09 Mar 2022

 It is time all acknowledge that gender equality is the only guarantee to reaching United Nation’s Agenda 2030 targets as well as for bringing peace to families and nations.

  This was said by Minister of Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs Ms Anna Mokgethi on the occasion of International Women’s Day in Gaborone on Tuesday.

  Commenting on this year’s theme: Gender Equality Today A Sustainable Tomorrow, Ms Mokgethi said it challenged all world leaders to ensure gender equality was achieved now if they were to realise sustainable development.

   Ms Mokgethi said women and girls needed to be part of the conversation at negotiation tables as well as in seeking solutions to life challenges they were facing.  

Turning to Botswana, she said Batswana women had from time immemorial played a pivotal role in the country’s development as they ran the local economy whilst men were working in the mines.

It was women who raised and groomed children,  they produced food to ensure family members were nourished and supported men during battles, said Ms Mokgethi.

She said women were still uncompromisingly delivering the same duties regardless of the glitches life threw at them.

Based on the immeasurable contribution of women, she said, government found it fit to improve their environment to enable them to fully unleash their potential.

“This has resulted in development of new laws guaranteeing women civil rights and allowing them to freely participate in Botswana’s development. We have seen women ascending to the National Assembly, Cabinet, Ntlo ya Dikgosi and other portfolios that were initially men’s domain including football and the army,” she said.

She gave as an example the appointment of Ms Peggy Serame as Botswana’s first woman finance minister.

In addition, some traditional practices such as those relating to inheritance had changed as nowadays widows and daughters inherited property, said the minister.

Ms Mokgethi said  further  efforts towards women empowerment included improvements in health services such as the use of post exposure prophylaxis, establishment of gender based violence special courts, strengthening of laws such as enactment  of the Sexual Offenders Registry Act and public education on access to justice.

However, she said whilst Botswana had made significant progress in gender equality and women empowerment, more still needed to be done.

“As we build momentum towards 2036, let me urge all to strengthen our unity and proudly empower our women and girls for a better tomorrow. May I implore everyone to ensure that we create safe spaces for our dear women and girls. 

As we celebrate our women and girls today, let us remember that their safety reflects our unity and pride, hence; a United and Proud Nation,” she said.BOPA