Customary law, traditional norms and values, leading obstacles to women accessing land

**ZWACT Executive Director, Sandra Matendere**

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

A report by the Zimbabwe Women Against Corruption Trust (ZWACT), has revealed that customary law, traditional norms and values, are the leading obstacles which limit women’s access to land.

The report titled, “Gendered impact of land corruption and displacements on women’s access to social-economic rights in Zimbabwe”, follows a research which was conducted in Masvingo and Manicaland Province.

The research which was led by Allan T. Chaumba, was commissioned to interrogate the extent to which women enjoy their access to land rights in Zimbabwe with special attention given to victims of the 2023/4 internal displacements in the Masvingo and Manicaland Provinces.

ZWACT Executive Director, Sandra Matendere, said while the research was carried out in the two provinces, it’s a fact that displacements are happening in various other provinces, hence when resources permit, they will move to other areas.

Major findings from the research were largely drawn from a sample of at least 500 women constituting 95 percent of the respondents reached out, whilst an insignificant 5 percent were male participants.

“Customary law, traditional norms and values are leading obstacles at 45 percent, followed by corruption at 19 percent, inadequate legal and policy frameworks at 9 percent and lack of implementation of existing legal and policy frameworks at 9 percent.

“In addition there appears to be a lack of political will at 8 percent, to address these challenges considering the fact that they existed during the pre-independence era and the same still exist 44 years after Zimbabwe Independence in 1980,” read the report.

The report further states that forms of corruption limiting women’s access to land rights, include favouritism.

“Favouritism at 35 percent, came prominent as the most common form of corruption, which involves showing preferential treatment or giving unfair advantages to some individuals or groups based on personal relationships rather based on real need for land.

“This leads to inefficiencies and incompetence in decision-making processes.

“This is followed by nepotism at 29 percent in which individuals in positions of power or authority show preferential treatment to their family members of friends often at the expense of more deserving and qualified candidates.

“Bribery scored 24 percent in which public officials and traditional leaders are offered items of value (such as money, livestock, gifts or favors) to give land to the landless.

“Women lamented being poor and unwilling to give such bribes and that explains why some of them do not have land even if they wanted to pay the bribes.

“In addition, 6 percent of the respondents accused public officials of demanding sexual favours in exchange for land,” added the report.

It was also revealed that in terms of land ownership, women still lag behind with only 2 percent claiming to be owning the land where they stay and also where they were evicted from in Manicaland and Masvingo Province.

And it was added that 98 percent did not own the land.

“Traditional leaders who had allocated them the land, had done so in the names of their husbands who also did not have papers as proof of either legal occupancy or ownership.”

Comment on the issue of young women’s access to land, Lillian Tinotenda Muhwandavaka, ZINASU National Gender Secretary, said it was really difficult for a girl child who wants land.

“As young women we are being denied access to land because they feel we don’t deserve because we are young women and there are a lot of reasons that are given.

“If you look at it, only 3 percent is representing us in Parliament and as we all know, we have our young women who should be representing us concerning this issue.

“So as young women we are really being treated unfairly, we have nowhere to air all our grievances.

“And you should know that no one understands the situation better than the person who is affected by that situation, so we need young women who amplify our voices concerning this.

“There is need for a serious policy change so that young women are empowered to have equal access to land, just like their male counterparts,” said Muhwandavaka.

She added: “because if you look at it from a rural perspective, young woman are not expected to say that they want land because they are told they can only access this when they are married.

“We have to give them the space which allows them to grow economically in different spaces, so this is something that is affecting us as young women; let’s consider young women.

“Young women need to be considered so that that they are part of the decision making processes so that we can realize our full potential.”

Zim to host Africa’s first ever Tourism Academy for Culinary Arts

**President Mnangagwa and First Lady Dr Auxilia Mnangagwa, lead delegates on a tour of exhibitions at UN Tourism Regional Forum on Gastronomy Tourism for Africa** **(pic: Ministry of Information)**

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

Zimbabwe has been honoured by the United Nations Tourism to host Africa’s first ever Tourism Academy for Culinary Arts, which scores a major milestone for the country’s sector.

This was revealed by President Mnangagwa last Friday when he officially opened the first UN Tourism Regional Forum on Gastronomy Tourism for Africa, in the City of Victoria Falls.

“Zimbabwe is privileged to be hosting Africa’s first-ever Tourism Academy for Culinary Arts, in collaboration with UN Tourism.

“The Academy will be a training ground for the tourism and hospitality industry.

“Professionals will be equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge, to enhance the quality of services offered in the tourism sector.

