adminFarirai Machivenyika, Senior Reporter
The involvement of men is crucial in achieving gender equality, the President of the Senate, Cde Mabel Chinomona has said.
Cde Chinomona said this while officiating at an orientation workshop with male parliamentarians under the HeForShe campaign to promote men’s involvement in the fight for gender equality.
The workshop was organised by the Zimbabwe Women’s Parliamentary Caucus and was held under the theme: “HeForShe – Male Engagement for Gender Equality” in Harare last week.
“The HeForShe initiative was conceived from the understanding that men can be powerful advocates and agents for achieving gender equality.
“Hence, the HeForShe champions should not be passive; you should actively collaborate with women to challenge gender stereotypes, support families, and serve as positive role models,” she said.
Cde Chinomona added that while the country had comprehensive legal and constitutional provisions that promote gender parity, there were still gaps for the goal of equality between men and women to be achieved.
Apart from that, she said Zimbabwe was also a signatory to numerous international instruments relating to the rights of women, including the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), and The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
“It is evident that, notwithstanding the various constitutional provisions and laws that encourage the participation of women in politics, gender parity has remained elusive. There are several barriers that have led to this state of affairs, including the following: gender stereotypes and attitudes, cultural and religious barriers, lack of leadership expertise and experience, lack of education, and lack of supportive structures for women candidates,” she said.
In her remarks, ZWPC chairperson, Cde Maybe Mbowa, said the training workshop was an opportunity for the male legislators to learn.
“This is an opportunity to learn and connect with like-minded individuals who share a vision of equality, empowerment, and justice for all. I look forward to a 10th Parliament that is united in addressing women’s issues. We all have a role to play in dismantling gender inequality, and it is through collective action that we can create meaningful change,” Cde Mbowa said.
In her solidarity message, Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said the pursuit for gender equality was not solely a women’s issue.
“It is also a human rights issue which has a significant influence on how we move as a society. As male champions placed in that very critical position of policymaking, you have an opportunity to influence policy, challenge stereotypes, and advocate for systemic change.
“You can always leverage this privilege not only to support women, but to actively promote an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive,” she said.
Makoni Central legislator, Mr Patrick Sagandira said it was important that the HeForShe campaign be introduced in political parties.
“We should have the campaign in political parties because that is where we find the biggest barriers to women’s empowerment,” he said.
The HeForShe initiative is a global solidarity movement initiated by UN Women. It was launched on September 20, 2014, by the then United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and UN Women Global Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson.
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