Development aid in the fight against poverty and gender inequality
Feminist Solidarity: a comic book to show the importance of development aid in the fight against poverty and gender inequality
On October 24, 1970, the world's richest countries made a solemn pledge to the United Nations: to donate a small share of their wealth—0.7%—each year to reduce global inequality and combat poverty in the poorest countries. More than 50 years later, only six countries have reached this 0.7% target: Germany, Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
International aid is not a miracle solution, but it can save lives. It has helped to strengthen health, education, and social protection systems in many countries around the world. Oxfam France, an NGO dedicated to the fight against poverty and inequality, wanted to make the benefits of international aid better known to the public.
Six women's stories
Oxfam asked The Ink Link to come up with an angle that would show the role of women in development aid. The fight against inequality and poverty must take gender inequality into account: it is estimated that if women the world over had the same opportunities as men on the job market, the global economy would earn $28,000 billion more by 2025.
The first step was to list the different types of development aid (structures and players):
- Local NGOs
- International NGOs
- Diaspora
- Development agencies (such as AFD)
- International institutions
And the different themes :
- Agriculture
- Access to water
- education
- Health
- Industry
- Peace processes
We then looked for stories that could illustrate these themes, and enriched them with field interviews. The result was six stories, all illustrated by female artists.
A multi-faceted project
Marie Voyelle dealt with the issue of citizen mobilization of women in Burkina Faso in the context of the management of citizen funds derived from mining money.
Cy worked on the ecological transition of cotton growing in Benin.
Édith Chambon illustrated a story from France and Mali on the role of the diaspora in helping local development, with the involvement of women to gain access to irrigation.
Aude Mermillod looked at women's actions in Yemen to defend their rights in wartime.
Isacile showed how international institutions could coordinate aid on a global scale, with the example of the elimination of smallpox, helped by women's work.
Laure Garancher highlighted the role of local associations in educating and empowering women in Ghana.
Initially broadcast on social networks, these stories were complemented by an infographic on the importance of official development assistance, presented by Oxfam president Cécile Duflot, and published in an album available in Oxfam stores and online.