By Thelma Wandayi
The Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU) has emphasized the need for Zimbabwean women to occupy key positions in politics to ensure policies are reflective of their needs.
With a specific aim to achieve 50/50 representation for women in decision-making roles ,RAU has been conducting extensive workshops to capacitate Zimbabwean women, focusing not only on addressing sexual and gender-based violence but also on fighting against gender-based disparities.
Speaking at a Capacity Building workshop recently held at Mpumalanga lodge in Gweru, Lloyd Pswarayi senior researcher at RAU said, there is urgent the need for women to occupy key positions in politics as this will go a long way in crafting policies that address the social isms of Sexual Gender based Violence (SGBV) and Gender Based Violence (GBV).
We have been conducting workshops with women to capacitate them towards addressing sexual gender based Violence, but importantly to address gender based violence, we need to have women in key positions so that policies are also reflective of their needs. However, due to political and cultural dynamics, the number of women occupying such positions remains alarmingly low. The 2018 election results further demonstrated a downward trend in women’s representation,” Pswarayi said.
Highlighting the global perspective, Pswarai stated, “The number of women’s representation globally is approximately 30%, which is masked by gender quotas. Amidst this, RAU has been conducting workshops, supported by Heinrich Böll Stiftung, aiming to empower women and strategize how best to address this situation.”
Pswarayi highlighted that, several women who are part of their capacity building workshop alumni had been elected as Councilors.
“Most of the female participants who attended our workshops in the yesteryear were elected as Councilors and they are now local authority representatives who can formulate and implement policies . We need to continue to advocate for robust women’s participation in decision making processes and map up strategies where women can possibly push for the implementation of constitutional provisions that ensure equal representation in all spaces”, he said.
To address gender inequalities effectively, Pswarayi suggested electoral reforms that would see women getting 50/50 representation in political spheres.
According to data from UN Women, women are not equally represented at all levels of decision-making around the world, and achieving gender parity in politics remains a distant goal. Currently, only 31 countries have women serving as Heads of State and/or Government. Women account for 26.5 percent of Members of Parliament globally. Furthermore, women make up only 22.8 percent of Cabinet Ministers worldwide.
In Zimbabwe women make up 54% of the Zimbabwean population and about half of the electorate. Within Zimbabwe, only 12% of members in local governing bodies are women, there are no women in positions of Head of State/Government, while 31% of Parliamentarians and 24% of Ministers are women. Although the proportion of female political leaders has increased steadily still it has not reached gender parity.
However, despite efforts to increase female participation, political violence remains a significant barrier impeding women’s participation and discouraging them from fully engaging in politics.
Pswarayi called for the implementation of constitutional provisions to address political violence and gender inequality.
“Despite the progress made, challenges persist. Political violence is a significant factor that discourages women from fully participating in politics and affects their election prospects. Addressing these challenges and gender inequality is paramount,” Pswarayi emphasized
“We have been talking about steps to increase participation, but that has not been the case. The political space does not allow it, political violence is one of the largest single factors that discourage women from participating fully in politics.” Pswarayi said.
He also noted that, implementing the provisions of the constitution to address gender inequality would align with the government’s mantra of leaving no place and no one behind.
“We need to make sure that, the provisions of the constitution are implemented to address gender inequality, which fits in the government’s mantra ‘let’s not leave anyone or any place behind’ that is what we are pushing for in this campaign,” he said.
Midlands State University (MSU), Zimbabwe Women Lawyers Association (ZWLA), the Gender Commission, the Ministry of Women Affairs, and the Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe (WCOZ)shared insights during the workshop providing valuable input into ongoing efforts to empower women.