MenCare: A Global Fatherhood Campaign, coordinated by Equimundo and Sonke Gender Justice, will host partners and colleagues from more than 20 countries this week.
MenCare partners and colleagues from around the world will come together November 19-21 in Rabat, Morocco and via remote participation to develop a joint agenda to advance international and national advocacy efforts, share best practices and evidence, and develop new and innovative ways to achieve men’s equal partnership in unpaid care work.
We invite you to participate in the conversation online, using #MenCareLive, and interact with us on Facebook and Twitter.
Across the three-day meeting, participants – practitioners, activists, government stakeholders, and academics – will share and exchange new findings, lessons learned, and reflections from the field of engaging men as fathers and caregivers for gender equality with a goal of creating a unified plan to put men’s caregiving on national and global agendas.
The MenCare Global Meeting is hosted by Equimundo, Sonke Gender Justice, Quartiers du Monde, in partnership with Make Mothers Matter and the MenCare Steering Committee: MenEngage Alliance, Plan International Sweden, Oxfam, and Save the Children Sweden. Watch the following plenaries live (in English):
Opening Plenary: Promoting Care as Valuable Work
When: Tuesday, November 19: 9:00 – 10:30 WEST | 10:00 – 11:30 CAT | 13:30 – 15:00 IST | 3:00 – 4:30 EST
What: Featuring a welcome and introductions by Carine Troussel, Quartiers du Monde, Anne-Claire de Liedekerke, Make Mothers Matter, and MenCare Co-Coordinators Aapta Garg, Equimundo, and Wessel van den Berg, Sonke Gender Justice.
Speakers:
- Leila Rhiwi, UN Women Representative for the Multi-country Office in Morocco
- Amina Bouayach, President of the National Human Rights Council (CNDH)
Join the livestream on MenCare’s Facebook here.
Plenary: Deconstructing Patriarchy, Power, and Privilege: Rooting our work in Feminist Ideals
When: Tuesday, November 19: 14:00 – 15:30 WEST | 15:00 – 16:30 CAT | 18:30 – 20:00 IST | 8:00 – 9:30 EST
What: Exploring how MenCare can better align our agenda with feminisms around the world.
Speakers:
- Shrinivas Rao, Programme Director, Azad Foundation in India
- Laxman Belbase, Global Networks Manager, MenEngage Alliance
- Joni van de Sand, Global Director, Men Engage Alliance
- Valerie Bichelmeier, UN Representative and Advocacy Officer, Make Mothers Matter
- Saïda Belhdid, President of Ouarzazate Section, Fédération des Ligues des Droits des Femmes
- Ada Bazan, International Coordinator, Quartiers du Monde
- Suleiman Henry, Child Rights and Positive Parenting (CRPP) Regional Trainer, Sonke Gender Justice
Moderator:
- Nikki van der Gaag, Senior Fellow, Equimundo
Join the livestream on MenCare’s Facebook here.
Plenary: Fathers and Male Caregivers Involvement in the Early Years
When: Wednesday, November 20: 9:00 – 11:00 WEST | 10:00 – 12:00 CAT | 13:30 – 15:30 IST | 3:00 – 5:00 EST
What: Exploring ways to best promote men’s involvement before birth, during birth, and throughout the early years of a child’s life.
Speakers:
- Aljosa Rodas, Program Officer, International Step by Step Association (ISSA)
- Shamsi Kazimbaya, Senior Program Officer, Equimundo
- Emmanuel Karamage, Field Coordinator in WOW Project, Rwanda Men’s Resource Center (RWAMREC)
- Duncan Fisher, Editor of Child & Family Blog and Affiliate of University of Maryland, USA
- Maureen Samms-Vaughan, Professor of Child Health, Child Development and Behavior, University of the West Indies
- Saifullah Chaudhry, Senior Advisor, Gender Equality, Plan International Canada
Moderator:
- Sam Sternin, Consultant of the Bernard van Leer Foundation
Join the livestream on MenCare’s Facebook here.
Plenary: The State of Parental and Paternity Leave: How can we best advocate for change?
When: Wednesday, November 20: 14:00 – 15:30 WEST | 15:00 – 16:30 CAT | 18:30 – 20:00 IST | 8:00 – 9:30 EST
What: We know that fully paid, non-transferable paternity leave and other kinds of care leave are some of the keys to moving the dial on unpaid care. How can we make this happen? Can we include the non-formal sector? And how do we keep a feminist perspective?
Speakers:
- Sebastian Molano, Senior Gender Advisor, Oxfam America
- Umberto Cattaneo, Economist Gender Equality and Diversity, International Labour Organization
- Gary Barker on behalf of the Paternity Leave Corporate Task Force, Equimundo
- Rachel Ploem, Technical Advisor Women’s Health & Gender, Rutgers WPF
- Latifa Benayad, Head of the Gender File, Department of Administration Reform & Coordinator, RCI Network (Interministerial Coordination Network)
Moderator:
- Wessel van den Berg, Child Rights and Positive Parenting Portfolio Manager Sonke Gender Justice
Join the livestream on MenCare’s Facebook here.
Plenary: State of the World’s Fathers and the MenCare Commitment
When: Thursday, November 21: 9:30 – 11:00 WEST | 10:30 – 12:00 CAT | 14:00 – 15:30 IST | 3:30 – 5:00 EST
What: We will provide an overview of the State of the World’s Fathers report, how it generated the MenCare Commitment, and profile examples of successful advocacy across the five policy areas laid out in the MenCare Commitment.
Speakers:
- Wessel van den Berg, Children’s Rights and Positive Parenting Unit Manager, Sonke Gender Justice
- Tatiana Moura, Coordinator, Equimundo-Portugal
- Emmanuel Karamage, Field Coordinator in WOW Project, Rwanda Men’s Resource Center (RWAMREC)
- Hugo Rocha Pérez, Director, Cómplices por la Igualdad – MenEngage Mexico
- Francisco Aguayo, Director, Cultura Salud/EME
Moderator:
- Gary Barker, President & CEO, Equimundo
Join the livestream on MenCare’s Facebook here.
Closing Plenary: Closing Reflections on Ways Forward for MenCare
When: Thursday, November 21: 14:00 – 15:00 WEST | 15:00 – 16:00 CAT | 18:30 – 19:30 IST | 8:00 – 9:00 EST
What: Closing reflections from participants on their main takeaways from the meeting.
Moderators:
- Gary Barker, President & CEO, Equimundo
- Wessel van den Berg, Children’s Rights and Positive Parenting Unit Manager, Sonke Gender Justice
Join the livestream on MenCare’s Facebook here.
More than ever, we need to create unified voices for social, political and economic justice.
The meeting will build on the recommendations highlighted in the State of the World’s Fathers 2019 report, to develop a roadmap toward and identify a shared international advocacy agenda to achieve equality in caregiving and gender equality more broadly.
This third global meeting will also provide insights and strategies for achieving a new MenCare effort: The MenCare Commitment. This ambitious commitment aims to multiply the power of care by engaging 50 countries to take action and to achieve a national goal of men doing 50 percent of the unpaid care work by 2030.