Prometheus 6   

PAMBAZUKA NEWS: WOMEN AND GENDER

AFRICA/GLOBAL: THE ECONOMICS OF GENDER INEQUALITY: TOWARDS GENDER RESPONSIVE BUDGETING
Are budgets and revenue systems as gender neutral as they may appear to be? Can gender be incorporated into economic governance? How can women and civil society organisations be more involved in preparing budgets, scrutinising expenditure and collecting and analysing macroeconomic data that is disaggregated by sex?

AFRICA: AU ADOPTION OF THE PROTOCOL ON THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN WELCOMED
The African Union's (AU) adoption of the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa is a significant step in the efforts to promote and ensure respect for the rights of African women, says Amnesty International. Adopted on 11 July 2003, at the second summit of the African Union in Maputo, Mozambique, the Protocol, among others, requires African governments to eliminate all forms of discrimination and violence against women in Africa and to promote equality between women and men.

ETHIOPIA: INTERVIEW WITH GIFTI ABASIYA, STATE MINISTER FOR WOMEN'S AFFAIRS
Gifti Abasiya is the State Minister for Women’s Affairs – one of the smallest ministries in Ethiopia. In this interview with IRIN, she says that discrimination is a result of undemocratic systems, and that widespread and deeply entrenched poverty is the key factor in fuelling arcane attitudes towards women.

GHANA: CHURCHES CAN HELP PERPETUATE EMOTIONAL VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
Exhilda Natogma (Not real name) is a nurse at a mission hospital of one of the popular Pentecostal churches in Madina a suburb of Accra, the capital city of Ghana. Exhilda fell in love with one of her church elders who was studying at a professional Institute in Accra. After six months of a hot romance, Exhilda discovered that she was pregnant and the Elder quickly suggested an abortion.

SOUTH AFRICA: GENDER RESEARCHER SEEKS ANSWERS ON SOUTH AFRICAN CAMPUSES
In South Africa, post-secondary education is a privilege, and many students currently enrolled in universities are the first in their families to reach for it. Degrees are also one of only a few tickets to upward mobility, and students endure enormous economic and personal pressures to graduate. "Campus cultures are places in which the stakes are high," says Dr Jane Bennett, gender researcher and director of the African Gender Institute, based at the University of Cape Town.

SOUTHERN AFRICA: WOMEN TO ANALYSE GENDER POLICIES IN SADC COUNTRIES
Women unionists from the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) met from 14 to 18 July in Maputo, Mozambique, to analyse gender policies in their countries. According to an Angolan official, because the Southern Africa Trade Unions (SATUC) does not have a gender policy as yet, discussion was based on the rate of accomplishment of the commitment of SADC's heads of State and Government to gender representation.

UGANDA: WOMEN GAIN INCH IN PUSH FOR LAND RIGHTS
A new amendment to the 1998 Land Act in Uganda takes a small step toward women obtaining land rights. The issue is expected to remain on the national agenda, however, as candidates for president position themselves to gain the women's vote.

ZAMBIA: WOMEN MAKE SLOW, BUT STEADY PROGRESS
In the early hours of a cold morning, the streets of Lusaka are thronging with people rushing to work. I pass through a coffee shop on my way to the office and as I sip the hot brew my attention is drawn to two elderly women who work as sweepers for the Lusaka City Council (LCC). Eavesdropping in on their conversation, I soon discover that they are talking about the challenges that women continue to face in their pursuit of equality.

posted by Prometheus 6 at 7/29/2003 07:53:55 PM |