BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
LANGATA-KAREN
THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2011
TAKE-3
Today entered the third day for the AMECEA deliberation conference with many speakers wondering why women are still left behind, despite the fact that more than 50 percent of the family of God are women whereas 70 percent to 80 percent of the active Church collaborations are women.
This was also the concern of the AMECEA Bishop Delegates to the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops in Rome. In their statement they wondered why in African society, women are frequently not treated as equal to men, especially in decision-making processes.
The fact that women have the prime responsibility of caring for those that are taken ill with HIV and Aids and of orphans, they themselves have the highest rates of infection from the pandemic in the region.
But even so we must acknowledge that most women in the region have contributed tremendously in various fields. In journalism we have a quite number but just to mention few. In Kenya we have Rosemary Okello-Orlale, the Executive Director African Woman and Child Feature Service (AWC), a media NGO focusing on development communication in Africa.
She is also the Secretary to the Kenya Editor’s Guild as well as the Secretary General of the African Editor’s Forum. She holds MA in New Media Governance and Democracy (Leicester University), Advanced Management Programme (Strathmore Business School), Post Graduate in Journalism (London School of Journalist), and Post-Graduate Diploma in research methodology.
She has also done Population Studies and Research Institute (Nairobi University) and also Executive Education Strategic Frameworks for NGO (Harvard University-John F. Kennedy School of Government). She is also an award winner for the first prize as the best female reporter on ICT in the category of the 2004 African Information Society Initiative media awards.
Another woman who has highly featured is Irene Oloo. She has served in different capacities in the struggle to defend the dignity of women. As the immediate former Executive Director of The League of Kenya Women Voters where she served from 2004 to 2008, Irene is one of the women leaders that took women’s activism to a professional level where accountability for results was her motto.
Prior to that she served as the Programme Liaison Officer for the Engendering Kenya’s Political Processes that saw a much untied women’s movement in Kenya receive resources from various International Development Partners and Donors to level the playing field and prepare women leaders and voters for the 2002 elections.
Irene also has over 6 years International experience where she worked in Somali and the Horn of Africa Region developing and implementing programmes to reintegrate and resettle returning refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) with a clear bias towards Women and children.
During the post elections period in Kenya in 2007, Irene joined other women leaders to form “Vital Voices”, a non-aligned group that ensured that women played a key role in peace building and negotiations as Kenya struggled to stop the violence that erupted after the disputed elections.
Irene holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree majoring in taxation and is an alumni of the prestigious University of Nevarra, Spain where she qualified in the Advanced Management Program (AMP). She has attended numerous trainings and courses abroad and is set to join The University of Nairobi for a Master’s Degree in Diplomacy last September.
In Uganda, Evelyn Matsamura Kiapi is a Ugandan who has been practicing journalism for the past twelve years serving in different capacities from freelance writer to correspondent, sub editor and Product Editor at The Monitor (now Daily Monitor) an independent daily in Uganda.
Ms Kiapi holds an honours bachelors degree in Mass Communication from Makerere University (Kampala, Uganda) and a Masters degree in Development Studies, University of Leeds (United Kingdom) is currently an independent journalist and researcher with a speciality in development journalism and a bias in gender, reproductive health and human rights.
She contributes feature articles for several media outlets both locally and internationally including news wires like the Rome-based Inter Press Service (IPS) News Agency and the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR) based in The Hague, Netherlands.
She is also actively involved in charity projects promoting Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights among women and girls through HERD Initiative, a local NGO based in the underserved northern district of Moyo.
In Tanzania is Rose Haji Mwalimu trained Journalist with MA in Journalism from
Rostov State University, Russia. Currently Chief Executive Officer of the Media Institute of Southern Africa, Tanzania Chapter (MISA Tanzania) after being seconded from State Radio as Zonal Bureau Editor- Seasonal journalist writing for print, trans editor for Inter Press Service and radio producer.
Apart from being a trainer, consultant/designer for radio serial drama using unique methodology called ‘Sabido’ also conducts research and writes books and training manuals. Founder member Tanzania Media Women Association (TAMWA), Gender and Media Network of Southern Africa (GEMSA), chair of Gender and Media Network of Southern Africa-Tanzania Chapter (GEMSAT), and chair of International Association of Women in Radio and Television (IAWRT)-Tanzania Chapter.
Politically, in Uganda women have achieved a lot. In 2003, 25 per cent of the MPs were women, and their number has increased by 44 per cent between 1996 and 2003 (Africa Women’s Report 2004, Addis Ababa). In 2006 the number of women MPs increased due to the increase in the number of districts. Women are also acting as representatives at constituency level and for interest groups such as youth and people with disabilities (PWDs).
