Internation Alert - B4Peace through women Crossborder Trade in the Great Lakes

International Alert through this Women small scale cross border trade's project seeks to address is the lack of social cohesion and trust amongst border communities between Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Rwanda, and Burundi. The project centers on strengthening cross border trade as a vehicle for greater understanding and interdependence between divided communities across borders. In doing so, it develops the capacities of women cross border traders and private sectors actors to be more involved in peace and security issues and promotes inclusive economic growth to bridge the economic inequalities that contribute to conflict. The innovation Alert wants to introduce in this phase is that support to WCBT (women cross border traders) will no longer go through the implementing partners/a project but through the CBTA-Ps (Cross border trade Association Platform) directly in order to strengthen the sustainability of support to WCBT. In Rwanda, the first activity will consist of securing a legal recognition for the CBTA-P. Tailored support to CBTA-Ps will be provided through an MoU so that they become autonomous in the following areas. - Providing training services and tools to their members: A unit in charge of capacity building will be set-up in each CBTA-P so that they are able to provide capacity building services directly to their members. The CBTA-P will provide capacity building services on different themes and tools developed in phase I such as the gender and conflict sensitivity curriculum, the financial literacy module, B4P, etc. The capacity of the members of this unit will be strengthened so that they are able to develop trainings activities and support members with the use of tools. Thus, at the end of the project, the CBTA-Ps will be able to strengthen the capacities of the WCBT without the support of the MSL project. - Structuring of WCBT and support to access to funding: The CBTA-Ps will also continue to support access to funding for WCBT through the structuring of the VSLAs. In addition, the project will support the CBTA-Ps to develop partnerships with MFIs and to provide advice to their members on how to access MFIs services. This partnership will also enable the CBTA-Ps to become a credible partner for MFIs who can recommend WCBT to MFIs and thereby facilitate their access to credit. Conducting advocacy activities: The Advocacy Platforms structured in the phase I project will be integrated as a unit of the CBTA-P in charge of advocacy. It will enable this structure to capitalize on the knowledge gained during the first phase and to continue to monitor changes or recommendations from the advocacy initiatives undertaken by the CBTA-P. Advocacy activities will aim at supporting women's voices in business and contributing to inclusive economic. - Providing information to WCBT: This sub-activity will involve working with the Ministries of Trade in the three countries to draw up a roadmap to integrate the Trade Information Desks (TIDs) into the CBTA-Ps, identify and train staff to be assigned to the TIDs, and agree on how to cover the operating costs in each country and at each border. Indeed, COMESA that initially set up the TIDs no longer supports them though TIDs exist in each of the border points targeted by the project. Reflection on how to continue operating these offices have led to the suggestion that CBTA-P are best suited to take over that responsibility and cover operating cost through membership fees.