The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) joins other national, regional and international institutions, advocates of gender equality and empowerment of women as well as other well-wishers in commemorating 8th March as International Women’s Day.
Different themes exist for this year’s women’s day celebrations, depending on where one comes from. This year 2012 the global theme is “Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures”, The UN has also adopted the theme “Empower Rural Women – End Poverty” and the European Parliament has adopted “Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value” as their theme this year.
In solidarity with all the themes out there, we would like to add a sub-theme to the theme “Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures” by advocating an end to impunity for violence against Women and Girls. This was the theme for 2007 International Women’s Day. We need to recall the sentiments of the 2007 theme because of increased reported cases of violence against women and the girl-child. The print and electronic media is saturated with reports of gruesome acts of violence against girl-infants, girls-children and women. Violence against women by intimate partners; and sexual violence have become very common. These types of violence have become major public health problems in that they have been identified as attributes to sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV and AIDS, physical disabilities, mental problems, reproductive health problems, and unwanted pregnancies that often lead to unintended or unsafe abortions. Acts of violence against women are also violations of women's human rights. Such acts are great challenges to achieving gender equality and empowerment of women as well as end to poverty.
In order to connect girls and inspire the futures for these girls to become caring mothers, and effective leaders in both private and public spheres of society there is need for strengthening school-based and home- based life-skills programmes to prevent violence among young people, as well as ending violence in the homes and communities. The school programmes should also integrate cultural practices that promote mutual intra and inter-generation respect into their extra-curricula activities, irrespective of gender. Young boys and girls should also be mentored in negotiation skills so that they internalize the skill of negotiating situations rather than resorting to physical violence as means of resolving conflicts.
At household level, other primary preventive strategies, such as making access to microfinance services to poor households and vulnerable out-of school youths; combined with civic education in human rights and community-based responsibilities that address gender inequality and communication and relationship skills have to be introduced where they do not exist and strengthened where they do exist.
Our advocacy to end impunity extends to sexual aggression, especially in conflict situations in keeping with the UN Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. This Resolution highlights the importance of involving women in all aspects of peace- building and peace- keeping.
The other area which we are advocating is the promotion of Mother and Child Health. Every year, more women give birth at home with no access to skilled care than at health facilities in the attendance of an experienced Health Worker. Most of those women die from complications in pregnancy and childbirth; Hundreds of thousands of newborn babies die each year before they are one month old due to lack of good health care. There is need to strengthen integrated health care where the facilities exist in order to curtail unnecessary deaths of mothers and infants. The health of mothers and children play an integral part in the struggle to reduce poverty as well as a guarantee to future prosperity in our region.
The themes cited here for 2012 International Women’s Year are a reminder to all stakeholders to address the long-outstanding issue of empowerment of women in social, cultural, political, and economic spheres, starting with the girl-child.
Suffice to say that the new millennium has witnessed a significant change and attitudinal shift in both women's and society's thoughts about women's equality and emancipation. One indicator of this shift is the increased number of girls enrolling in primary schools. The challenge still remains for the girl-child to be retained in the education system till tertiary level.
However, international, regional and national consensus is that women are still not accorded equal opportunities to that of their male counterparts to participate in the affairs that concern them and their children. Women still are not present nor visible in equal proportions to men in entrepreneurship, science and technology or politics. Women's education, health and the violence against them is worse than that of men. Experts say continued investments in the health and education of women and girls - and in programs that support their economic, social and cultural improvement are investments that benefit everyone. Therefore, the theme “connecting girls inspiring futures would have far reaching impacts if we start addressing the challenges alluded in this advocacy note in holist manner.