Indigenous Baka women meet for the first time to strengthen their leadership and self esteem

FPP and APETDS have been working closely with communities in the Messok Dja area for more than four years. Women in these communities have often shared with us their belief that they don’t feel they are adequately represented or consulted in community decisions (particularly those concerning projects proposed by external actors that encroach on their lands), and that they would like to play a more active role in decision-making concerning their lands.  

Indigenous people in the Republic of Congo already experience serious systemic discrimination, and the situation is yet more pronounced for Baka women, who suffer a double discrimination due to both their indigeneity and their gender. 

The objective of this event was to bring together women from communities across the forest block, to create a safe space for sharing their challenges and ideas.  

Women of all ages were invited, with provisions made for mothers with babies and toddlers to bring their children. Very few had met each other before, and for many it was their first time away from their husbands and children. On arrival in Souanke, many of the women seemed nervous, but the novelty of the situation also lent a sense of excitement to the air.  

Members of so many different Baka villages rarely – if ever – have the opportunity to gather together, which made the event particularly significant. Travel in this part of Congo is prohibitively expensive and, in the rainy season, especially challenging for communities between Sembe and Ngbala, where the road is not paved. As one of the first such multi-day events organised in the region, the gathering was groundbreaking. 

The first day opened with a ceremony attended by the mayor and other local dignitaries. When I first saw the grand set-up for the mayor, I worried that it would seem invasive to the Baka women and undermine the “safe space” we hoped to create. However, it also became evident that the presence of the local “VIPs” served to highlight the importance of the event and give status to proceedings – not insignificant when a key objective was to be esteem-building. I think it would have been even more impactful if this part had happened at the end, when women had gained more confidence – a lesson for next time.  

Journalists from Télévision Congolaise and Radio Congo recorded speeches given by the mayor and Erick Nkodia, the president of APETDS, as well as a short interview with one of the Baka participants. Unfortunately, her words weren’t featured in the item broadcast on the news later that day – which was rather ironic for a piece about raising the voices of Baka women, and starkly underlined the huge challenges faced.  

Over the following days, the women – guided by a (female) external facilitator – discussed a wide range of topics in Baka and Lingala languages. Discussions centred on the role of women in Baka society, touching on different elements including education, management of resources, decision-making and women’s leadership.  

Indigenous woman highlighted the collaborative nature of practices as they have traditionally been carried out – sustainably with the involvement of men and women, young and old. 

 Laurette YAYE explained: 

 

 “When we went into the forest with our grandparents, the women built the mongoulou [traditional dwelling made from leaves and branches] then they went fishing at the dam and the men went looking for honey. Once we arrived at the camp, the women prepared the fish caught during fishing so that the whole family can eat them in the evening. If a child is not feeling well, [the women] go and get the wood bark to prepare in order to give it to them.” 

 

From my perspective as an external observer, it seemed women were noticeably more animated when discussing the forest. They gave many examples of how women’s activities safeguard the environment. For example, GNITE from Bethel village explained how, just as the men avoid exhausting the supply of honey in order for the bees to recolonise their nest, “When women gather yams, we don’t leave the new shoots to die on the ground, we put the head of it back in the ground so it produces again in future.”  

Perhaps inevitably, given the pressures that the Baka and their forest are under, the discussion drifted to the manifold ways in which outsiders do not respect Baka taboos around land management and are harming the health of people and the environment. Women cited the over-fishing of their rivers, the poisoning of watercourses, unsustainable logging by outsiders, and over-hunting by non-Baka.  

Participants also had a lot to say about women’s leadership. They recognised that women have not always been traditionally designated as official leaders in Baka communities (for example, the status of chief has often been assumed by men). However, they pointed towards their own models of governance and organization, such as women's groups set up to carry out fishing activities or gather non-timber forest products. The conversation moved to how women could better influence decisions in the community and take a leading role in the protection of their resources.  

KPAPOSSO Esther, from Moutomayeck, shared her ideas about how to stop outsiders using poison to catch fish :  

 

“We should organise ourselves within the village and be brave enough to denounce this practice to the village chief. And if it continues after having informed him, we can go to the Sous-préfet to ensure he knows about the situation.”  

 

On our final evening together, two Ejengi forest spirits came out of the forest for the Ejengi  dance ceremony, lit by the full moon – a rare occurrence. It felt like a blessing for the event and a moment of hope.  

The exchange was an incredibly special thing to be a part of, and the community went to great efforts to make us feel welcome. I hope this will be the first of many events in the future.