Source: The New Times
Reigning national woman chess champion Marie Faustine Shimwa, 22, this month became the first Rwandan female to get the coveted World Chess Federation (FIDE) rating.
Source: Tanzania Daily News
In a setting influenced by cultural stigma in Pangani, Tanga Region, it was left to Aisha, a feature film depicting sexual violence.
Source: The Observer
Namono still feels uncomfortable mentioning her daughter’s name; her daughter, Helen, died three years ago after an attempted abortion went wrong and took her life.
Source: The New Times
On April 24, 2016, Marguerite Barankitse of Maison Shalom and REMA Hospital in Burundi was named the inaugural Laureate of the $1million Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity.
Source: AllAfrica
All is set for Rwanda to host the African Unit Summit scheduled for July 10 -18 in Kigali, Foreign Affairs minister Louise Mushikiwabo has said.
Source: Face2Face Africa
Liberia's president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has once again broken the gender ceiling by making history as the first female elected chairperson of the Economy of West African States (ECOWAS).
Source:Face2Face Africa
Living with autism in Ghana has just been made more bearable since HopeSetters, an autism center, came out with a locally configured autism app that helps children with autism receive better education.
Source: The Guardian
She can’t quite explain it, but for the best part of five decades, since she was a very young schoolgirl growing up in the Gambia, Fatou Bensouda says she has felt powerfully driven by a sense of right and wrong.
Source: News Deeply
U.N. Women estimates that one in 10 of the nation’s women are victims of violence each year. Cape Town’s Sonke organization is tackling the issue by turning men into better husbands and fathers.
Source: AllAfrica
If you were determined to wipe out poverty and were president of a country, you'd want by your side someone who has diverse expertise in a variety of sectors, such as business and finance, management and the law – and who shares your passion for addressing inequality. Five weeks before his inauguration last year, Namibian President Hage Geingob married that person.
Source: HuffPost Women
In Yoruba culture, pregnant women and mothers are celebrated in a concept that I hold dear to my heart - Alaafia Abiyamo. Alaafia Abiyamo is a belief that motherhood transcends the physical process and is a transformative pre-gestational, social, prenatal, postnatal, spiritual, and community role.
Source: Forbes
Human rights advocate Clemantine Wamariya shares her powerful story of hope and resilience after surviving the Rwandan genocide and life as a refugee, speaking at the Forbes Women’s Summit.
Source: InDepth News
Despite the hurdles women continue to face in Zimbabwe, this country has made significant headway in achieving gender equality in line with Goal 5 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be attained by 2030.
Source: UN
Concluding a three-day visit to Côte d'Ivoire, the United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict has welcomed progress made thus far by the Government, and in particular by the national armed forces, in addressing sexual violence crimes in the country.
“I have been able to interact with the national authorities and [Forces Républicaines de Côte d'Ivoire] FRCI leadership, and see for myself the practical and operational steps being taken to prevent and respond to sexual violence crimes,” said Zainab Hawa Bangura, UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict.
“We have been able to identify remaining challenges in the implementation of the FRCI Action Plan to combat conflict-related sexual violence and discussed the way forward towards the delisting of the FRCI from the annex of the annual report of the Secretary-General on conflict-related sexual violence,” she added.
The Special Representative noted that the FRCI was included in the annex of the annual report of the Secretary-General on conflict-related sexual violence in 2012 as a party credibly suspected of being responsible for committing rape and other sexual violence crimes during the post-electoral crisis in 2010-2011.
As part of her official visit, Ms. Bangura met with senior Government and UN officials to discuss the progress being made in Côte d'Ivoire to address sexual violence crimes committed during the post-electoral crisis and beyond.
During her stay in Abidjan, she met with Prime Minister Daniel Kablan Duncan; the Minister of State on Interior and Security; Minister of Justice and Keeper of the Seals; Minister on the Promotion of Women, Family and Children Affairs; the Chief of Staff at the Ministry of Solidarity, Social Cohesion and Victims Compensation; the Chief of Army Staff; Head of the Gendarmerie; the leadership of the UN's Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI); and the UN country team.
In meetings with the national authorities and military leadership, the Special Representative noted the progress made, including the development and implementation of the FRCI Action Plan, training and sensitization of FRCI soldiers, signing of undertakings by senior commanders of the FRCI, and the review of the code of conduct of the FRCI.
“It is important that such positive steps are shared with countries facing similar challenges. For this reason, later this year my Office will convene a meeting in Côte d'Ivoire, which will bring together African national armies from countries where we work – namely, the Central African Republic, Côte d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Somalia and South Sudan – to facilitate an exchange of good practices in addressing conflict-related sexual violence,” the Special Representative said.
Ms. Bangura also discussed remaining challenges faced by Côte d'Ivoire, including the need for legal reform to harmonize national laws with international standards, prosecution of perpetrators of sexual violence crimes committed during the post-electoral crisis of 2010-2011, the provision of reparations to victims, and the improvement of multi-sectoral services to survivors.
“The political and military authorities in Côte d'Ivoire have confirmed my long-held view that when national authorities demonstrate leadership and responsibility, they create an environment in which sexual violence crimes can be prevented and addressed,” Ms. Bangura noted.
“My Office, through the Team of Experts on the Rule of Law/Sexual Violence in Conflict, will build on this progress and support the Government in addressing the remaining challenges of justice and accountability,” she added.
Source: UN News
At a Security Council debate today on sexual violence in conflict, senior United Nations officials stressed that in the past decade, the world has witnessed a fundamental shift in the way the issue is understood and addressed as a peace and security concern.
Source: UN Women
In our mountain village here in Kissane, in Morocco's Taounate Province, we can see the impact of climate change. People notice it and say, ‘Before, the wheat was higher and didn't need to be sprayed’.
Source: The Daily Vox
The recent furore around Lerato Kganyago, True Love magazine and Photoshop reminded LIZEKA MADUNA of the days when she was mocked for her weight, and made her realise that body shaming still threatens the self-esteem of many women. She’s sick of it.
Source: Daily Trust
Women groups have called for opportunity to be more involved in peace building and development in the country.
Source: Times Lives
The BBC in January this year published a story with the headline: “Why are teenage pregnancies rising in Africa?” Africa Check‚ an independent‚ non-partisan organisation which assesses claims made in the public arena‚ said it had proved this headline not to be based on fact‚ prompting the BBC to change it.
Source: CS Monitor
In 24 sub-Saharan African countries, there is a serious gender imbalance when it comes to the arduous, time-consuming task of water collection.