AWARD partnered with RUFORUM between September 13-16, 2016 to host a course on enhancing the negotiation skills of women in management. AWARD’s Director, Dr. Wanjiru Kamau-Rutenberg, kick-started the course with a discussion on the importance of empowering and teaching African women the significance of negotiations. She explained, “As women progress, we want to make sure that they have the skills, networks, and the sisterhood required to transform the continent”. She emphasised that it is critical for African women to arm themselves with strong negotiation skills so they can become better leaders within their institutions.

At a reception on the first evening, RUFORUM Board Chair and the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology Vice Chancellor, Professor Mabel Imbuga, shared how she has had to negotiate her way through various positions and advised the participants to keep their minds open for opportunities.

The four day course equips women with strategies that teach them how to use feedback to incorporate different negotiation approaches, how to seek information on negotiation opportunities in their organisations and position them as effective advocates for themselves and others. The course also breaks down for the participants the multiple ways in which gender implicitly and explicitly impacts negotiations.

AWARD Trainers, Pamela Yogo-Yieke and Nooriya Koshen, facilitated the course that drew twenty women participants from across Africa. Yogo-Yieke, who observed the women’s positive growth during the course states, “The participants came in with limited knowledge and experience in negotiations but at the end of the course, they were all ready to carry out negotiations with courage and confidence.

Pinkie Zwane, a course participant from the University of Swaziland, reveals that she attended the course because she wanted to be empowered so as to better articulate her capabilities.

The ‘Enhancing Negotiations Skills for Women’ course is part of the AWARD Leadership series. AWARD courses cover a broad base of knowledge and skills that are designed to enlighten, empower and inspire participants and impact their careers and the institutions they work for. If you would like more information on AWARD’s courses or would like to be a participant, please visit our courses page or email awardtraining@cgiar.org.