Publish What You Pay has published the biography of Hadja Aicha Barry: One of the few women who dares to question the governance of the mining sector in Guinea.
Who is Hadja Aicha Barry?
She has an impressive academic background: she holds a postgraduate diploma (DES) in geography, a master’s degree in environment and a certificate in extractive industries governance from the Centre of Excellence for Extractive Industries at the Catholic University of Yaoundé, Cameroon. Very early in her career, she was aware of the challenges of good governance in the extractive industries and knew that citizen participation was essential. Her 20 years in teaching have given her a definite taste for public life. This is reflected in her unwavering commitment to the cause of women, which led to her being transferred to the Ministry of Social Affairs, Promotion of Women and Children. A born leader and activist since her youth, Hadja Aicha Barry was entrusted with the Family Directorate within this ministry. Qualified as a “convinced feminist” by some because of her continuous fight in favour of women, Hadja Aicha Barry uses all means to defend them. She divides her energy between her duty as a housewife and her passion, which is to help women and young girls find their way in society and to convince them of the need for civic engagement. This commitment has been hers since she started her life as a student:
She deplored the low interest of Guinean women in governance issues, which were the preserve of men.
Her mark within PWYP
Initially, she was the sole representative of women’s organisations in the Publish What You Pay (PWYP) coalition. Having succeeded in establishing her influence, Hadja Aicha Barry now sits on the PWYP board of directors and ensures the proper functioning of the coalition.
Hadja Aicha Barry overcomes prejudices and social constraints and is able to fearlessly express her ideas and opinions to contribute to the planning and execution of PWYP’s activities. Her involvement in extractive industries governance in Guinea Aware of the social difficulties that hinder women’s involvement in the monitoring of public policies, Hadja Aicha Barry relied in 2019 on the mobilising power of women’s organisations and gathered around her 12 NGOs to form COGUIFEMINES (the Guinean Coalition of Women for Mining and Sustainable Development). They are now all members of the PWYP national coalition and symbolise the growing strength of women who wish to participate in the governance of the extractive industries in Guinea. COGUIFEMINES is also a member of the consultation framework of civil society organisations on women’s rights in the mining sector. Recently created (barely a year ago), this framework plans to organise the first forum on women’s rights in the Guinean mining sector. The forum is intended to be a space for dialogue, information, awareness-raising and advocacy for the consideration of women’s rights in mining by decision-makers and all stakeholders. As March is Women’s Month, it will be used to encourage women to conquer the public space.
An optimistic view of the challenges ahead
It is fair to acknowledge an improvement in the status of women in Guinea, who now enjoy better access to training and public life. However, there are still shadows in the picture. The major challenge for women remains their lack of self-confidence: their weak skills do not encourage them to engage in governance.
Young Guinean women now understand that they must commit themselves and go all the way.
Text source : https://www.pwyp.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/PWYP_Art-dimp_Genre_Guinea_FR_final.pdf
