Urgent Action Fund-Africa

Urgent Action Fund-Africa (UAF-Africa) is a Pan-African non-profit organization (NPO) focused on women's human rights and founded in Nairobi in 2001. UAF-Africa is the sister organization of the global NPO [http://www.urgentactionfund.org Urgent Action Fund] . [http://www.urgentactionfund-africa.or.ke] .]

Organization

UAF-Africa structures itself organizationally into three programs: grant making, collaborative initiatives and communications.

Grants

UAF-Africa grants rapid response funding up to $5,000 to initiatives across the continent which protect women's human rights. Several representative grant recipients include: enabling women to take part in national truth and reconciliation processes, relocating women's human rights activists whose lives were in danger because of their activism, sensitizing parliamentarians on an upcoming referendum's ramifications on women's human rights, and empowering women to protect their own rights in conflict situations.

Collaborative Initiatives

In addition to making grants, UAF-Africa's Collaborative Initiatives Programme aims to strengthen its grantees so they become better able to sustain their activism. Collaborative Initiatives was created when the organization established that some of goals were best approached by means outside of making grants.

Communication

The Communications Program is the newest of the three and helps create a platform for women’s rights issues as well as the organization’s message in order to reach diverse audiences.

Publications

UAF-Africa has also produced a number literary, academic, and organizational of publications, including:

*Consultative Meeting on UN Security Council Resolution 1325 Kampala, Uganda
*Gender Focused Rapid Response Teams: A Preliminary Discussion of the Concept and Potential for Implementation London, UK
*Kenya Women Speak on the Proposed Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission
*Regional Consultation On Engendering Instruments & Mechanisms Of Peacebuilding
*Solidarity Building: Report of Proceedings of The Consultative Meeting of the Somalia Sudan Kenya Women's Solidarity Forum
*Rising Up in Response: Women's Rights Activism in Conflict by Jane Barry
*LGBTI Organizing In East Africa: The True Test for Human Rights Defenders
*ICC Training Manual
*"This Body!" Supporting Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) Organising in East Africa
*Engendering Transitions: Reflections on Women's Agency in Consolidating Peace in the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa Region
*Women Defining the Peace and Security Discourse (English & French)
*Women and Post-Election Nation Building
*Where is the Money for Women's Rights in Africa (A joint publication with AWDF, ActionAid International, AWID)
*Sex Matters

Founding and Leadership

UAF-Africa was founded by Betty Kaari Murungi, a lawyer specialising in the areas of women's human rights, gender, and constitutionalism and governance. In addition to serving as UAF-Africa's director, she has been the legal advisor to the Women's Human Rights Program at Rights and Democracy in Montreal, Canada. Ms. Murungi has fought to insure that the International Criminal Court and the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda include a gender perspective in their work. In 2003, Ms. Murungi received The Moran of the Order of the Burning Spear from Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki for her achievements.

Donors

In no particular order UAF-Africa's institutional donors include:
*The Tet Ansanm Fund
*The Ford Foundation
*The Ford Foundation –Special Initiative for Africa
*Global Fund for Women
*Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice
*The Sigrid Rausing Trust
*Hivos – Humanist Institute for Co-operation with Developing Countries
*Institute of International Education
*Embassy of Finland, Kenya
*Tides Foundation
*Trust Africa
*New Field Foundation
*Mama Cash
*Rights & Democracy
*Geneva Institute of Human Rights
*Urgent Action Fund (Global)

Memberships

UAF-Africa participates in multiple consortiums of activists, such as the NGO Council, and women's human rights networks, such as the UN Sub-Cluster on Gender Based Violence (GBV).

References

www.urgentactionfund-africa.or.ke "Linking Poverty and Funding for Women's Rights." Anonymous UAF-Africa employee. Powerpoint presentation viewed September 22, 2008."List of Urgent Action Fund - Africa's Publications." Anonymous UAF-Africa employee. Email received September 22, 2008.

External Links

[http://www.urgentactionfund.org Urgent Action Fund]

[http://www.urgentactiondfund-africa.or.ke Urgent Action Fund-Africa]

[http://www.humanitarianreform.org/Default.aspx?tabid=521 UN Sub-Cluster on Gender Based Violence (GBV)]

[http://www.ngocouncil.org NGO Council]