Egypt’s parliamentary majority, the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) has condemned calls for a new National Council for Women (NCW) less than two full days after the military junta announced it was re-establishing the women’s council.
On December 2, 2011, the Malian parliament passed a Family Code, which threatens to set back women’s rights in Mali quite considerably. In 2009 the Parliament had passed a fairly progressive law, which didn’t quite bring women and men to equal status, but was a major step in that direction. Conservative, mostly religious, forces swung into action. The President quickly rejected the law, and sent it back to Parliament, where it has sat for two years.
Nine women entrepreneurs from Africa and the Caribbean secured orders from some of Europe's largest traders during their attendance at Spring Fair International from 5 to 9 February, in Birmingham, UK.
Health officials and women in Liberia say family planning options can empower girls and women to stay in school and concentrate on their businesses. But many fathers and husbands here don’t approve of the introduction of family planning. As a result, many young women are keeping their contraceptive choices secret.
An ultra-conservative Egyptian presidential hopeful has said that if he is elected as head of state he would force women to wear the hijab (veil) or “change creed,” adding that Islam provides no guarantees of personal freedom.
Hoda Ghaneya, the new Muslim Brotherhood MP for the district of Al-Qalyubiya in the Egyptian Delta, is being mobbed like a pop star.
SOURCE: Women E-News
A year after the toppling of Mubarak, women's rights activists confront a sobering landscape. With Islamist parties taking control, it's important to note the difference between ultra-conservative Salafis and the Muslim Brotherhood.
The First Lady of Somaliland Amina Sheikh Mohamed Waris inaugurated an international conference on the theme of “Women’s Leadership for Peace and Security in the Greater Horn of Africa” on Friday in Hargeisa.
Hajia Hawawu Boya Gariba, Deputy Minister of Women and Children Affairs, has called on women to support the crusade for gender equality and empowerment in the bid to eliminate the obstacles they face in life.
Source: Health24
According to the latest South African Survey, one in two HIV+ people is a woman of child-bearing age.
The 40 women conference participants dubbed G40 will in the five days of their discussions come up with an action plan that strategizes on enhancing the status and role of women in the Horn of African region. The conference is funded by the Club of Madrid, an independent non-profit organization of more than 80
Source: The New Times
February 4, was World Cancer Day. Survival rates in high income countries like US are 90 percent for breast, prostate and testicular cancers. However, life giving progress is yet to reach low income countries like Rwanda. (Felecia Knaul 2012). As a cancer survivor, I have a strong bias against breast cancer.
Source: The New Times
Members of Women's Council in Gatsibo District have reasons to smile after registering tremendous achievements last year.
Source: The Herald
AN old rusty black pot sat in the corner of a dark room, its contents slowly seeping from three small holes forming a meandering "stream", which flowed onto a reed mat. On the mat Agnes Rukawo of Muzarabani, who had just given birth to a baby girl, lay motionless, tired from the five hours of labour.
Source: UN Nnews Centre
A senior United Nations official welcomed today the news that a Guinean court has filed charges against an army colonel accused of being responsible for mass rapes that occurred during a pro-democracy protest in the country’s capital in 2009.
“I never thought I would be able to pay the school fees for all five of my children and our family’s health insurance costs as well!” exclaimed Euphrasia Musabyemariya.
It has been one year since a wave of political change set Egypt on a challenging but promising path to reform. Yet, while women played a crucial role in bringing the transition about, many feel that they are yet to fully benefit from it.
The Police are unable to enforce the laws against female genital circumcisers effectively because most of the personnel do not have sufficient knowledge of the policies guiding Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in Ghana, says Mr Elvis Sandogo, head of the Social Service unit of the Police Hospital.
Engineer Anna Dembele’s smile broadens as she shows off the low-carbon cooking kits she makes. The association she belongs to now plans to promote use of the equipment across Mali, helping people cope with inflation and tackling deforestation in the bargain.
In Africa land rights are critical to economic power. In recent history, there have been three waves of land grabs: colonization, post-independence and present-day land grabs for commercial and apparently environment preservation purposes . Governments and corporations continue to wield their power to the detriment of women in Africa.