What is PAMOJA?
PAMOJA Africa Reflect Network or popularly called PAMOJA is an Africa-wide non-lucrative, participatory education and development initiative established in 2002 by African Reflect practitioners, to facilitate learning, sharing and continuing evolution of Reflect practices in Africa. It forms part of CIRAC (Circle for International Reflect Action and Communication), which is a global organization of Reflect practitioners, set up in 2000. The UNESCO literacy award for year 2003 went to CIRAC!History of PAMOJA
Successive evaluations carried out in Africa have revealed that Reflect empowers people to take charge of their development agendas. Women are especially more confident and able to address issues that directly affect them.The coordination of Reflect work in Africa was facilitated by ActionAid between 1996 and 2001, through a Regional Coordination Unit based in ActionAid Uganda. In 2001, Reflect practitioners decided to set up an independent regional network, now called PAMOJA Africa Reflect Network (PAMOJA).
PAMOJA Vision
PAMOJA strives to see that the poor men and women in Africa are able to take control of their destiny by influencing policy makers to listen to their voices and also be able to challenge all dominant power structures in society so as to build a wealthy self sustaining African society. PAMOJA sees this as crucial to reduction of poverty and a precursor to sustainable development.PAMOJA Mission
PAMOJA exists to facilitate learning, sharing and the continuing evolution of Reflect experiences in Africa, in order to build a critical and enlightened mass of men, women, boys and girls empowered to realise their rights, ideals and values.Values
PAMOJA values include: mutual respect for all actors, solidarity with the poor, respect for African indigenous knowledge, equitable practice of power at all levels, individual and collective transformation, and gender equity.PAMOJA Core Objectives
1. To facilitate the formation and strengthening of PAMOJA Reflect Forums within Africa, promoting inter-agency collaboration and solidarity, facilitating the continuing evolution of Reflect and the emergence of distinctively African approaches.
2. To promote capacity building of Reflect practitioners across Africa through cross-country training for key resource people, exposure / exchange visits, peer evaluations and secondments at all levels.
3. To promote cross-country collaboration and innovation around key thematic issues in Africa, for example promoting innovation and learning around the role Reflect can play in addressing, HIV/AIDS, conflict, governance and youths.
4. To influence the relevant policies and practices of governments, NGOs and donor agencies, through a combination of grassroots mobilization, people's organization and publications that take their base from people's knowledge and experience, with the primary intention of strengthening people's control over their own lives.
5. To work closely with like-minded organizations and networks within Africa and beyond, so as to build a wider movement that cherishes Reflect practice and the ideals of the organization.
6. To specifically promote gender analysis and gender equity within the network and within member organizations.
Thematic Areas of Interest
PAMOJA is currently dealing in areas such as HIV/AIDS, conflict resolution, education, governance,etc
PAMOJA membership and Governance
Every Reflect practitioner in Africa is considered a member of PAMOJA, and for the moment, there are no membership fees.
National PAMOJA. Reflect practitioners form the National PAMOJAs in their respective countries. These National PAMOJAs are inter-institutional, made up of organisations practising Reflect (or committed to it) but otherwise are not standardised. They have different names and vary from being formal to informal. Each National PAMOJA selects one country representative to the PAMOJA Council.
PAMOJA Council. This is the supreme decision making body in PAMOJA, and is responsible for: establishing priorities / strategic planning, approving operational plans for the Secretariat, and determining human resource needs, among many others. The PAMOJA Council, which meets once a year, works with the Board in areas of human resources and finance.
Board of Trustees. This is the Advisory arm of the PAMOJA Secretariat, and has three major functions - legal, financial and personnel support. The Board, which meets four times a year, advises on strategic direction of PAMOJA and its management and also supports fundraising and PAMOJA profile raising.
PAMOJA Secretariat. Initially based in Kampala, Uganda, but may in future rotate to other countries. It is initially composed of 3 core staff: A Facilitator, A Communications Coordinator, and An Administration / Finance Officer.
Functions of Secretariat. The Secretariat is the executing arm of PAMOJA. It: provides administrative and technical support to the network; ensures smooth communication and information exchange within the network and with others; proposes work plans and budgets and presents them to the council for approval; promotes best principles and practices as they emerge from the needs of the practitioners; represents the network in regional and international fora and networks; undertakes/facilitates research/documentation of studies on areas identified by the network; and builds capacity among team members.
PAMOJA activities
Major future activities are:
- Link the Africa region with other regional networks, the Global Reflect Network - CIRAC by contributing to wider international debates
- Capacity building. PAMOJA intends to develop and support PAMOJAs, networks, and a cadre of resource persons who will hold the mantle of the organization.
- Promoting evaluation and learning through peer evaluations.
- Information exchange/development of modern resource center. PAMOJA will produce publicity material in both electronic and print form. PAMOJA will also establish an interactive Website for easy communication.
- Special events: PAMOJA, in collaboration with ANCEFA, and other national and regional coalitions on education, will carry out events aimed at focusing attention on issues concerning education and power and realization of EFA goals. Events such as annual "Dialogue on Education", based on new research produced within Africa, will be supported.
- Technical support in areas where PAMOJA has comparative advantage (eg. TOT, evaluations, regional debates) to other actors/organizations doing Reflect work such as ActionAid will be supported.
- Research: PAMOJA will support original African research that addresses African concerns and documents the processes and communicates the results to other practitioners for learning and sharing. PAMOJA will suggest workable models, based on best practice that will inform policy makers in various countries on way forward for development and education programs. PAMOJA will endeavor to develop principles and working development models that put the affected men, women, boys and girls at the center of development.
- Promotion and support of new innovations: PAMOJA will support new Reflect-related innovations such as that to incorporate Stepping Stones methodology into Reflect, in order to better address AIDS/HIV related issues; and incorporation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) into Reflect programs for efficient information exchange and learning.
- Fundraising activities
Collaboration
PAMOJA collaborates with many agencies such as ActionAid, CEF, SCF; UNESCO, Concern Universal, Oxfam, CCF, CARE, Aide et Action, Trocaire, CIDA and ANCEFA. This is in addition to other networks, governments, etc.Contacts
PAMOJA Africa REFLECT Network Secretariat,
P O Box 10150, Kampala, Uganda
Tel: +256-41-231311
+256-77-767738
Email: pamoja@infocom.co.ug
