Story by Memory Chamisa
THE Southern African Development Community (SADC) Committee of Ministers Responsible for Gender and Women’s Affairs convened on the sidelines of the ongoing United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in New York this Tuesday to come up with a common position.
SADC member states including Angola, Mozambique, Botswana, DRC, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Lesotho and Zambia, attended as Zimbabwe’s Minister of Women Affairs, Community Small and Medium Enterprises Development, who is also the Chairperson of the Committee, Senator Monica Mutsvangwa chaired.
Highlighting the efforts made by the region to promote gender equality, Botswana’s Minister of Youth and Gender, Ms Lesego Chombo, reiterated the need for inclusion of young women during decisive deliberations.
“As a young woman, it is my desire to see the inclusion of many young women at such gatherings and tables of discussions where they also get to hear the brilliant voices and insights from seasoned gender champions so that they carry the torch forth as the fight for gender equality never ceases but evolves,” she said.
“Mentorship from such great personalities is imperative to ensure that we appreciate what has been done from 1995 at the Beijing Conference to now 30 years later.”
United Nations Women’s Deputy Executive Director Ms Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda applauded the regional bloc for its commitment to promoting gender equality.
“I want to applaud the SADC region for leading the preparatory process, we appreciate that all SADC states were able to prepare the national reports and surveys that inform the Secretary General’s report and I say congratulations to all SADC States,” she said.
“In the global context of regression and backlash, intergenerational partnerships from local to national, regional and international levels and their collective ownership shows resilience and lasting impact. Today despite the shifting winds we must ensure that our commitment remains unwavering. It is in the spirit of partnership, in the union of our diverse voices, that we will trace the path forward,” Ms Gumbonzvanda said.
Senator Mutsvangwa highlighted the importance of financial support in implementing the various programmes and projects aligned to the regional bloc’s development.
“Rising to the challenges and opportunities of gender equality requires collective, decisive action across Member States, now more than ever. At a time when hard-fought gains for gender equality are under attack, the global community has come together in a show of unity for all women and girls, everywhere,” she said.
“As the SADC region recommits Member States to eliminating all forms of violence against women and girls, including emerging forms such as digital violence, online harassment, and cyberbullying, we acknowledge that achieving progress in these areas requires substantial resources and financing. It calls for strengthened national systems and international mechanisms, including a revitalised Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), to accelerate gender equality efforts globally,” Senator Mutsvangwa said.
As the world marks the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, governments have adopted by consensus a powerful Political Declaration to respect, protect, and champion the rights, equality and empowerment of women and girls.
