Kenyan political parties routinely flout their own policies and manifestos on gender representation. And, among the big players, President Kibaki’s Party of National Unity is the worst culprit, with just 18 per cent of its leadership positions occupied by women.
Source: Daily Trust
Jos is witnessing a high number of women 'bread winners' who are now burdened with greater responsibilities, due to the various upheavals the state has witnessed. These widows call on the government and general public to hear their cries and help empower them.
Many Somalis expect the London Conference on 23 February to lead to peace and stability, while others have questioned what a five-hour meeting can achieve. IRIN spoke to a cross-section about their expectations and whether or not it would help to stabilize the country after more than two decades of civil war:
Source: Leadership
By July 15, this year, the current Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Dahiru Musdapher would have attained the constitutionally mandatory retirement age of 70 years. AHURAKA ISAH writes that in line with the law of the land, he will retire while a successor is expected to be sworn-in same day.
Source: The Rwanda Focus
Modern urban life is relatively easy, thanks to access to water, electricity, education, health and communication facilities like telephones and internet. However, all these come with their immense pressures, especially for a family woman who has to juggle work and domestic affairs.
Source: Public Agenda
The African Women's Development Fund (AWDF) has added Arts, Culture and Sports to its already existing thematic areas.
Source: Daily Trust
Former Head of State, Retired General Yakubu Gowon in collaboration with the TY Danjuma Foundation have donated 800 pairs of school sandals for distribution to female pupils to encourage more female children to go to school.
Somalia’s warring parties have all failed to protect Somali children from the fighting or serving in their forces, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The Islamist insurgent group al-Shabaab has increasingly targeted children for recruitment, forced marriage, and rape, and attacked teachers and schools, Human Rights Watch said.
World attention is on the war-torn Horn of Africa nation once more, with analysts saying the London Conference on 23 February could mark a turning point in the country's quest for peace and stability.
Source: The Herald
THE World Health Organisation has recommended that women continue using hormonal contraceptives in spite of revelations that their use doubles chances of uninfected women acquiring HIV.
Source: Tanzania Daily News
A popular Kiswahili proverb known by many Zanzibarians goes like this "Haba na haba hujaza kibaba" in other words drop by drop the vessel will get filled.
Source: Daily Nation
Kenyan political parties routinely flout their own policies and manifestos on gender representation.
Source: OSISA
In a landmark case starting on February 22nd, the Lesotho Constitutional Court will consider the constitutionality of section 10 of the Chieftainship Act, which arguably denies women the right to succeed to chieftainship solely on the basis of their gender.
Source: Nairobi Star
Special Programmes minister Esther Murugi and Mathira MP Ephraim Maina have defended Nyeri women over the reports of husband battery.
Source: Champion Newspaper
Recently, precisely February 6, 2012, the International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) was celebrated, during which the UNFPA executive director, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, announced some encouraging findings in the abandonment of the practice. ROSE MOSES, in this report, takes a look at the harmful practice that endangers the health of young women and girls, especially in Africa
"Women are still largely shut out of the negotiations that seek to end conflicts." Women and girls living in conflict areas are frequently the targets of specific forms of violence and abuse. Thus women have a unique perspective on the causes and effects of conflict on the population. Yet they are severely under-represented during efforts to resolve hostilities and address their root causes.
A UN body of independent experts today urged the Government of Morocco to further consolidate and advance the country's decade-long achievements on equality and women's human rights by establishing without delay the Authority for Parity in accordance with international standards.
Women entrepreneurs in Nigeria would soon start accessing facilities from deposit money banks at single digit interest rate, the Central Bank governor Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi has said.
Ambassador Anwarul Karim Chowdhury led Thursday’s provost lecture at the Wang Center as he discussed United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women and Peace & Security, a plan that aims to implement the active participation of women in political decision-making internationally.
In the early and middle decades of the twentieth century it was always Middle Eastern dictators who embarked on policy and legislation which liberated and empowered women in both family and society. The dictators liberated women in the good days, but retreated under pressure, and it was the populists ushered in by ‘democracy’ who oppressed women.