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| Last international women's day of the
millennium celebrated in southern Africa |
| The
International Women’s Day the last for this century, was celebrated the world over
with various activities lined up to mark the occasion. Most countries in the SADC region
commemorated this year’s IWD with a special focus on the progress made in the
struggle for equal rights for women and for women’s full participation in the
development process. In Zimbabwe for instance, the government together with
non-governmental organisations (NGOs), UN Agencies and other institutions took this
opportunity to press for the observance of women’s rights.
The day also constituted an opportunity to take stock of the status of women, identify
gaps and celebrate achievements made in the struggle for women’s equality and
justice.
The Australian High Commissioner to Zimbabwe, Denise Fisher, said the new millennium
provides an opportunity for women to assess how far they have come in the past century to
redress imbalances between women’s and men’s rights.
Fisher added that the conviction that women were not equipped to function in a
competitive world remained a challenge. She was addressing delegates, who converged at the
Australian High Commission in Harare to celebrate the day.
In recognition of the importance of women’s rights, the United Nations (UN)
declared the 10 years from 1975 to 1985 the Decade of Women and selected significant
international themes each year to mark the IWD.
These themes have been adopted and adapted by the UN member countries in commemorating
the day throughout the decade and after.
This year’s international theme is “Women and Health”. Health is one of
the critical areas of concern identified in the Beijing Platform for Action and also by
the region.
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SADC Diary
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Inadequate
provision of health care services in the region has resulted in many women losing their
lives. Preventable diseases and unequal access to health care still affect mainly women
and girls, especially those in the rural areas. HIV infection among women is on the
increase, and countries still lack programmes targeted at HIV/AIDS prevention and
treatment among women and girls. The disease is also affecting children and creating a new
problem in the region, that of AIDS orphans. |
This makes land
a very important resource for the economic empowerment and socio-cultural development of
women.
Zimbabwe also celebrated the day with renewed calls for the reduction of poverty, which
has been found as a major blockade to women’s advancement among nations. Celebrations
included poetry reading and drama presentation by the Women’s Land Lobby Group.
A workshop on Building Effective Partnerships and Strengthening Networks for Gender
Equality held in Zimbabwe from 8 –10 March was also organised to coincide with the
day. |
As for the region, the
themes for this year varied from country to country. Botswana took the chance to
commemorate the endeavours of women in poverty alleviation and economic empowerment.
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" Health
is one of the
critical areas of
concern
identified in
the Beijing
Platform for
Action..." |
The workshop was
co-organised by the Zimbabwe Women’s Resource Centre and Network (ZWRCN) and Gender,
Education and Training Networking from South Africa.
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| The central
theme in Botswana was "Poverty Alleviation and Women’s Economic
Empowerment". According to Helen Mutasa, reporter of the Botswana Midweek Sun
newspaper, the University of Botswana’s Directorate of Research and Development lined
up, as part of activities to celebrate the day, the holding of a symposium open to the
public, under the theme “Empowerment of Women is a Core Issue For Gender
Equality”.
South Africa’s theme was “The Vertical Transmission of HIV/AIDS”, which
is in recognition of the escalating incidence of the deadly disease. It is estimated that
approximately 30 percent of all pregnant women in South Africa are HIV positive.
For Zimbabwe, the main theme was “Land for Economic and Cultural
Development”, chosen in light of the current land redistribution process and its
implications and impact on women.
The land issue is of great importance to women in Zimbabwe, like elsewhere in the
region, as 86 percent of women not only live in rural areas, but are dependent on the land
for food, energy and other economic activities. |
In his message
to the world read on his behalf, in Harare, by Gita Welch, the Regional Programme Advisor
of the United Nations Fund for Women, the UN Secretary-General, Koffi Annan, said “We
can look with some pride at the remarkable achievements made so far.
“We entered a century where women had the right to vote in a mere handful of
countries; we leave one where the vast majority of countries have universal
suffrage”.
Annan added that though some progress has been made, much remains to be done. “As we
stand on the threshold of the new millennium, we are confronted by challenges both new and
old.
At the forefront is the impact on women of globalisation, liberalisation, economic
restructuring and privatisation. Poverty among women, especially heads of households and
older women appears to be deepening,” he said.
Gender Equality has been a burning issue in the SADC region, but its realisation, as Annan
said in his speech, is still far from a reality. |
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