While in 1996 only four women served as cabinet ministers, the numbers have since increased, and in 2003 16 women were appointed to ministerial positions. There are also several women at the local council, civil service, and other decision-making levels.
Another prominent woman is Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga Kadaga -she is the current Speaker of the Ugandan Parliament. She was elected to that position on Thursday 19 May 2011 being the first female to be elected Speaker in the history of Parliament in Uganda. She is also the current Member of Parliament (MP) for the Kamuli District Women’s Constituency, Busoga sub-region, a position she has served in since 1989. She graduated with a law degree (LLB) from Makere University in 1978.
In 1996 she served as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (Regional Corporation) and in 1998 was transferred to the Ministry of Works and Communications. A year later Kadaga became Minister for Parliamentary Affairs in the Prime Minister’s office.
In South Sudan the Sudanese Women Voice for Peace (SWVP) is very influential in Peacebuilding- they work with refugee women as they rebuild their lives, organizing women for projects they can do together to raise themselves and their children up from extreme poverty.
SWVP was founded by People for Peace in Africa in the mid-1980s in Kisume Ukweli Pastoral Center when a small group of refugee women from Sudan attended an international women’s conference in Nairobi, Kenya.
The Sudanese Women’s Voice for Peace led community-building efforts among women living in refugee camps in Kenya and Uganda over the past 20 years, teaching trauma healing and skills for reconciliation. Now that some of the refugees are returning to their home villages in Sudan, SWVP is going with them. Teody Achilo, one of SWVP founders, knows it will take strong women to forge lasting peace in south Sudan.
In Tanzania the constitution reserves 30 per cent of the seats for women. These seats are distributed on the proportional representation basis. Special parliamentary seats for women were first introduced in Tanzania during the one-party era to increase female representation in the legislature.
In Kenya women’s role politically has been ignored-it was only in the seventh Parliament formed after the 1992 that saw elections of only one woman assistant minister in a House of 23 Cabinet ministers, and 66 assistant ministers, its biggest achievement, however, was the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action.
Between 1974-79- Dr. Julia Ojiambo became the first woman Assistant Minister- Housing and Social Services- 1979-83 Assistant Minister of Education-Chairperson of the Labour Party of Kenya since 1993 and Vice-Presidential Candidate in 2007.
She was followed by Grace Ogot- 1991-93 Assistant Minister of Culture and Social Affairs -1992-95 Assistant Minister of Public Works and Housing. It was not until 1995-98 when Kenya had a woman full minister- Winifred Nyiva Kitili Mwendwa became the Minister of National Heritage, Culture and Social Affairs. Also known as Winnie, she was MP for KANU 1974-79 and 1992-98.
Others were as followed-1996-97 Assistant Minister of Education Agnes Mutindi Ndetei 1998 Assistant Minister of Gender and Community Development Marere wa Mwachai 1998-2001 Assistant Minister of Home Affairs, National Heritage, Culture and Social Affairs- 2001-02 Assistant Minister of Heritage and Sports- 2003-07 Minister of Health Charity Kaluki Ngilu- 2008- Minister of Water and Irrigation-MP 1992-97, 1992-97 Leader of the Parliamentary Group of the Social Democratic Party, 1997 Presidential Candidate, from 2000 Leader of Women Political Alliance.
Since 2001 she also became the leader of National Party of Kenya Presidential Candidate in 1997 and from 2001 one of the leaders of the opposition Rainbow Coalition-which won the elections in 2002. Before the elections it was agreed that she would become Prime Minister when the constitution was changed, but the proposed change was turned down in a referendum in November 2005.
Between 2003-05- Minister of Water Resources Martha Wangari Karua- 2005-09 Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs-2006-08 Deputy Leader of Government Business in Parliament- 2008-09 Minister of National Cohesion-MP from 1992. 2003-04 Minister of State in the Office of the Vice-President Linah Jebii Kilimo-2004-05 Minister of State of Home Affairs- 2005 Minister of State in the Office of the President in charge of Immigration- 2003-04 Assistant Minister of Local Government Betty Njeri Tett- 2004-07 Assistant Minister of Housing.
Between 2003-04- Assistant Minister of Tourism and Information- Beth Wambui Mugo 2004-07 Assistant Minister of Basic Education- 2008- Minister of Public Health and Sanitation-Interim Chairperson of Narc-Kenya in 2006. 2003-07 Assistant Minister of Environment, Natural Resources and Wildlife Prof. Wangari Maathai- leading member of the opposition against former president Moi, an environmentalist activist and detained several times among other women.
People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya
Tel 254-20-4441372
Website: www.peopleforpeaceafrica.org