SHOAW Gambia

Anna Anet is the founder and CEO of Stop Harassment and Online Abuse of Women and Girls - The Gambia (SHOAW Gambia), an initiative that provides safe spaces for victims of online gender-based violence for them to share their stories and receive counselling. The organisation also aims to address, prevent and eradicate online harassment and abuse of women and girls through a community engagement approach.

Anna Anet attended the One Young World Summit in The Hague, 2018, as an Enterprise for Peace Scholar, and attended again in Munich, 2021. Being a One Young World Ambassador has enabled her to scale her work online and offline. She has partnered with the Dutch Government through their Embassy in Senegal to implement the Feminism and Social Media in the Eyes of The Gambia (FASOM_GM) project, which trained 1,000 young people and 500 women on addressing online gender-based violence.

SHOAW has successfully graduated three cohorts of free certification training sessions as part of its Youth Mentorship Programme, amounting to 150 graduates between 13 and 19 years old. The training lasts for six months, covering topics such as the prevention of online harassment, cybersecurity, leadership, entrepreneurial skills, and human rights. The initiative has conducted two bootcamps in rural communities, teaching 150 women and girls about online harassment, menstrual health management, and other gender-related issues. SHOAW has trained 1,000 high school students on digital safety and cyberbullying and engaged with 150 community elders on the issue of online violence. The SHOAW team have held 12 radio advocacy sessions, and have facilitated training sessions and workshops on cyberbullying, data protection, and privacy for universities and corporates in the country.

“Being a One Young World Ambassador has given me recognition and opened doors for collaboration, which has contributed to the impact of my work in the Gambia.”