What can be the concrete input of Religion for the promotion of Gender Equality & Women‘s Rights? Strong textual and narrative evidence for gender justice in primary sources of Islam – Quran The fundamental development goal in Islam is to create an environment in which all people attain spiritual, moral and socio- economic well-being. → Dignity At the heart of the conceptual framework of IR is the preservation and strengthening of human dignity

Maqasid-Framework

Islamic Relief‘s Gender Justice Approach Inspired and guided by our faith values, Islamic Relief is fully committed to upholding the dignity of all people and eradicating poverty and suffering through →promoting justice, equity and the equal value and importance of women, girls, men and boys. In supporting the achievement of holistic well- being and the fulfilment of human potential → we endeavor to integrate gender perspectives that promote justice for males and females into all our humanitarian, development and advocacy work in a faith literate and culturally-sensitive way.

Islamic Relief‘s Gender Justice Approach guided by an Islamic understanding it encapsulates both equity and equality. → complementary, emphasizes both the equal value and importance of women, girls, men and boys to society, and the importance of equity in treatment of all people, regardless of their status. → equal opportunities and equitable access to resources and services according to gender needs IR recognizes that only equitable treatment creates the conditions that allow for the attainment of equality in societal value

IR‘s Policies Gender Justice Policy GBV policy briefings on FGM/C, Early and forced Marriage and Domestic Violence

Ethiopia: Combating Gender-based Violence against Women and Girls in Dekasuftu Woreda Aim: prevent and respond to GBV within a target group of pastoralist women and girls in by increasing capacity of local actors and communities. Focus on 2 areas: raising community awareness (enhancing Knowledge of rights) on key gender justice issues and capacity building of partner offices, health institutions and schools in addressing GBV. 1.Training of community volunteers and faith leaders 2.Sessions with local authority to build capacity 3.Sermons at Friday prayers address GBV issues. 4.Engaging of the community in conversation in women’s and men’s groups

Challenges/ Potentials in promoting Gender Equality & women’s Rights in the Context of Religion Potentials : A range of universal faith values underpinning gender justice that unite people Diversity of opinion, lack of consensus between scholars Strong textual and narrative evidence for gender justice in primary sources of Islam – Quran Some groups abusing religion to justify oppression of women Religion used to achieve political ends Precedence of Prophetic advocacy for gender justice Lots of allies – women’s groups and scholars for gender justice

Challenges/ Potentials/ Risks in cooperation with religious actors: How to address them& how to cope with them? Challenges Potentials bringing religious actors together – time constraints, bias to each other’s agendas etc. spiritual capital drives to make a difference and restore God given rights, strong feeling of responsibility and strong internal motivation. solution: bring in authoritarian figure who people trust so they will want to attend consultations with that person and others Wide range of religious actors – lots of opportunities to bring people together. Diversity is a strength as well. Faith based poverty alleviation mechanisms drive change e.g. zakat, donations etc. Religion unites people – e.g. key 5 pillars of Islam are for all Muslims the same

Lessons Learnt Harness faith (values and tradition) to oppose gender injustice Change starts from within the organization Seeking transformation in communities is a long- term process Work with faith leaders through community-based approaches is strategic Intra-faith and inter-faith partnerships catalyze change

Recommendations Recognize that faith can drive positive transformation for dignity in communities we work Recognize that faith actors have great potential to influence attitudinal and behavioral change and promote values underpinning gender justice and inclusion Include faith actors as integral partners implementing SDGs

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