On April 17, an article was published on Rudaw Kurdish entitled ‘A few truths about the history of the gender centers in Kurdistan,’ written by Dr. Nazand Begikhani
A version was then published on Rudaw English on May 5 under the headline 'Kurdistan has made fragile gains in gender studies, and can do more.' The article addressed the Center for Gender and Development Studies (CGDS) at the American University of Iraq, Sulaimani (AUIS).
The mentioned article claims that the Center for Gender and Development Studies (CGDS) was founded as a result of a proposal from Dr. Begikhani to Dr. Barham Salih, in his former capacity as Chair of the AUIS Board of Trustees. This claim is false.
It is true that Dr. Begikhani submitted a consulting proposal in May 2015, which was received by AUIS leadership and AUIS faculty member Dr. Hardi, but her proposal was rejected because work was already underway and there was no shortage of expertise in gender issues at AUIS.
Dr. Hardi, who had been teaching, researching, and providing training in gender issues at AUIS for one year, was already in the process of establishing a gender studies center. The University continued its effort to finalize the establishment in 2015 of the gender center, as initiated and headed by Dr. Hardi.
Our center prides itself that after continuous efforts and with support from AUIS leadership, we initiated the first interdisciplinary gender studies minor in Kurdistan and Iraq in 2017. This consists of eight classes in the departments of English, social sciences, and math and science.
The article also claims that CGDS’s success in 2018 at obtaining a grant from the European Union to develop gender studies in MENA was the result of undue intervention by Dr. Salih.
This claim is also false. CGDS won this funding from the EU based on the Center’s merits, through a long and complicated application process on which the CGDS team worked for several months.
In addition, for Dr. Begikhani to imply that the decision of European Union grant officials could be influenced by any factor outside of the written application is not only an insult to our team, but an insult to the professional grant process that the European Union prides itself on.
CGDS has a dedicated grant writing team that has been successful in obtaining several grants from private individuals as well as foundations and governments. Another major success of this team is obtaining a larger grant which will be announced in the near future.
The success of CGDS is due to the dedication of a small team of professionals and volunteers who are working for, in, and with the community. This team dedicates the necessary time and effort to make this engagement successful.
Unfortunately, statements like those in Dr. Begikhani’s article undermine a legitimate and collegial effort which benefits the community. We support different sectors of the community to develop understanding, knowledge, capacity, and policy. Working cooperatively is essential to achieve the important goal of gender equality.
Dr. Choman Hardi is the director of Center for Gender and Development Studies at the American University of Iraq, Sulaimani.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rudaw.
