Global South AAWG members take on communication barriers

Communication was foremost on the agenda of a special meeting of 21 Global South members of the Advocacy and Accountability Working Group (AAWG) meeting in Oslo in the week of the Coalition’s General Membership Meeting.

AAWG Global South members are critical actors in the RH supplies story but face traditional barriers to participating fully in AAWG meetings. As an alternative, members, representing 10 countries, agreed to establish a WhatsApp group, a dedicated Global South members email listserv, and a closed Facebook group. The chair will also set up regular calls for Global South AAWG members immediately before full AAWG, calls primarily to share information and enhance Southern participation. A new online reporting template has been built for Global South members to capture, document and share information, to make comparisons and lesson-sharing between countries easy. Members also observed that few Southern government representatives participate at Coalition meetings’ they committed to engaging governments more proactively in Coalition. The Southern advocates closed the meeting with a commitment to steer advocacy and accountability work, with bigger and more intense engagement. For more information please contact Commitments Officer, Emilie Peeters.

Categories: Advocacy and Accountability Working Group, Sixteenth Meeting, Oslo 2015