“The institutions of higher learning across the continent are challenged to take bold decisions towards capacity building programmes that will grow the pool of highly qualified professionals to impact service level and customer satisfaction in Africa’s tourism sector.

“Further, studies and research into fields such as culinary and gastronomic creativity should open up new horizons by connecting other spheres such as health, nutrition, food production, sustainability, digitalisation and technological entrepreneurship,” said President Mnangagwa.

The UN Tourism said the academy will add to the growing network of education centres they support, helping give workers the skills they need to thrive in the sector and so drive economic growth and social opportunity.

Tourism and Hospitality Industry important to country’s development agenda-President Mnangagwa

**President Mnangagwa (pic: Ministry of Information)**

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

President Mnangagwa has said the country’s tourism and hospitality industry is a critical cog to the national development agenda and ongoing journey to realise an inclusive and sustainable sector, which leaves no one and no place behind.

President Mnangagwa was speaking at the official opening of the first UN Tourism Regional Forum on Gastronomy Tourism for Africa, in the City of Victoria Falls on Friday.

Committee on Tourism and Competiveness (CTC) of UN Tourism, defines Gastronomy Tourism as a type of tourism activity which is characterised by the visitor’s experience linked with food and related products and activities, while travelling.

President Mnangagwa revealed that food often comprises about 30 percent of tourist expenditures, hence the industry creates local opportunities for jobs and community empowerment.

“Tourism is currently the third largest contributor to our country’s National Gross Domestic Product and one of the key economic growth factors having achieved a 34 percent increase in tourism arrivals, last year alone.

“Globally, a positive trend has been witnessed with tourism growth now exceeding 90 percent of its pre-COVID 19 pandemic levels.

“Regrettably, the African region has been contributing below 5 percent of global tourism performance.

“As such, the promotion of products such as Gastronomy Tourism and others like the “Brand Africa” initiative will undoubtedly go a long way to enhance Africa as an attractive and competitive destination, worldwide.

“I commend the UN Tourism and all stakeholders who continue to push the boundaries and reignite Africa’s tourism sector leveraging on the Continent’s unique natural and cultural offerings, including our foods and cuisines,” said President Mnangagwa.

He added that as we celebrate African Gastronomy Tourism in Zimbabwe, it was not just about honouring recipes and flavours.

“We pay homage to the wisdom of those who came before us, who understood the symbiotic relationship between food, well-being, the community and the environment.

“Their legacy lives on in our kitchens, where traditional dishes continue to nourish and unite us. Our traditional cuisines are more than mere meals but an expression of our identity, which is blended with the beauty of our landscapes and seasons.

“I trust that your palates will enjoy the experience and hope that you will embrace possible linkages to broaden Africa’s culinary portfolio.

“Given that a people’s cuisine are a manifestation of their culture; our continent’s unique cultural heritage, food and drink, therefore, offers immense opportunities for further expansion of the tourism sector.

“In our local Shona language, we say “hukama igasva hunozadziswa nekudya”.

“This saying encapsulates the importance of sharing food in building people to people relations in our African culture and tradition.

“By this fact, Gastronomy Tourism offers enormous potential to propel the growth of local, national and regional economies, while enhancing sustainability and inclusion towards the realisation of Sustainable Development Goals,” said President Mnangagwa.

He also revealed that for the country to fully benefit from Gastronomy Tourism, stakeholders in the sector should continually innovate by developing new products and services.

“Robust strategies should be implemented to scale up the promotion of gastronomy related tour packages, food festivals and cooking classes, among others, to make Africa an attractive gastronomy tourism destination.

“The internet continues to advance and is being utilised as a powerful tool for advertising and marketing, especially in the travel, tourism and hospitality sector.

“Riding on the wide use of ICT, we must see more people from the continent hosting food shows on contemporary media platforms to advance our unique cuisines.

“In the case of Zimbabwe, the Gastronomy Tourism has grown and remains anchored on grassroots initiatives.

“Recently, under the leadership of the First Lady, Dr Mnangagwa and her teams, in her capacity as the Patron of the Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Traditional Cookout Competitions were rolled out in our country’s provinces.

“These culminated in Regional Cookout Competitions and have seen some of the contestants developing marketable products for both the locally and international markets.

“Key lessons learnt include the fact that the traditional gastronomy cuisine goes beyond preparing food and attracting food enthusiasts.

“It is also a key driver for the transformation of economies, community empowerment and a catalyst for cultural branding for socio-economic benefits,” said the President.

He added that tourism was linked with many other systems, which are all important in the value chains of the local economy, hence the government had developed a cluster-based strategy, with Gastronomy Tourism being part of the Culture and Heritage Cluster.

