New Project to Promote Women

WINDHOEK - Namibia is piloting a project on Pro Poor Governance, Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment from a Human Rights Perspective.

Despite Namibia having laws and policies in place, their impact in changing the attitudes and practices embedded within cultural and traditional norms remains limited.

The project, which will engender government structures and systems, will encourage the participation of women in decision-making positions and build the skills of men and women for transformative leadership to promote gender equality and women's empowerment.

The project will also, according to Minister of Gender Equality and Child Welfare Marlene Mungunda, strengthen her ministry's capacity in its coordination role of gender issues in the country.

Namibia has ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and has been reporting to the United Nations since then. Although the country is doing a lot, the country's reporting is shallow. The project will therefore strengthen Namibia's reporting capacity to the UN through the Monitoring and Evaluation Tool that the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) will develop for Namibia.

UNDP Resident Representative Simon Nhongo said the new project would complement the Joint Programme on Gender which is funded by the Spanish Government, which aims to raise the bar of understanding, sensitivity and responsiveness to pressing gender issues in Namibia.

Nhongo said gender equality is both a development and human rights issue and unless all members of society are treated equally and given equal opportunities, the country will not be able to attain its Millennium Development Goals and Namibia's Vision 2030.

"Investment in gender equality is investment in our future, so I urge us all to make the world a better place for men and especially women to live in and prosper," he added.

Other immediate objectives of the project are to strengthen the capacity of all sectors to use CEDAW as a planning tool and programming tool for a coordinated approach for development as well as build the capacity of women to articulate their priorities and demonstrate their capacities to control and manage resources and services.

Mungunda said when she launched the project on Thursday: "I am glad that this project will enhance the capacity of all sectors to implement CEDAW that Namibia has acceded to and in a way assist the ministry to coordinate and report better." She added that CEDAW was erroneously seen as a women's concern to be addressed by the ministry responsible for women's affairs.

The project is being launched at a time when Namibia is preparing her fourth report on CEDAW.

UNIFEM is funding the first phase of the project. UNIFEM Southern Africa Regional Director Nomcebo Manzini said she hopes the programme can contribute to transforming Namibia into a non-sexist society.

"If we redefine transformation to indeed take into account opening the vistas towards the spiritual and material fulfillment of each and every Namibian or African, then we will have a better picture of the ingredients of a truly transformed Namibian society," said Manzini.