Women of Africa Resource and Development Association (WARDA)

BACKGROUND:

Warda is a grass root non-profit organization formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2001 by a group of predorminantly immigrant women. Their aim is to service refugee and immigrant women and youth mainly from East Africa.

Above: WARDA USA Branch event photo. Click on the photo or here to see more event pictures.
WARDA is comprised of individuals and organization with common visions and values; committed to the transformation of relationships, lives and livelihoods of the people of the Horn of Africa, linking the local, regional and international levels in a cooperative network.  WARDA serving as a think tank working to create solutions that will accelerate the social economic, cultural aspects of women and children.

MISSION STATEMENT:

WARDA aims to empower African women and children to action by bridging the cultural gaps through access and facilitation to education, training and health services to promote decision-making and self-sufficiency.  This will promote successful integration into society as well as greater cultural understanding, across the board.

Program Activities  

Youth Tutoring – Tutoring is also a one-on-one activity that will build relationships between community members.  WARDA has been operating a tutoring program for Somali girls in Riverside Plaza for several years.  In the past the tutors were members of a suburban church community.  The need for tutors has always outstripped the supply, but recruiting people from within the community provides an opportunity to increase multi-cultural understanding and build relationships.  The group of girls who attends the tutoring sessions seeking assistance on weekday evenings ranges from 20 to 40.  Our goal is to recruit 10 new community tutors.

One-on-One Friends –Mature immigrant women will be partnered with longer-term community women to provide mutual support.  American women can help to increase English language skills through conversation, and also support immigrant women’s pursuit of educational and professional goals.  Many immigrant women have been in ESL classes for years but still struggle with conversational English.  Immigrant women can teach their language and culture to their American partners, and also help them understand immigrant issues.  These new competencies will enhance community multiculturalism while building strong relationships among individuals. 

Mother-to-Mother Program – This activity extends the WARDA partnership to include West Bank Community Development Corporation, University of Minnesota School of Nursing and Center for Victims of torture to conduct a pilot program to evaluate the effectiveness of community-based parenting support for Somali and mothers. 

Multicultural Events – Community events conceived and planned by neighborhood residents will be organized for the purpose of sharing cultures and creating opportunities for people to get to know each other.  This has already started happening with the two “Women’s Night Out” events held during 2003, where women from different cultures got together to share food, play music and dance. 

Peace & Safety Group – WARDA plans to organize youth violence prevention programs in response to a rapid increase of youth crimes in the Cedar Riverside neighborhood.  Many people became victimized by vandalism, car theft, robbery and also witnessed gang violence on the residential streets. 

 Oral History, Documentation –   The Somali culture has an oral tradition, and women have a special place in that tradition as poets who capture their experiences in poems or chants that pass on valuable information.  The stories are being lost as the social settings for telling the stories disappear, thus young women no longer hear them.  In order to preserve the valuable information contained in the poems, and to increase intergenerational and multi-cultural understanding, we will engage people in an oral history and documentary activities.

Women’s Swimming Group - WARDA, with the help of the YMCA on 34^th St. and Blaisdell Ave, has facilitated an all-women’s bi-weekly swimming group.  This was motivated by the desire of many little girls to swim, despite the Islamic tradition requiring utmost privacy for women.  Heretofore, Somali women and girls had not been able to partake in the joys of swimming at community pools, due to the fact that, in order to do so, they would have to forfeit their privacy and ‘wear their bathing suits around men’.  Now, 60-70 women and girls can all have fun and swim, while maintaining their privacy and observing their traditions.

Yoga Classes- With the help of a volunteer professional yoga trainer and Augsburg College, WARDA has facilitated a weekly Yoga class.  Now, 12-15 young Somali girls can enjoy the art of Yoga and learn to live a healthy balanced life and stay fit physically.

Somali Elder Connection- WARDA, in partnership with Park Elderly Center (run by Volunteers of America Senior Program), conducts a health education class every Monday from the hours of 1-3pm, as well as an arts and crafts class every Tuesday 1-3pm also.  These classes serve roughly 20-30 senior citizens.

Parenting Classes- Being that a void has developed between the younger and older generations in the Somali community, it has become of utmost necessity to bridge this gap.  As such, WARDA has developed a parenting class, to serve as this bridge, working with Somali parents and elders, who have held on to the old ways and traditions they were raised with, and Somali youth, who have been raised with a new culture in a new day and age.  WARDA facilitates 12-week classes to take them out of their separate realities, putting them on the same plane and promoting resilience.  This program is highly demanded, and implements a variety of different cultural resources and is held at various culturally comforting locations.

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