Dear friends,
Warm greetings from GAATW International Secretariat!
We hope this finds you well and not too busy. The opening up of international borders has made it possible to attend meetings once again and in the past several months we were busy organising several convenings for project partners. Following a consultation with our research partners from Europe and Southeast Asia in May, we held Women Workers Forums with colleagues from South and Southeast Asia in July and August. We also visited the work areas of our partners in India and Sri Lanka and travelled to Geneva with several members for meetings with UN delegations ahead of their countries’ Universal Periodic Reviews. In-person meetings have reconfirmed our feelings about the limitations of virtual interactions. However, we've also learnt that certain discussions can be held virtually and given the rising cost of fuel we must think carefully before planning each trip.
Conversations with women workers and community organisers in the two sub-regional forums strengthened our belief in grassroots organising. We also realised that there is a need to work closely with community workers and enhance their capacity to do their work better.