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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

There is a dynamic and vibrant culture of girls’ and young women’s activism and organising in West Africa. Yet girls’ and young women’s activism in the region is not well documented or widely known about. Who are these activists, how are they organising, what drives them to demand change and what are the barriers they face? The intention of this research was to begin to answer these questions and identify opportunities for organisations like Plan International to support and catalyse girl and youth led movements in West and Central Africa.

In 2019, Plan International’s West and Central Africa regional hub carried out the first phase of a study into girl and young women led activism in the region. Our intention was to begin to fill the knowledge gap on girls’ and young women’s activism and organising in West Africa.

The research was informed by reviewing existing literature and by speaking with experts: INGOs, civil society and funders working on youth engagement in the region. We interviewed civil society activists, some of whom were former girl activists. Most importantly we spoke to and explored the perspectives and experiences of 10 young women and girl activists from five countries in West Africa during a human centre design workshop.

A note on terms: the research uses the terms girls and young women to refer to a mixed age range of adolescent girls (10-19) and young women (15-24) in relation to their activism, organising and groups. When Plan International first conceived of the research, they aimed to focus on adolescent girls’ activism in West Africa. However, as we got into the project we realised that the activists we were identifying were in an older sub-set of 15-24 and particularly 18 and over. Furthermore, we noted that in interviews and discussion, the term girl was used fluidly to include an older age range than just ‘adolescent girls’. As a result of this and to be transparent about the group which we learnt about, Plan International extended the study to girls and young women, with a focus on the 15-24 age range.

The landscape for girls’ and young women’s activism and organising in West Africa

There is an active girl, young women and youth activism and organising space in West Africa and INGOs and donors are increasingly interested in working with this space, but can struggle to identify young women and particularly adolescent girl activists and groups. They particularly struggle to find groups that are adolescent girl-led, at the grassroots, and away from urban centres.

The research identifies a spectrum of group and leadership structures, from groups established and led by girls and young women, to groups established by adults where girls and young women play varying leadership and decision-making roles. The report finds that girls’ and young women’s organising is seldom organic and their groups rarely exist without any external influence.

We spoke to girl and young women activists who were motivated to become activists from personal experiences or by role models. Mostly the research found activism and activist groups that have been instigated in some way, through involvement with INGOs, local organisations and initiatives such as debate clubs. Experts felt that expecting adolescent girls to spontaneously become activists is not realistic, particularly in a West African context where girls’ and young women’s exposure to activism is limited, and there can be barriers to them meeting and organising together.

Most of the girl and young women activists we spoke to were engaged in community work and advocacy activities on girls’ rights issues. Gender based violence, child marriage, FGM/C, education and mentorship, menstrual health, feeding programmes, working with orphans and vulnerable children were the focuses of work of their work. However the extent to which this reflects a full range of issues that girls and young people want to work on, rather than simply a reflection of INGO and donor priorities in a landscape influenced by (adult) development issues is a question to interrogate.

This study and others find a correlation between socioeconomic advantage and higher education levels, and, with girls’ and young women’s activism. Higher education provides the space and connections for girls and young women to organise. Additionally, the girl and young women activists that an online search threw-up, use Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter to promote their work and connect with other activists. Yet because activists with access to social media are immediately more visible to the INGOs looking for them, the risk is that the activism that INGOs support reflects a small privileged subset. The online activist space in West Africa does not directly represent the voices of large numbers of girls and young women who are not online and do not access the organising opportunities that university or secondary education creates. The wider literature calls for an intersectional lens on girls’ activism, acknowledging that girls and young women from poorer backgrounds, minority groups, those who identify as LGBTQI+, and those with a disability are all less likely to be involved in (visible) activism.

Although this research did not find many examples of grassroots or diverse activists, experts provided explanations for why these groups may be difficult to identify. In addition to a lack of online presence, grassroots activists are likely to work on a small scale and may purposefully be keeping a low profile while working on sensitive issues. Girls and young women, particularly those from rural contexts, may not identify as activists and promote themselves as such.

A major recommendation that comes out of the research is the need for an in-depth mapping of girl and young women activists and groups, including at the grassroots level, to really understand the scope of girls’ and young women’s activism and organising in the region. One of the limitations of this study is that it relies on online searches and talking to (mainly) adult specialists of youth engagement as well as former girl activists, about a phenomenon that is not always visible. The lack of visibility of much girl and youth activism is a challenge for INGOs looking to find girl activists and their groups.

Barriers and pressing needs for girls and young women activists

The girl and young women activists we spoke to face a number of challenges including not being taken seriously and feeling taken advantage of by adults who they work with but don’t give them sufficient space to make decisions or do meaningful work.

Those who attended the HCD workshop are passionate about their issues but busy and juggling many commitments.
Burnout is a real risk for them. In addition, girl and young women activists deal with abuse and bullying – both online and offline. Many face threats and several have experienced physical violence. Some have informal mechanisms for dealing with these, but many do not, and most are working in contexts with very limited or nonexistent structures and services to support them to stay safe.

Amongst the skills and learning that girl and young women activists seek from their peers and from adult activists and INGOs, is how to stay safe in their work. In addition, they struggle to identify and win funding opportunities and lack the know-how to navigate complex application processes.