The Ahfad University for Women, an institution of higher education in Sudan, has prepared women to assume leadership roles in their communities and in the nation since its founding in 1966. In keeping with this objective, the ‘Ahfad experience’ embraces a combination of academic courses, on-the-job training, individual research, and community extension activities.
This combination of activities has been designed to prepare women from all parts of Sudan to become change agents in their families and communities and to assume leadership positions in society. Its mission is to become one of the leading institutions in Africa and the Arab world dedicated to achieving peace, gender equality, and respect for human rights, with special emphasis on women’s empowerment and leadership.
The university hosts the Regional Institute of Gender, Diversity, Peace and Rights which is focused on awareness, research and training on a wide range of gender issues. It offers four master’s programs on Gender and Development, Gender and Peace Studies, Gender and Governance, and Gender, Migration and Multicultural Studies. The Institute developed a training manual on gender concepts and gender mainstreaming in development policies, programs and gender budgeting as well as good governance principles and peace.
The School of Psychology’s Trauma Outreach, Recovery and Community Healing (TORCH) Center has organized lectures, seminars and workshops to end discrimination and eliminate violence against women and girls. It has also provided skills and vocational training tailored to women, including on self-reliance and income-generating activities to increase their employment opportunities.
The university’s Gender and Reproductive Health Rights and Advocacy Centre (GRACe) marks the International Day of the Girl Child with research fora and has promoted outreach initiatives on the role of youth in combating gender-based violence. These activities have been implemented regularly with various stakeholders, particularly those in disadvantaged communities.
The university’s Rural Extension Program offers scientific field trips for students to explore the lives of rural people and learn about appropriate forms of intervention to improve the quality of life for women in rural communities. The participants in this program are students and faculty but also government officials and members of local civil society organizations.
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