SIHA

PRESS STATEMENT: Women’s Rights Organizations (WROs) Call for Equitable and Inclusive Representation in the Formation of Somalia’s Human Rights Commission

We acknowledge and commend the government for initiating the long-overdue process of establishing a Human Rights Commission, an essential constitutional obligation and a key demand of civil society actors across the country for over a decade.
While this step is welcome and reflects the

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COMMUNIQUÉ: Women’s Rights Activists from the East and Horn of Africa Call for Just and Equitable Family Laws

We, the women’s and human rights activists, government actors, legal scholars, and religious leaders from Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Somaliland, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda, gathered in Kampala for a Regional Convening on Family Law Reform hereby:
Express deep concern over the enduring gender bias embedded in family laws, structures,

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PRESS STATEMENT: Current Update on Atrocities at Zamzam Displacement Camp, North Darfur

Since April 12, 2025, the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) Network has closely followed the Rapid Support Forces’ (RSF) brutal attack on Zamzam Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp, North Darfur. SIHA has issued two statements on the situation, highlighting

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Announcing the Winners of SIHA Network’s 2025 Women at the Frontline Awards

On Wednesday, May 7, 2025, SIHA hosted a special awards ceremony, held both in person at the Universal Gab Hotel in Wau, South Sudan, and online to unveil this year’s winners of the Women at the Frontline Awards.

Three (3) exceptional grassroots Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs) from South Sudan were recognized for their tireless efforts in combating violence against

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BRIEFING PAPER Is the Democratic Dream Still Possible? Navigating the Growing Backlash Against Women’s Rights in Somaliland

This paper explores the structural backlash against the women’s rights movement in Somaliland, highlighting key incidents that reflect the increasingly challenging environment for women’s participation in public and political life….

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Statement by the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network) on Ethiopia – (no. OBS/433)

Your Excellency, Honourable Commissioner Mudford Zachariah Mwandenga,  
The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) is a regional feminist network with over 200 member organizations working across South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia, and the Somali region. We welcome this opportunity to address the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) this session.  
We wish to bring to your attention the deeply worrying situation of women and girls in Ethiopia.

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Statement by the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network) on Somalia – (no. OBS/433)

Your Excellency, Honourable Commissioner Janet Ramatoulie Sallah-Njie, 
The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) is a regional feminist network with over 200 member organizations working across South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia, and the Somali region. We welcome this opportunity to address the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) this session. 
We note with concern that Somalia remains one of the most perilous countries for women and girls, with gender-based violence (GBV)

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Statement by the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network) on South Sudan – (no. OBS/433)

Your Excellency, Honorable Commissioner Solomon Ayele Dersso, 
The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) is a regional feminist network with over 200 member organizations working across South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia, and the Somali region. We welcome this opportunity to address the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) this session.  
We note our deepest concern at the worsening situation of women and girls in South Sudan, a country that continues

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Statement by the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network) on Sudan – (no. OBS/433)

Your Excellency, Honourable Commissioner Hatem Essaiem, 

The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) is a regional feminist network with over 200 member organizations working across South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia, and the Somali region. We welcome this opportunity to address the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) this session.

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83rd ORDINARY SESSION OF THE AFRICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES’ RIGHTS BANJUL, THE GAMBIA

We welcome this opportunity to engage with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) on the current context across the Horn of Africa (HoA) and the rights of women and girls in the region during its 83rd Ordinary Session. Founded in 1995, the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) is an indigenous feminist network comprising more than 200 civil society organizations dedicated to advancing gender justice across Uganda, Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and the Somali Region.

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