One of 14 short case study summaries which were written by Orlanda Siow of UCL. They focus on development programs that aim to be both politically informed and gender aware. See From Silos to Synergy for a synthesis of the lessons that emerge.
This case study focuses on the work of the Pacific Leadership Program (PLP) with Tonga’s Women in Leadership Coalition. In 2015, the PLP began supporting a coalition of women’s organisations advocating the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in Tonga. At that time, the coalition faced strong public opposition to its campaign, including large anti-CEDAW demonstrations in the country’s capital. The PLP provided the Civil Society Forum of Tonga with adaptive leadership training, a retreat for reflection and strategy development and research and analysis. This enabled the coalition to take an increasingly politically informed approach, build bridges with opponents, and address the specific gendered challenges it faces.
