To analyze the perspectives of change agents from different Islamic communities about Female Genital Religious Actors Mapping in Ethiopia and Somalia 93 views3 applications

To improve the prevention of harmful practices such as FGM, which are deeply rooted in cultural customs, it is necessary to involve change agents such as religious and traditional leaders. They are personally connected to influential networks such as elders and clan leaders, and, as respected figures, they play an essential role in opinion-forming and influencing respect for tradition and social change in local communities. They also have direct contact with the population in all age groups, teaching and disseminating religious messages, and are consulted by the behavior and practices that concern respect for social, moral, and gender norms in their communities, such as marriage, education path, business, family, and community rituals. They are also critical actors in the issues related to the perpetuation or abolishment of FGM.

In Islam unlike members of other faiths, leaders have a degree of autonomy in their opinions and teaching style. Although they have scripts and guidelines to follow, such as the Qur’an, the Sunnah, or the Shari’a, in many day-to-day matters, the high-ranking sheiks cannot oblige the imams and leaders to follow their suggestions. The instrument they must bind the Iman and the population to follow dogmatic prescriptions is the publication of official fatwas, a formal ruling or interpretation on the point of Islamic law given by a qualified legal scholar. Even though these are not accepted throughout the Muslim world, they have regional validity.

As FGM-Prev is a regional program, it is confronted with subtle differences in the religious attitudes of people in different countries. In the Afar region of Ethiopia, for example, there is a fatwa against FGM, which has influenced the enactment of a regional law that reinforces the federal law banning the practice. In the Somali region of Ethiopia, however, the opinions of religious leaders remain diverse and controversial.

In Somalia, religious leaders follow different opinions; there are religious leaders in Puntland State for example who are publicly advocating for the abandonment of all types of cutting. On the other hand, there is another group of Somali religious leaders who believe that the ‘Sunna’ type of circumcision on girls is an Islamic tradition and should not be abandoned.

From this complex situation, a RAM is an essential tool that can support the design and the implementation of contextualized activities in the territory of the different areas of intervention. This would also contribute to developing targeted support for religious leaders and addressing their needs to improve FGM prevention in their communities.

• Education/training (2.1.1): University degree equivalent to master’s level or higher in Gender studies, social science, social studies, public health, political science or equivalent
• Language (2.2.2): C2 -level language proficiency in English
• General professional experience (2.1.3): 10 years’ experience in research implementation, in a qualitative study on Gender issues, and experience on FGM related studies is a plus
• Specific professional experience (2.1.4): 3 years’ experience working with the RAM methodology
• Leadership/management experience (2.1.5): at least 5 years of management/leadership experience as a research team leader or a PI
• Regional experience (2.1.6): experience in the eastern Africa region in leading research or managing related projects

  Qualification

Key expert 1

Tasks of key expert 1Contextualizing the study tools based on the country context

• Reaching out to regional offices for support
• Ensure the quality of data collection

Qualifications of Key Expert 1

• Education/training (2.2.1): University degree equivalent to master’s level or higher in Gender studies, social science, social studies, public health, political science or equivalent
• Language (2.2.2): C2 -level language proficiency in English and Amharic or English and Somali language
• General professional experience (2.2.3): 8 years’ experience in research implementation, especially in qualitative studies on Gender and FGM
• Specific professional experience (2.2.4): Experience in working with religious leaders, especially with Islamic religious leaders
• Regional experience (2.2.6): Knowledge of specific country context including religion
• Key Expert 2

Tasks of key expert 2

• Contextualizing the study tools based on the country context
• Reaching out to regional offices for support
• Ensure the quality of data collection

Qualifications of Key Expert 2

• Education/training (2.3.1): University degree equivalent to master’s level or higher in Gender studies, social science, social studies, public health, political science or equivalent
• Language (2.3.2): C2 -level language proficiency in English and Amharic or English and Somali language
• General professional experience (2.3.3): 8 years’ experience in research implementation, especially in qualitative studies on Gender and FGM
• Specific professional experience (2.3.4): Experience in working with religious leaders, especially with Islamic religious leaders
• Regional experience (2.3.6): Knowledge of specific country context including religion

Short-term expert pool with minimum 5 , and maximum 10 members

For the technical assessment, an average of the qualifications of all specified members of the expert pool is calculated. Please send a CV for each pool member (see below Chapter 7 Requirements on the format of the bid) for the assessment.

Tasks of the short-term expert pool

• Collect data from the selected community members as per the data collection tool
• Ensure the data is complete and accurate
• Submit all data for the researchers on time

Qualifications of the short-term expert pool

• Education/training (2.6.1): degree or in any field of study
• Language (2.6.2): c2(fluent) level in Somali and Amharic languages, speaking, listening and reading