Women's what...?

The International Women’s Day celebrated yesterday, 8^th March 2012 invites us to reflect on where Africa stands with respect to the third Millennium Development Goal, which is aimed at promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment. According to the recently published 2012 World Development Report on Gender Equality and Development, women and girls’ lives have improved dramatically in recent years.

Yet, despite this progress, women and girls still face many challenges. For example, sixty per cent of people suffering from chronic hunger worldwide are women and girls, according to UNESCO. And in fragile states, women and girls are particularly vulnerable. As Mr. Kofi Annan remarked recently, “For too long the women and children of Africa have borne the brunt of conflict on our continent, whether through gender based violence, displacement, or a lack of access to basic human rights. Time again, we know that women are often the peacemakers in their households, in their communities and even at a national level.”

The UN’s latest Africa Renewal reports that women around the world, but especially those in Africa, are still struggling for their fair share of political power and economic opportunity. In spite of the essential roles that women play in sustaining their families and their unquestionable contribution to the economic and social development of African societies, deep cultural and traditional barriers continue to constrain them.

As UN Women point out, gender equality is more than just a basic human right; its achievement has enormous socio-economic ramifications. Empowering women fuels thriving economies, spurring productivity and growth.

The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization and Farming First’s info graphics series, highlighted in last week’s Guardian newspaper, underscores the fact that while women form the majority of the agricultural labour force in Africa, they make up less than 20% of agricultural holders. Similarly, on the whole, they earn half of what their male counterparts do and have less access to credit and technology. If women were paid their equal dues, imagine how well their contributions would support themselves and their families, as well as, their nations’ development goals.

Tools promoting this inclusion exist and should be further supported. The African Union, for example, adopted, from its inception, a 50 per cent quota for women’s representation, which is reflected in the composition of the AU Commission. This standard reflects and reinforces efforts to enhance women’s representation at the national level. Angola, Mozambique and South Africa have exceeded the 30 per cent benchmark for their legislatures. These examples are repeated elsewhere in Africa, but much more needs to be done to translate these political gains into economic empowerment and social justice for women at the local and regional levels.

In recent decades – thanks in great part to their own organization and effort – African women have made important strides. Indeed, in 2011 alone, we saw many positive developments in Africa regarding gender equality and women’s empowerment. From the Arab Spring to the presidential elections in Liberia, from the Nobel Peace Prize to agriculture and food security, African women are on the move and have been leading the way, highlighting as they do so their intention to stake their claim to fully participate in the continent’s promising future.

At a time of global economic and political instability, it is important that we invest in a sustainable future: we need to encourage a renewed push for active political participation and equality, as well as to ensure support for female entrepreneurs, business persons and elected officials.