grantees » Koudjonou Ahuefa Azama

Ahuefa is a young Togolese woman who plays an important role in the environmental rights movement in her native country, despite many challenges. Having lost both her parents quite young, she strove to continue her education, with excellent results. She began her work with the environment as a volunteer during her school years, which allowed her to grow and eventually become a founding member of a national NGO, AFHON, together with fellow grantee Sandra Freitas. AFHON is a Togolese NGO focusing on reinforcing the capacity of vulnerable and under-represented communities to improve their quality of life and empower their voice in policy making for sustainable development. Today, Ahuefa has two roles in the association as the Gender and Climate Change Associate and the Communications Officer, where she develops relations across all levels and mobilizes stakeholders.

With the help of the JWH initiative, Ahuefa participated in international conferences on climate change: the intersession meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in October 2010 in Tianjin, China and a second in Ghana in September 2010 at a sub- regional negotiation meeting on climate change. This participation in international and regional climate change processes allowed her to experience how decisions are made at these levels and to see how to better link them to national and local priorities and realities. She stated: “Participation in these meetings helped me to better understand the issues under discussion and helped me to improve my understanding of various countries’ positions, strategies and the challenges they face”.  

Moreover, Ahuefa also completed an extensive English language course, which allow her improving her communication skills and to be a more active participant in the international dialogues. In fact, she enjoyed this so much that she decided to continue studying language on her own. Lastly, the JWH initiative supported Ahuefa’s internal capacity-building program, where she was able to focus specifically on her professional development and the deepening of her knowledge on the linkages between gender and climate change. Combined with her widened network, Ahuefa feels that she has benefited greatly from her experience with the JWH initiative, as “most importantly, I’ve been able to bring much more to my work”.