This international programme of training on Economic, Social and Cultural (ESC) Rights enforceability approaches brings together Non-Governmental Organizations from Benin, Cameroon, France, India, Mali, Senegal, Togo and the Philippines. We decided to pool our experiences, notably via this website, in order to mutually build our capacities and share them with other stakeholders. Partners: Aoudaghost Network : Senegal Unit Benin Unit Togo Unit Malian Unit and the Malian ESC rights (...)

The Network, as a civil society organization, defines itself as a framework of solidarity, exchange and (institutional, structural, and technical) capacity building, specialized in promoting development intiatives carried out by young people, women and children in Africa. It aims more precisely at promoting and protecting young people’s, women’s and children’s economic, social and cultural rights.

The AOUDAGHOST Network’s Togo Unit was created in March 2005. It gathers 4 associations together:

• Centre d’appui pour la Gestion et le Développement - CAGED, (Support center for Management and Development)
• DON BOSCO Center Togo / Kara
• Structure d’Appui au Développement des Enfants et des jeunes Filles en Difficulté au Togo - SOTCHI Kara, (Structure of support to children and girls in difficulties in Togo)
• IRAD-Maluk

This document compiles exchanges of the first international training session which took place in Bamako, April 14th-17th, 2008. The themes addressed were: the various steps of mobilising civil society on ESC rights (Setting up ESC rights platforms, Indicator setting with participative enquiries and collection of data, Lobbying, advocacy), the participation in the elaboration and modification of laws integrating ESC rights and the drafting of shadow reports.

The second international seminar of this programme took place in Bangalore (India) in June 2009. We discussed the thematics : Organizing civil society into a broad social movement, Monitoring the UN Committee on ESC rights’ recommendations, Monitoring administrative and judicial practices and Mobilizing for the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

The African regional workshop on ESC Rights Enforceability Approaches was held in Yaounde (Cameroon) from January 18th to 22nd, 2010.
“The populations don’t often know their rights. The Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) have an obligation to inform them, to train them for actions of promotion and defence of these rights. Therefore, the issue is to make the CSOs accountable for promotion and protection of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESC Rights).”

After the African regional workshop on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESC Rights) enforceability approaches from January 18th to 22nd in Yaounde (Cameroon), Madani Koumaré, African coordinator of the ESC Rights international programme talks about the ESC Rights in Africa.

After the African regional workshop on ESC rights enforceability approaches that was held from January 18th to 22nd in Yaounde (Cameroon), the foreign participants talk about their platform, the local actions on site, their 2010 prospects, etc.

NGOs welcome historic step forward for the protection of all human rights.