Isis-WOMEN’S INTERNATIONAL CROSS-CULTURAL EXCHANGE (Isis-WICCE)

Background

Isis-Women’s International Cross Cultural Exchange (Isis-WICCE) is an action oriented women’s resource centre which was started in 1974 in Geneva, Switzerland. It relocated to Kampala, Uganda at the end of 1993. The objective of its move was to tap African women’s ideas, views and problems. Isis-WICCE was founded in response to the need few women from various regions of the world to communicate ideas, create solidarity networks and share information to overcome gender inequalities. Isis-WICCE continues to respond to those needs through its three main programmes: the Exchange Programme, the Information and Documentation Programme and the Publications Programme. Since the move to Kampala, Isis-WICCE started national-level programmes to facilitate the flow of information from Uganda to other parts of Africa and the rest of and to contribute towards the strengthening of the Ugandan women’s movement.

Values

Through its programmes, Isis-WICCE gathers, documents, produces and disseminates feminist and gender-related information on a wide selection of topics. Isis-WICCE also facilitates communication among women from different parts of the world. Although its perspective is global, Isis-WICCE gives priority supporting me needs of women from developing countries, especially Africa who have little access to information and lack the means to link with women from other countries and regions.

Mission

Isis-WICE, a global women’s organisation in Africa, is committed to fairness, equality and justice in all human relationships. Using various strategies including the exchange of skills and experiences, the documentation of women’s information sharing and networking, Isis-WICCE promotes the empowerment of women, and the flow of information and ideas, leading to gender sensitivity and equal opportunity at all levels.

Vision

Isis-WICCE envisions a well informed and gender sensitive society, where women’s status and achievements are well documented and valued, and their capacities fully utilised.

Core Purpose

Isis-WlCCE’s core purpose is to promote the self determination of women, through the exchange of skills and experiences, the documentation of women’s lives, information sharing and networking.

The Exchange Pogramme

The Exchange Programme runs an annual institute, whose emphasis is on training and advocacy. The pro-programme women activists from economically under priviledged countries a unique opportunity to come together and share experiences, skills and ideas from different cultures and regions. Through an intense programme consisting of presentations, workshops, lectures, debates and analyses, participants gain understanding of the issues they are working on and are exposed to new ideas for action, as well as being strengthened by me new skills and contacts made. This is a yearly activity which started in 1984 under the theme Media and Communication and in 1985 the theme was Women and Health. Such other themes discussed are Poverty, Prostitution and trafficking in women, Women living under muslim laws, etc. for 1998-99 is ‘Documenting women’s experiences of Armed conflict as a tool for advocacy and redress’.

Each Exchange Programme Institute is a process, which has a cycle of two distinct phases: the Planning phase, and tile Institute which includes three parts: the orientation/Action Plan, Plan implementation, and Report Back period. The institute focuses on a particular theme within the human rights framework.

The programme also runs monthly gender and development talks to raise awareness on gender issues among women and men; to sharpen the gender perspective of Isis-WICCE members and to provide space for discussion and debate of topical issues nationally and globally.

The Information and Documentation Programme

The Information and Documentation Programme operates a unique Documentation Centre that collects, documents, processes, stores and disseminates information on and by women worldwide, to about 2,000 groups and individual contacts, working on issues of concern to women located in 155 countries worldwide. The major emphasis of the programme is to document women’s lives and make them visible to the rest of the world.

The programme has acquired a unique of information and about women through our networks. Presently the documentation centre holds 400 titles of periodicals, over 100,000 items of grey literature, about 100 audio/visual collection and a feminist library of over 3,000 books and reference materials on and about women. The information covers a variety of topics from health, education, nutrition, appropriate technology, media, violence against women, women’s human rights, employment, sexuality, peace, women and politics, women and religion, debt crisis/credit and the theories of feminism. At the local level, the programme has started the documentation of women’s realities and experiences starting with the issues of the effect of war to women. The programme has also established three information units at the rural level as a means of making relevant information more accessible to the rural community.

Publications Programme

The Publications Programme’s aim is to make information on gender issues from a women centered perspective more accessible and available to women worldwide. It is designed to publish information generated by and for me Exchange Programme and from the Information and Documentation Programme, as well as producing materials for advocacy work. The following publications are produced yearly; ‘Women’s World’, ‘Mondes des Femmes’, ‘the Communique’ - quarterly and ‘Proof in Print’ - bi-annually. These are available through an exchange arrangement and subscription, In collaboration with the Information and Documentation Programme the Publications Programme updates a directory Women NGOs and Groups in Uganda which started in 1995.

The organisation is also involved with a number of advocacy campaigns concerning women’s rights.

Find us at:

Plot 32 Bukoto Street Kamwokya
P.O. Box 4934 Kampala Uganda
Tel: 256-41-543953 Fax: 256-41-543954
E-Mail: isis@Starcom.co.ug Website: www.isis.or.ug