l’Association El Amane pour la Développement de la Femme (El Amane)

location: Marrakech, Morocco

In July 2011, IFES issued a subaward to l’Association El Amane pour la Developpement de la Femme (El Amane) for implementation of their project titled “Promoting Civil and Political Participation of Women.” El Amane began the first round of activities in early September. Please click on the partner name to find out more about their work on SWMENA and other projects.

About

El Amane is a non-profit association created by a group of young women in September 2003. Since its inception, the organization has organized many different activities and projects, ranging from literacy classes for illiterate women in the Sidi Youssef Ben Ali Council, to raising awareness of violence against women, human rights of women, and ways to prevent and treat various sexually transmitted diseases. The Association works to strengthen capacities of women in the field of human rights, both political and civil. The organization has also organized conferences for female students to listen to testimonies of women who had been abused and provides legal and psychological assistance to women in need. Finally the Association has also organized trainings for various organizations as well as launched awareness campaigns to expand women’s rights in Morocco.

What El Amane is Doing

• Reacting to the very low women’s political and civil participation in Morocco, specifically during the 2009 elections when only 45% of women reported having voted.
• Working on a civic education campaign to target women in both rural and urban areas.Beginning their campaign with the help of IFES’ in-country partner l’Union de l’Action Feminine (UAF).

Their Impact

• El Amane trained 300 women through a week long awareness campaign with five partner associations to provide women with basic knowledge concerning their civil and political rights, and training them on advocacy techniques and potential roles in elected bodies.
• El Amane enhanced the knowledge and resources of 15 women members from political parties and community leaders.
• El Amane publicized SWMENA data and encouraging women’s political participation through use of media.