Malawi First Lady Madam Gertrude Mutharika has urged Malawian women to periodically go for cancer screening to save their lives.
“It is like a fish pond. All the women are fishes and the men are sprinkling food. If they start to sprinkle food, all the fish will come up to them.”
I am with women and men who, forced to flee their homes due to the conflict with Boko Haram, have made their way to camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Maiduguri in Borno State in North-East Nigeria. We are talking about what is happening in the camps when one of the women makes this analogy.
Source: UNFPA
Traditional leaders hold incredible power to realize young people’s sexual and reproductive health rights. Yet, many traditional communities in rural Swaziland have resisted public discussion of ‘taboo’ topics such as sexual-and gender-based violence and the HIV epidemic, especially regarding young people.
Source: Plan International
Malawi has made a historic amendment to its constitution to fully outlaw child marriage following a year-long campaign by youth groups and organisations including Plan International.
Source: AllAfrica
President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf's presence has not translated into women rising from the grassroots to be equally represented in decision-making forums in the country, writes Muneinazvo Kujeke, a researcher at the Institute for Security Studies.
(Dar es Salaam) – More than 40 percent of Tanzania’s adolescents are left out of quality lower-secondary education despite the government’s positive decision to make lower-secondary education free.
Children and women are being raped by traffickers inside a refugee camp in northern France, according to detailed testimony gathered ahead of fresh legal action against the UK government’s approach to the welfare of unaccompanied minors.
A lot has been said about Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed’s failed candidature for chairperson of the African Union Commission.
The loss is disappointing, but the lessons learnt are invaluable. Her candidature was strong — so strong that she survived to the final round where political and regional gerrymandering took over.
A health network is being created, with support of United Nations agencies, in nine countries – Bangladesh, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda – whose Governments have pledged to halve maternal and newborn deaths in health facilities by 2022.
A new partnership focused on reforming gender-discriminatory laws was unveiled at an event co-hosted by UN Women, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and Equality Now, in New York. The “Roadmap for Substantive Equality: 2030” aims at repealing or amending laws that discriminate against women and girls, and ensuring that laws are grounded in gender equality and women’s human rights, and fully implemented, as part of global efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Bill and Melinda Gates have released their annual letter, and this time it is addressed to their "dear friend" Warren Buffett, who donated most of his fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in order to fight disease and reduce inequity.
Source: AllAfrica
Graça Machel has called for an end to impunity for violations of the rights of women living with HIV, such as forced sterilisation. The former first lady of Mozambique and South Africa was chairing a debate at the International AIDS Conference in Durban last week.
The UN Women Executive Board will convene for this year’s First Regular Session on 14 February at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
The UN Women Executive Board will convene for this year’s First Regular Session on 14 February at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
Source: The Independent
Zika is not gender neutral: women’s rights are at stake.
Source: UN Women
Marking the International Day of Women and Girls in Science on February 11, UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka says: "Making accomplished women scientists visible is important for the accuracy of news and of history. It is also an essential part of building further scientific success."
Source: Government of Ghana
Parliamentary Affairs Minister-designate, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu, has called for an effective collaboration between various political parties in country to ensure the 30 percent women representation in Parliament as set by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).
Source: allAfrica
With 2,300 children below five years of age and 145 child-bearing women dying every day, Nigeria has the highest maternal mortality rate in the world, it was learnt yesterday.
Source: Daily News
Dativa Kaimukirwa (24) looks knackered but manages to smile as she speaks to reporters outside her hut at Rukoma village, in Bukoba Rural district.
Source: allAfrica
However, in Liberia, women are yet to take their rightful and equal place in society, and Johnson Sirleaf's presence has not translated into Liberian women rising from the grassroots to be equally represented in decision-making forums. In October 2017, a new government will be elected and Johnson Sirleaf's term will come to an end.
During Liberia's civil war, women emerged as the flag bearers of peace through the 'Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace' initiative at the climax of the 14-year conflict. Through their collective action, women were instrumental in ensuring that the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (2003) was signed, which was crucial to paving the way to sustainable peace.
