Association Mauritanienne pour l’Aide aux Enfants Pauvres (AMAEP)

About the Organization Contact and Service Areas Successes and Impact Innovative Solutions for IPV Survivors’ Economic Security Survivor Leadership Understanding Economic Harm in Context

About the Organization

Country

Mauritania

Number of survivors served in a year

20 to 50

Languages

French

Groups most commonly served

Ethnic, religious, or other minorities Refugees, migrants, or internally displaced persons Women Youth, children, or adolescents

Type of organization

Nonprofit or non-governmental organization (NGO)

Program model(s)

Holistic crisis response Rights-based economic justice Survivor-centered income generation Systemic change through strategic partnerships Transforming social norms through community-building

Contact and Service Areas

Email

amaep839@gmail.com, sidialyfrancoisaichetou@gmail.com

Address

Sebkha

Service Area(s)

Nouakchott, Mauritania

Successes and Impact

“I am a 53-year-old married woman and mother of eight children. I am a victim of domestic, economic, and psychological violence by my husband following his decision to take a second wife. I am not the only victim; even my children [suffered]. My neighbors referred me to [AMAEP]. This association has helped me a lot. They found me a job that allows me to pay my rent, and I receive food and clothing kits. My children did not have civil status documents, but thanks to AMAEP, they now have them and can go to school. I have also received psychosocial support.”¹ —Survivor supported by AMAEP

Long-term economic autonomy and family well-being

AMAEP enables survivors and their families to build a stable future through their holistic model that combines economic, legal, and psychosocial support. They have successfully supported survivors in enhancing their economic autonomy through workforce development and entrepreneurship. As a result, more women are participating in the labor market.

The organization recognizes that supporting survivors’ children is key to establishing long-term economic security. They ensure children have the necessary legal documentation to enroll in school or, for those who are past school age, to enroll in vocational training. A representative of the organization shares an example of this integrated approach, stating, “We supported [a survivor] with a small sum, and she set up a small store. It helped her a lot. We drew up papers for her children, who are [now] enrolled in school. She has two daughters. One of them was trained . . . and earned a diploma in pastry-making. . . . The second girl is due to be trained soon.”

Through these efforts, AMAEP helps survivors and their children take critical steps toward financially independent futures.

Transforming gender norms

AMAEP actively challenges gender norms at the individual, family, and societal levels to combat inequality and intimate partner violence. Through workshops on education and work rights, they encourage survivors to pursue opportunities to learn and earn income and equip them with the skills and support to do so. The organization also engages men and families through community awareness-raising, fostering shifts in viewpoints that support women and girls to pursue education and employment. As a result, AMAEP has seen community norms shift toward greater gender equality and respect for women’s economic rights.

This strategic approach enables AMAEP to directly address the structural causes of inequality. By emphasizing women’s right to work and earn an income, AMAEP helps expand women’s economic opportunities and reduce situations of economic dependence, which can be particularly dangerous in the context of IPV. The organization is also seeing lasting changes in local policies, with progress in laws relating to women’s rights and child support. This transformation creates a positive dynamic that encourages survivors to become leading actors in promoting gender equality and reducing economic violence.

Innovative Solutions for IPV Survivors’ Economic Security

“We want women to have the freedom to work, to speak, and to express themselves fully.”

About the Program

AMAEP provides holistic support tailored to the needs of survivors of gender-based violence (GBV), including economic, legal, and psychosocial support. They especially focus on women and girls who have been subjected to intimate partner violence or sexual violence. To foster survivors’ economic autonomy, the organization offers funding to start and grow small businesses, along with vocational training to support skill-building for income-generating activities.

This direct support to survivors occurs in tandem with broader awareness raising and advocacy work at the community level to transform social norms and combat stigma, along with the promotion of women’s participation in public spaces and local government. AMAEP also adapts their messaging to resonate with the cultural and religious values of the communities where they work. This culturally-responsive approach helps facilitate social change from the ground up in both survivors’ lived experiences and broader social and political commitment to gender equality.

Program Development and Key Strategies

The organization’s programming is rooted in the social, cultural, and religious context of Mauritania, with a specific focus on low-income and migrant women. Given the context and the groups they focus on, AMAEP employs the following strategies to ensure their program’s success:

Funding and training for starting and growing survivors’ small businesses
Awareness-raising campaigns on economic control and economic rights
Supporting survivors’ participation in advocacy and local, political decision-making processes

Funding and training for starting and growing survivors’ small businesses

AMAEP takes a simple yet effective approach: focusing on the needs and aspirations of survivors to foster their economic autonomy by adapting to their individual contexts and offering personalized support. Rather than imposing predefined solutions, the organization begins with what survivors can and want to do. It then iterates its support based on the challenges encountered and survivors’ evolving needs.

AMAEP explains: “Not only do we fund survivors to start micro-businesses, but we also train and support them throughout the process. . . . We assess their needs, whether it’s additional training, financial support, or something else. It’s about building businesses that are tailored to their realities and ambitions.”

