By Saio Marrah
The deputy Minister of Gender and Children Affairs, Hindowa Bindi has called on Sierra Leoneans to persuade their different Members of Parliament to support the enactment of the Gender Empowerment Bill.
He made this statement at the launching of the More Than a Woman Project Phase11 that aims at strengthening women’s participation in governance. The event took place in Bonthe district, on Tuesday 2nd November, 2021.
He said the ministry has done its part in presenting the bill to Parliament, for debate and approval. “All what we are now looking forward to is the deliberations in Parliament to ensure that we have that bill to present to our Sierra Leonean women”, he said.
He said gender does not only comprise women, but because they have been behind for far too long, they want to focus more on them.
The Senior Programme Advisor Governance for the Ireland Embassy in Freetown, Josephus Ellie, in his presentation, noted that this particular phase of the project would provide the opportunity to increase the impact of their work in promoting women’s political participation and will continue strengthening Send Sierra Leone’s technical, financial and managerial capacities. He said the project will also encourage women’s voice, support economic empowerment and increase advocacy. He pointed out that policy engagements have been recognized as a good model for promoting women’s participation in politics and governance.
Ellie said in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 5 and 16, they believe that effective institutions can address gender equality, the rights of minorities, the specific needs of people living with disabilities, and ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision making in political, economic and public life.
He also noted that statistics indicate low representation of women in governance and politics and that statistics also unearthed the social, economic institutional and political challenges women have to bear when they venture into politics, and the involvement in political and economic factors influencing women’s participation in decision making process.
He expressed the government of Ireland’s commendation of the government of Sierra Leone for proposing the Gender Empowerment Bill.
He however acknowledged that challenges like improving political party structures, which inhibit women’s participation, addressing the strong culture of patriarchy and gender norms and practices, which tend to favour men more, still exist. Improving the literacy, awareness and capacities of women, reducing the poverty and economic vulnerabilities of women remain other challenges, Ellie noted.
The Project Manager of Send Sierra Leone, Brima Mansaray, in his power point presentation, said 84 percent and 64 percent of rural and urban women, respectively, who make up 52 percent of the population, operate in the informational sector with low wages, no social protection, high level of discrimination and poor working conditions. He said over 80 percent of women are multi- dimensionally poor, and at least 70 percent of them have experienced gender based violence in their lifetime.
Mansaray noted that the existence of cultural societies and solid religious beliefs are woven into the country has limited women’s abilities, as leadership is the prerogative of men to which women have to serve and be caregivers of the family only.
According to Mansaray, the project will strengthen women’s collective voice, knowledge, capacity on gender, and accountability in politics and governance at district and regional levels.
He said women are empowered economically through resource mobilization and utilization, increased national level advocacy and networking on women’s participation in decision making governance and politics.
A skit by the Bonthe women demonstrated how women could win an election due to collective engagements.
The project is being supported by the Irish Embassy through implementing NGO SEND Sierra Leone. It is being implemented in Kono, Kenema , Kailahun and Bonthe districts
Copyright © Politico Online (05/11/21)
