Romana

VOFA (Voice of the Family in Africa) is an association of African couples that seeks to foster family values. Thanks to the help of the Doha Family foundation, an initiative of the wife of the Emir of Qatar, VOFA has teamed up with Strathmore Business School to begin a Centre for Research on Work and Family (CRWF). In order to make this new initiative known, a round table on the family was held from November 22 to 24 under the title: “The Family in Africa: Challenges in the New Millennium.”

The conference participants included experts on family topics from a wide range of African countries: Sudan, Benin, Ivory Coast, Congo, Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya, among others. One of the core sessions was dedicated to family policies in business. Over 70 managers and directors of human resources from some of the most important enterprises in East Africa also took part in the meeting. The importance of fostering family values and employees’ interests was discussed, and statistical evidence was given that promoting these values in businesses improved the productivity of the workers, and therefore the business itself. At the end of the session a prize entitled “The Family Responsible Company Prize” was given to the company with the most advanced and advantageous family policies. Representatives from the press and television covered the event.