“The Zimbabwe Gastronomy Tourism Strategy recognises value chains from suppliers of ingredients which includes local communities and farmers, as well as the processors and distributors, being airlines, hotels and restaurants.

“This further draws from the Farm to Market Concept.

“Central to gastronomy tourism is a thriving agriculture sector. It is, therefore, imperative that, as we grow this gastronomy tourism sub-sector, Africa must be a continent able to feed itself.

“Likewise, let us be proud of utilising our flora and fauna, for their rich herbal, medical and high nutritional benefits.

“In addition to the cluster-based strategy, Zimbabwe has embraced the Heritage-based Tourism philosophy, which focuses on the benefits arising from our unique environment, as well as traditions, culture and norms.

“Synergies among stakeholders in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry, including with culinary experts and local communities, are being strengthened to identify and promote locally authentic dishes, traditional cooking methods and local ingredients,” he said.

President Mnangagwa added that: “work is underway in the design of policies meant to support and elevate our culinary artisans and small-scale farmers in the value chain.”

He further revealed that as we should look into the future, there was need to promote the heritage of the country’s cultural dishes by recognising their potential not only to sustain us, but to grow our economies for shared prosperity.

“By embracing Gastronomy Tourism, we are collectively making use of our history, resilience, and commitment to a sustainable and culturally rich future of the African continent and the World at large.”

The forum which started on Friday, ended on Sunday with several activities in the resort City of Victoria Falls.

CONNECT Wellness Day

…promotion of holistic wellness and a drug and substance free Zim

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

There is need to have a holistic approach to health, as there are several issues that affect people, Netsai Risinamhodzi, Executive Director of CONNECT Zimbabwe Institute of Systemic Therapy has said.

Risinamhodzi revealed this at CONNECT Wellness Day which was held last Friday.

The Wellness Day was running the under the theme, “Holistic Harmony-Exploring the connection between mental, physical and emotional wellness.”

The Wellness Day also sought to emphasise on the importance of collaborations to fight drug and substance abuse.

“We have organised this day so that we ensure that the CONNECT community, the CONNECT family and even the CONNECT stakeholders are in good health, they are well all round.

“So when we talk about issues of wellness I have seen that many a times, we have bias towards one type of wellness over the other, but as CONNECT what we are saying is that we want all individuals, all families and all societies to be in good health and to be holistically well.

“As CONNECT we are well known on issues of mental wellness, issues of family wellness since we have mental health counsellors and family therapists, but what we are saying today is that we are not just concerned about family wellness or just about mental wellness.

“But we also are concerned about physical wellness, about financial wellness, about spiritual wellness and all these types of wellness. So today we have all these wellness services in one place,” said Risinamhodzi.

She added: “we want people to get access to physical wellness specialists, we want you to get access to social wellness specialists; we want you to get access to all these other professionals that are here so that you can be able to consult.

“We want people to be able to get expert advice, so that you can also be able to expose yourself to activities in an environment that will ensure your wellbeing is holistic.”

Risinamhodzi further stressed that the hope was for people to benefit and to get access to all the available services towards holistic wellness.

Winnet Manyadza, Clinic and Further Education Manager at CONNECT, also spoke on the rampant cases of drug and substance abuse, saying there is need for collaborations if we want to eliminate the scourge.

“We now have several cases of drug and substance abuse, be it amongst the girls, boys, men, women and even the older generation.

“So this issue really touches a lot on wellness because you will find that if someone is stressed, they may end up thinking of finding comfort in drugs or other substances for that moment.

“But then what will happen is that, people will end up getting addicted and at the end of the day, they won’t function normally as they should.

“There is also need to ensure that we have physical wellness so regular checkups are really important but then if someone has a habit of abusing drugs or other substances, it then means that the physical wellbeing is compromised.

“Socially drugs and substances disrupt a lot of things, because you may find out that someone who is addicted ends up being violent. Some of the people will end up disrupting the social environment, so social wellness is really important.

“On financial wellness; when someone is addicted, they will not think of the other important things in life but will just be thinking of buying drugs or substances; some people end up stealing things at the house so that they sustain the habit.

“So drugs and other substances are ruining quite a lot of things in our society so let’s join hands to fight this because it is now rampant,” said Manyadza.

The CONNECT Wellness Day was attended by several service providers much to the appreciation of members of the public who attended.

Government should priotise women in mining

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

The government has been called to prioritise women in mining as they have been for a long time left out to benefit from the country’s natural resources and they are also disproportionately affected as a result of the operations.

Speaking at a recent Economic Justice for Women Project, stakeholder engagement meeting in Harare, Fidelis Simbarashe Musona, Monitoring and Evaluation Lead at Centre for Natural Resource Governance said all attempts to empower women in mining should be deliberate.