In addition to providing practical training for income-generating activities, AMAEP follows up with survivors over the long term. This includes regular visits, progress assessments, and targeted interventions to overcome obstacles. This ongoing monitoring ensures the relevance and effectiveness of the support they provide.

Further, the organization provides small business start-up capital to survivors, and crowdsources this funding from association membership fees and small donations from within their communities. In this way, AMAEP encourages collective commitment and fosters a sense of belonging and solidarity with survivors.

Awareness-raising campaigns on economic control and economic rights

AMAEP identifies economic control as a common form of economic violence in intimate relationships. Some of the most common forms that they see within relationships include preventing a partner from working or pursuing education and forcing women to stay at home and devote themselves exclusively to household responsibilities, often without pay or recognition.

The organization has conducted intensive awareness-raising campaigns aimed at changing community attitudes and behaviors. These campaigns target all members of the community, regardless of gender, to deconstruct patriarchal norms that limit women’s economic freedom. For instance, they have led campaigns that highlight the community-wide benefits of women’s participation in the workforce, including how this helps families and the local economy, which has helped broaden understanding of the social and economic benefits of gender equality.

Thanks to these efforts, more women are openly expressing their desire to work and contribute financially, despite social norms to the contrary. The organization reflects on this shift and says, “Now I think there’s been a change, because you really do see women coming to see us and saying, ‘I want to work. I want to go out. I want to achieve something.’”

Supporting survivors’ participation in advocacy and local, political decision-making processes

A central element of AMAEP’s strategy is survivors’ own engagement in advocacy initiatives. This not only amplifies the voices of survivors but also catalyzes systemic change in favor of human rights and gender equality, especially in local policies.

First-hand testimony and advocacy for legislative reform

Survivors actively participate in advocacy events, such as awareness-raising sessions, where they can share their personal experiences. These testimonies are powerful because they highlight the specific issues faced by survivors and encourage local authorities and human rights actors to take concrete action. “When we raise awareness, [the survivors] come to participate, to bear witness. . . . [Recently], we organized an awareness-raising event on human trafficking and immigration. All the survivors came. They attended the session, and some of them spoke before the human rights platform that was present. Each of them explained their struggles.”

This participation by survivors also increases pressure for legislative reforms and more protective policies. Through advocacy campaigns, survivors are involved in the development and adoption of laws that better protect women’s rights and combat GBV. Their participation also strengthens monitoring and accountability mechanisms, encouraging local authorities and civil society actors to improve services and support for survivors.

Financial compensation for public testimonies

AMAEP reflects that it is not easy for survivors to share their stories publicly to raise awareness. They also recognize that public testimony can not only be an act of courage but also a powerful way to take control of their narrative and contribute to a greater cause. Therefore, they believe that adequate financial compensation for the time, emotional toll, and power of this work needs to be part of a survivor-centered approach. The organization follows through on this commitment by compensating survivors for their time, for logistical costs such as travel and use of communication tools, and for the emotional burden of reliving traumatic experiences in service of societal change.

Strengthening women’s political representation

Part of AMAEP’s longer-term strategy includes campaigning to elect women candidates to local office. This initiative aims to strengthen the presence of women in decision-making spaces in order to influence public policy, including policies addressing GBV. Another key goal of this strategy is to increase political representation of survivors to support the passing of better laws addressing GBV. They employ an inclusive and participatory model to better center women and survivors as changemakers in social and legislative spaces.

Survivor Leadership

Survivors don’t just receive support at AMAEP—they play a key role in designing and implementing programming at the organization. Moreover, survivors become leaders and agents of change in their communities through engagement with AMAEP’s programming. The organization notes, “These women [who receive support] become focal points in their neighborhoods. When they see women who are victims of violence, they refer them to the organization. They even provide direct support, accompanying these women just like the organization did with them.”

Survivors’ growth into leadership roles is made possible through an environment of mutual aid, where survivors can both receive and offer support, which creates a cycle of solidarity and collective empowerment. Survivors become role models for other women subjected to violence by showing what is possible, overcoming obstacles, and being part of greater change.

This leadership model also reinforces community resilience, as survivors are supported by their peers and play a direct role in shifting their communities’ mindsets and practices related to GBV. Survivors supporting survivors is an impactful collective power building strategy that creates a more equitable and inclusive society.

Understanding Economic Harm in Context

Nuanced and thoughtful interventions are foundational to AMAEP’s success. The organization carefully tailors its interventions, messages, and strategies to align with the social, economic, and religious realities of this particular context. As the state religion in Mauritania, Islam significantly influences social structures and cultural expectations, and the organization takes this into account in its practices to ensure the effectiveness and relevance of its work. The following key factors shape how survivors experience economic harm in this particular context:

Deep-rooted gender norms influence economic control
Rights and protections are limited, both in law and in practice
Increased risks of IPV based on class, ethnicity, migration status, and relationship status

Deep-rooted gender norms influence economic control

AMAEP observes that patriarchal norms play a central role in relationship dynamics related to economics in Mauritania, encouraging traditional gender roles for men and women in a relationship. These roles reinforce men’s economic control over their partners and limit women’s financial autonomy and ability to access independent economic resources.