However, despite this prominent role in driving peace, greater empowerment for women on the ground is yet to happen. The Liberian National Gender Policy in 2009 noted that women were lagging behind in development, and that gender disparities and imbalances were evident in everyday life.
During Liberia's civil war, women emerged as the flag bearers of peace
Although women account for 54% of the labour force, they remain severely marginalised, and lack the means to ensure a sustainable livelihood because they are underpaid and work within the informal sector. In terms of illiteracy rates, women account for 60%, and the maternal mortality rate in the country is very high when compared to global figures. Furthermore, 48% of Liberian girls fall pregnant before the age 18, which contributes to high levels of unemployment among young women.
Sexual and gender-based violence and exploitation is also very high in the country, especially among young girls. Sexual violence was rampant during the war, and 13 years later, rape and sexual violence remain a major problem.
In 2009, the Liberian government developed a four-year National Action Plan to respond to the recommendations of the United Nations resolution 1325, which pertains to women in peace and security. Yet four years on, little has been implemented.
This is partly because the Gender Policy has not been consistently integrated into national legislature. For instance, the Inheritance Law of Liberia states that a young girl is eligible for marriage at 16 years old, whereas the Penal Code of 2005 stipulates that the age of consent is 18. These pieces of legislation are therefore at odds with one another, and implementing them consistently is not possible.
54% of Liberia's labour force are women, but they remain severely marginalised
Research carried out by the Institute for Security Studies in Monrovia in November 2016 identified additional challenges. These included awareness-raising and educating the public on these new laws, as well as negative cultural traditions that are at odds with human and women's rights.
It is clear that much progress remains to be made to improve gender disparity and place women rights at the forefront of policy development.
Current trends don't bode well.
During the 2011 elections, there seemed to be a growing aversion to appointing women in positions of political leadership. The percentage of women in the National Legislature dropped from 14% to 11.8%. The number of women in the Senate dropped from five to four, while the number of women in the House of Representatives dropped from nine to eight.
Two out of nine women representatives of the 52nd Legislature were re-elected, and an additional six women were newly elected.
A total of 33 female lawmakers lost their seats in the elections, indicating a deteriorating situation where female politicians were losing momentum within their counties. Currently, women hold only one in nine Parliamentary seats.
Liberia is currently listed at number 149 out of 193 on the global ranking of women representation in Parliament. Some of the African countries that do notably better are Rwanda, which is first on the list and Senegal that is seventh.
However, ensuring women empowerment requires more than just adopting quota systems for women in power. If Liberia is serious about addressing inequality, it must first address the social and cultural impediments that prevent women from developing a career and obtaining gainful employment. Civic education implemented at the end of the war in various counties has not yet yielded positive results, due to entrenched traditional norms.
Ensuring women empowerment requires more than just quota systems
As the 2017 elections approach, successfully improving gender equality in Liberia will require a two-pronged approach.
First, women on the ground must be empowered. Women in leadership positions must identify the challenges that stand in the way of empowering women at the grassroots level.
Women's representation in governance structures is important for long-term transformation. Greater attention must be paid at the grassroots level, where young girls must be given the opportunity to complete secondary education. This will require working with the local population to address cultural barriers. International partners can also work with government to offer scholarships to help young girls in furthering their education.
The Liberian government can also work with other African countries that will educate Liberian women in their countries and provide mentorship. This in turn will help develop beneficial experience-sharing among states.
Secondly, the government of Liberia can support women's organisations financially to mobilise and regularly meet, which would enable them to find solutions that are specific to their communities. These conversations should then feed into the national discussion to ensure that women's voices are heard at the highest decision-making tables.
The impact of Liberian women on ensuring peace in the country cannot be underestimated. Through their collective action, a 13-year era of peace has been achieved. The same collective action is now needed to ensure that women's needs are not ignored during this election year.
By Muneinazvo Kujeke and Liezelle Kumalo