Insight
Discover our latest Associate profiles
Associate Profile Series | Dr Josephine Zgheib
GPG delivers specialist technical advice through a core group of retained Associates who are former Ministers, Members of Parliament, senior civil servants or parliamentary staff, and academics. We have built long-lasting relationships with Associates which we seek to highlight in this series of personal profiles.
This month’s Associate, Dr Josephine Zgheib, is a Lebanese policy expert and activist who has been involved with our Lebanon work since 2020.
Associate Profile Series | Moataz Ghaddar
If you enjoyed this month’s profile, check our previous ones, which interviews Moataz Ghaddar. He is a Lebanese researcher, trainer, and consultant who has dedicated the past few years to providing trainings in a wide range of topics relating to human rights and gender equality, and who, alongside Dr Josephine Zgheib, has been involved with our Lebanon work since 2020.
GPG holds an online conference on Decentralisation and anti-Human Trafficking
On Friday 29th July, in anticipation of the upcoming World Day Against Human Trafficking, GPG held an online seminar on the strengths of a decentralised approach when addressing Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery (MSHT), with a particular look into the case of Sudan.
MSHT is a far-reaching and complex issue, particularly in countries with an ever-evolving political landscape; as daily life changes drastically, these offences adapt. Local authorities, councils, and locally-based organisations are in a unique position in their communities, closer to them geographically, and with greater awareness of their challenges. Involving them actively in preventing trafficking and slavery offers an opportunity to provide more tailored protection to victims and survivors or those who are vulnerable to this crime.
The session was joined by experts on community-based approach to tackle MSHT, local councils, and trauma-informed therapists that work with MSHT survivors: Enas Elhadi Elameen, Senior Childhood Trauma Therapist at the Ahfad Trauma Center in Sudan; Alison Gardner, Associate Director at the University of Nottingham’s Rights Lab, GPG Associate and Former leader of Basildon Borough Council Gavin Callaghan, and our Chair, GPG Associate and Member of the House of Lords Jeremy Purvis, who actively took part in our past work on Modern Slavery in Sudan.
Missed the event? We will be uploading the recording on our social very shortly – so stay tuned and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram!
We extend our sincere thanks to all who attended and supported the event, and in particular to our panellists.
Mongolia
A successful session on digital engagement with the Mongolian Parliament
As part Asia Foundation’s current work in Mongolia, GPG held a webinar with the Parliament in which former Director of Public Engagement at the House of Commons Aileen Walker shared her experience in effective public engagement and UK best practice. A second session’s facilitator, GPG Associate Matthew Taylor, former Director of Operations and Member Services at the UK Parliament, shared his insight in Internet Communications Technologies (ICT) and digital services for e-Parliament. The webinar featured GPG Associate Taavi Roivas, former Prime Minister of Estonia, who presented the successful case of Estonia in parliamentary digitalisation and digital law-making. Alongside our Associates, former Director of the Hackerlab in Brazil’s House of Representatives Cristiano Ferri Faria provided one more international best practice and successful digital engagement with a case study from the Brazilian Parliament. The event gathered senior civil servants and staff from Parliament. We hope this is one of many collaboration’s in the future with Asia Foundation and the Mongolian Parliament.
Lebanon
Great hopes for GPGF’s future in Lebanon
July was the final month of the Lebanon project. The last round of trainings was delivered, with a focus on Male Allies. Our Local Associates Dr Josephine Zgheib, Victoria El Khoury Zwein, and Moataz Ghaddar, joined by men allies, visited the different groups of women participants and worked through the concept of gender and gender-sensitive policymaking. This wonderful collaboration was a first experience introducing men participants to women political representation and participation work, and it opens the way for a promising new way of working on that topic.
This finalised the Women Political Participation project, which proved very successful for the past 10 months. GPGF hopes to be back in Lebanon very soon and to continue supporting women’s engagement in politics, in particular in anticipation of the 2023 municipal elections. Stay tuned!