Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 50 seconds ago
In the West African nation of Guinea-Bissau, women often work outside the home and act as breadwinners, many by growing food and promoting agroecology. Yet they can also be saddled with the burden of running their homes, as men expect them to take on most of the housework and child-rearing duties. UNITE FOR BISSAU explores how women in diverse communities in Guinea-Bissau — ranging from the matriarchal villages of the Bijagós Archipelago to Muslim, Christian, and animist communities on the mainland — are confronting patriarchy, protesting female genital mutilation, asserting their role in preserving traditional agriculture, and building institutions to promote self-sufficiency. Carrying forward the legacy of Amílcar Cabral, the Bissau-Guinean independence leader who included women's rights and agronomy at the center of the struggle for liberation, the women of a rising generation are taking their power back.
Director/Producer | Iara Lee
Editor/Director of Photography | João Meirinhos
Featuring:
Adja Djenabu Balde; Alcione e Maira; Antonio Nassalu; Cherno Talato Jalo; Ermelinda Pedro Mendonça; Imam Malam Djassi; Inácia Teodora Gomes; J’maica Barbosa; Lula Pena; Mamadou Embaló; Marialma Balde; Netos do Bandim; Rita Fernandes Gomes Lé; Teresa Cesário; Uma Djau; Valérie Déki.
Original poetry | Yara Monteiro
Drone footage | Dino Neves
Translations/Revision | Aissé Barry; Marinho Pina; Karyna Gomes
Music:
- 'Krebo Cheo' by Nino Galissa
- 'Munddo rabida' by J Maica
- 'Bubaque' by Dulce Neves
- 'Mindjer Guineense' by BINHAM
- 'Amílcar Cabral' by Tony Lima
- 'Pesadelo da História' by Lula Pena
- 'Mindjer di Balur' by Karyna Gomes
- 'Tchilaku na Tabanka' by Eneida Marta
- 'Bu Tcholonadur' by Eneida Marta
- 'N Kana Cala' by Dulce Neves
- 'Dur di Padi' by J Maica
Film skits:
- 'O Regresso de Cabral' by Flora Gomes (1976)
- 'Cabralista' by Valério Lopes (2011)
Special thanks: A Casa dos Direitos; Adelino Da Costa "Da Kosta" Island Beach camp; Alcione Vanessa Cande; Amelia White; AMIC – Associação dos Amigos da Criança; Andreea Midvighi; Apalcof; Barbara Araújo, ONG Target; Binhanquinhe (Binhan) Quimor; Bubex Conquistador; Camacho; Carine Pin, Swissaid Berne; Carlos José Mendonça; Centro Cultural Português; Charlotte Chevalier Djandy; CNAPN; Dina Adão; Dino Neves; Ector Diógenes; École Française “René Descartes”; Fernando Cá, AMIC; Fernando Da Costa; Hotel Azalai; Flora Gomes; Fundação Ninho da Criança; Galo Bah; Goia Garcia Galduroz; Granja Pessube 2; Grupo Cultural Mariama Sanha; Ilsa Sá (CESAC/Guiné Bissau); Isla Sa; Maira Paulino; Marta Teodora Luís; Mariam Otarashvili; Mark Engler; Missi Bitty; Nora Holl; Nuno Dju; PAIGC; Robert Nzaou Kissolo; Tamara Shvelidze; Tiburces (Titi) Mane; Wilson Da Silva.
In this film, we were honored to document some of Professor Malam Djassi‘s final advocacy against female genital mutilation (FGM). Djassi passed away in early 2021 after devoting his life to ending FGM, which he considered a nefarious and illegal tradition that should be eradicated. We dedicate this film to him.
Caipirinha Productions 2023
in collaboration with SWISSAID GUINÉ-BISSAU
culturesofresistancefilms.com
In the West African nation of Guinea-Bissau, women often work outside the home and act as breadwinners, many by growing food and promoting agroecology. Yet they can also be saddled with the burden of running their homes, as men expect them to take on most of the housework and child-rearing duties. UNITE FOR BISSAU explores how women in diverse communities in Guinea-Bissau — ranging from the matriarchal villages of the Bijagós Archipelago to Muslim, Christian, and animist communities on the mainland — are confronting patriarchy, protesting female genital mutilation, asserting their role in preserving traditional agriculture, and building institutions to promote self-sufficiency. Carrying forward the legacy of Amílcar Cabral, the Bissau-Guinean independence leader who included women's rights and agronomy at the center of the struggle for liberation, the women of a rising generation are taking their power back.
Director/Producer | Iara Lee
Editor/Director of Photography | João Meirinhos
Featuring:
Adja Djenabu Balde; Alcione e Maira; Antonio Nassalu; Cherno Talato Jalo; Ermelinda Pedro Mendonça; Imam Malam Djassi; Inácia Teodora Gomes; J’maica Barbosa; Lula Pena; Mamadou Embaló; Marialma Balde; Netos do Bandim; Rita Fernandes Gomes Lé; Teresa Cesário; Uma Djau; Valérie Déki.
Original poetry | Yara Monteiro
Drone footage | Dino Neves
Translations/Revision | Aissé Barry; Marinho Pina; Karyna Gomes
Music:
- 'Krebo Cheo' by Nino Galissa
- 'Munddo rabida' by J Maica
- 'Bubaque' by Dulce Neves
- 'Mindjer Guineense' by BINHAM
- 'Amílcar Cabral' by Tony Lima
- 'Pesadelo da História' by Lula Pena
- 'Mindjer di Balur' by Karyna Gomes
- 'Tchilaku na Tabanka' by Eneida Marta
- 'Bu Tcholonadur' by Eneida Marta
- 'N Kana Cala' by Dulce Neves
- 'Dur di Padi' by J Maica
Film skits:
- 'O Regresso de Cabral' by Flora Gomes (1976)
- 'Cabralista' by Valério Lopes (2011)
Special thanks: A Casa dos Direitos; Adelino Da Costa "Da Kosta" Island Beach camp; Alcione Vanessa Cande; Amelia White; AMIC – Associação dos Amigos da Criança; Andreea Midvighi; Apalcof; Barbara Araújo, ONG Target; Binhanquinhe (Binhan) Quimor; Bubex Conquistador; Camacho; Carine Pin, Swissaid Berne; Carlos José Mendonça; Centro Cultural Português; Charlotte Chevalier Djandy; CNAPN; Dina Adão; Dino Neves; Ector Diógenes; École Française “René Descartes”; Fernando Cá, AMIC; Fernando Da Costa; Hotel Azalai; Flora Gomes; Fundação Ninho da Criança; Galo Bah; Goia Garcia Galduroz; Granja Pessube 2; Grupo Cultural Mariama Sanha; Ilsa Sá (CESAC/Guiné Bissau); Isla Sa; Maira Paulino; Marta Teodora Luís; Mariam Otarashvili; Mark Engler; Missi Bitty; Nora Holl; Nuno Dju; PAIGC; Robert Nzaou Kissolo; Tamara Shvelidze; Tiburces (Titi) Mane; Wilson Da Silva.
In this film, we were honored to document some of Professor Malam Djassi‘s final advocacy against female genital mutilation (FGM). Djassi passed away in early 2021 after devoting his life to ending FGM, which he considered a nefarious and illegal tradition that should be eradicated. We dedicate this film to him.
Caipirinha Productions 2023
in collaboration with SWISSAID GUINÉ-BISSAU
culturesofresistancefilms.com
