International Day of Rural Women

                                         WiPSU STATEMENT ON INTERNATIONAL DAY OF RURAL WOMEN

15th of October, 2021

Today, Women in Politics Support Unit (WiPSU) joins the rest of the world in commemorating the women working and living in rural communities. We call upon the Government of Zimbabwe to;

  •  Recognise and implement policies that will directly impact positively and sustainably to the day to day lives of women working and living in rural communities. Despite constitutional provision regarding the same.
  • Address deep inequalities regarding access to documentation, housing and financial inclusion services. The lack of dedicated implementation and prioritization of policies in the above mentioned areas demonstrates the consequences of the continued under representation of women in decision making in these critical sectors.
  • Furthermore, the inequality in representation is compounded by a lack of a women centric approach in the law, policy and practice. Whilst commendable steps have been taken by government in extending the women’s quota to local government, it is critical to ensure that steps are taken to ensure that a legislative framework is put in place to ensure 50/50 representation at all levels of governance.   
  • Accordingly, we remind the Government of Zimbabwe and policy makers at large that 61% of Zimbabwean farmers are women, 71% of the agricultural labour force is provided by women and that 6 out of 10 small scale producers in this country continue to be women.
  • We further remind Government of Zimbabwe of its multiple commitments and obligations constitutionally, regionally and internationally to supporting the progressive realization of rights for women.
  • WiPSU further reminds that women lead communities and this leadership must be reflected within the electoral system directly. We exhort Government to ensure that the electoral system agenda delivers equal representation in seats both at constituency and ward levels. We call for full implementation of the equality provisions in regard with electoral provisions as enshrined the Constitution.


#genderequality #zerohunger #participation #represenation #purplepolitics

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