AMAEP comments that two forms of economic harm are especially common within marriages. One is when married women are prevented from working or going to school. Another is when a husband, despite having sufficient financial resources, “refuses to take care of his wife or children.” The organization notes that these forms of economic harm are difficult to overcome and that they are even more pronounced for women who are migrants or part of an ethnic minority. These women can face a form of double discrimination, based on both gender and ethnicity.

The organization further explains: “There is still a social barrier that persists, because these ideas are learned from childhood. For example, in a household with a girl and a boy, they are told from an early age: ‘She is a girl. She has to take care of this and that. You are a man. You must do this and that.’ . . . If you grow up with these ideas, it’s not easy to get them out of your head.” AMAEP comments that these types of rigid social expectations can also make it difficult for survivors to seek support when they are subjected to intimate partner violence.

Rights and protections are limited, both in law and in practice

Weak implementation of existing laws and limited access to justice for survivors

While Mauritania has some laws that protect women’s rights and combat GBV, AMAEP notes that these are not consistently or sufficiently applied. Women who are subjected to domestic or sexual violence often do not have access to a fair and effective legal system. Legal protections are limited, and survivors often face administrative barriers, gender stereotypes, or a lack of resources and support to access justice. This situation is exacerbated in rural areas and for migrant women, where lack of access to legal services and support mechanisms makes it even more difficult to combat economic and social violence.

Interpretations of Islam influence laws and social norms related to GBV

In Mauritania, interpretations of Islam have a major influence on laws and social norms relating to GBV, which can be both a lever for protecting women and an obstacle to progress in legal protections, depending on how religious principles are understood and applied in relation to GBV. AMAEP advocates tirelessly for the adoption of laws to protect and support GBV survivors, especially because Mauritania has not yet adopted a national law on gender-based violence.² Because Mauritania’s legal system is based on a combination of French civil law and Sharia law, debates on women’s rights and legal protections can be particularly sensitive. Divergent interpretations of Islam play a central role in how laws are perceived and applied, and misguided or restrictive interpretations can seriously hinder progress.

AMAEP explains: “When it comes to politics, we are always looking for laws to protect women from violence. . . . But some people don’t understand the interpretations well and say that it’s Islam, when in reality, Islam gives women every right. We have the same rights as our fathers. In Islam, women must be respected and shouldn’t be mistreated. But some people interpret Islam in their own way, which creates obstacles.”

According to AMAEP, the main problem therefore lies in the way certain cultural or religious interpretations limit the understanding of women’s rights and their access to justice, despite the founding principles of Islam that guarantee their respect and dignity. For AMAEP, the fight for gender justice involves ongoing education and open dialogue around authentic interpretations of Islam, aimed at supporting women’s rights while respecting the religious values of Mauritanian society.

Unequal access to economic rights and resources

While Mauritania has some laws that promote gender equality, AMAEP notes that key protections are missing from Mauritania’s legal code, reinforcing economic inequities. For example, only men are legally recognized as heads of household, meaning that only men can receive child benefits and other state subsidies for families and making women dependent on their husbands for family-related administrative procedures.

Additionally, the absence of laws against gender-based discrimination exposes women to unequal wages and unequal access to bank loans and employment.³ This interplay of structural and social factors forms the foundation of AMAEP’s comprehensive strategy, which combines policy advocacy, economic support for survivors, and community-wide awareness initiatives.

Increased risks of IPV based on class, ethnicity, migration status, and relationship status

AMAEP observes greater rates of IPV among groups facing additional forms of discrimination or insecurity and who lack access to support, such as migrant women. According to the organization, migrant women in particular “generally don’t know their rights, and don’t know that there are laws and protocols that protect migrants.” They note that migrant women married to Mauritanian citizens are often told they cannot seek support for violence because of their immigration status.

Other groups who tend to experience higher levels of IPV include women from certain minority ethnicities who “face problems related to social class and education.” The organization notes that these women’s limited access to education and income can not only increase their risk of being subjected to intimate partner violence but also limit the opportunities available to establish economic independence and safety.

AMAEP’s approach takes into account these multiple socio-economic, cultural, and legal factors to develop tailored programs that address survivors’ economic insecurity and builds their collective power in the face of unequal power structures. This contextual and inclusive approach is essential to ensuring that the solutions developed are effective and respectful of the cultural and religious realities of local communities.

Notes

Direct quotes are slightly edited for style and flow.
World Bank Group, “Rapport sur la situation économique en Mauritanie : Un meilleur avenir : accélérer la relance économique en misant sur le potentiel des femmes,” 2021, 27, https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/961341622141230195/pdf/Rapport-sur-la-Situation-Economique-en-Mauritanie-Un-Meilleur-Avenir-Accelerer-la-Relance-Economique-en-Misant-sur-le-Potentiel-Femmes.pdf.
World Bank Group, “Rapport sur la situation économique en Mauritanie,” 29.