded programs. A graduate from University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) holding a Bachelor of Arts with Education and a Master of Arts in Project Planning and Management. Currently working with ADD International as Program Coordinator for the ADD Young Leaders Program.