Musona said it was important because women are most affected than their male counterparts.

“The recognition of artisanal and small-scale miners is a significant development as there are numerous women-mining groups, supported by different donors, banks etc.

“This will increase women’s participation in mining.

”There is a need for the government to demonstrate an intentional attempt to position women to benefit from mining in the Mines and Minerals Act and in mining generally.

“Going forward, we need to put our heads together and increase advocacy into gender and extractives to ensure increased intentional drives for women in mining.

”The government needs to be persuaded to prioritise women in mining,” said Musona.

He added that there was need for serious collaborations so as to achieve this with the amalgamation of empowering acts of Parliament, national policies like the Gender Policy, the Constitution in its gendered dimension.

Musona added: “Ensuring equal participation in decision-making on the extractive sector is critical to addressing inequalities and ensuring that the sector is managed in the interest of all citizens.

”Through the Ministry of Women Affairs, Gender Commission, provisions should be made to incentivize and support the participation of women-owned or women-led small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the mining value chain.

“This could involve set-asides, preferential procurement policies, and access to financing and business development support.

”Provisions could be made to support the training and skills development of women in technical, operational, and managerial roles within the mining sector.

“This could involve partnering with educational institutions and vocational training centers to create tailored programs.”

Musona also further stressed that the full social benefit of resources development can only be realised if women and girls are able to participate as fully as males in all aspects of resources activity and consequent economic development and social progress.

He said this could only be possible if the principles of gender equality are embedded within the Mines and Minerals Act, supporting policies and practices.

Musona also revealed that this was necessary because “women are carrying the yoke or burden of mining and mining related engagements in the communities.”

”Implied is the fact that, the Mines and Minerals bill in Zimbabwe has left women worse off than before.

”Limited women access to land, limited access to resources- patriarchy.

“Men have most access to the benefits, which consist primarily of employment and income, while women and the families they care for are more vulnerable to the risks created by extractive industries, which consist of mostly harmful social and environmental impacts.

”The loss of land and waters that they rely upon to grow food for their families when they are forced to move by an extractives project will typically have a greater impact upon the women of a community, as they frequently take the greater responsibility for subsistence farming,” he added.

Margaret Mutsamvi, EJWP Director said they had “walked quite a journey documenting through research papers and stories and experiences of young women in a series of documentaries and as a strategy, has introduced these #SheConnects platforms for a direct engagement between young women affected by mining investments and initiatives and critical duty bearers such as legislature, ministries such as Ministry of Women Affairs, Small and Medium Enterprises and Community Development, Ministry of Youth, Ministry of Mines, the Zimbabwe Gender Commission and respective civil society organizations.

“The aim is ensuring that such platforms map a practical way/steps forward in addressing emerging problems that are limiting the young women’s access to full socio-economic opportunities in respective host communities.”

Young women’s access to socio-economic opportunities limited

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

There’s need to address problems which limit women’s access to social-economic opportunities, so that they realise their full potential; Director for Economic Justice for Women Project (EJWP), Margaret Mutsamvi has said.

Mutsamvi revealed this on Tuesday during her organization’s stakeholder engagement meeting in Harare.

The meeting which was supported by the Southern Africa Trust, also sought to strengthen the voices and agency of young women in advocating for a just energy transition and a gender-responsive Mines and Minerals Policy, as the bill is still at the Attorney General’s Office.

During the meeting, a documentary detailing the stories of young women living in mining communities of Hwange, Chimanimani and Goromonzi was premiered, to identify their key challenges and more importantly amplify their voice in policy and strategy.

“The main objective of the stakeholder engagement meeting was to facilitate a dialoguing platform between critical stakeholders and young women living in mining communities to ensure that the young women directly share their stories and experiences with duty bearers for redress.

“EJWP has walked quite a journey documenting through research papers and stories and experiences of young women in a series of documentaries and as a strategy, has introduced these #SheConnects platforms for a direct engagement between young women affected by mining investments and initiatives and critical duty bearers such as legislature, ministries such as Ministry of Women Affairs, Small and Medium Enterprises and Community Development, Ministry of Youth, Ministry of Mines, the Zimbabwe Gender Commission and respective civil society organizations.

She also revealed that in 2019, they conducted a research which sought to look at the intersection between the extractivism, tax justice and young women.

“This is still part of documenting young women’s stories so that we can understand them more. Sometimes we feel that we are ready to tackle issues and we know that in mining communities, there are child marriages and all those things but we preferred to continue documenting, to go to the stories, listen to the voices, before we can jump on to say the major challenge is this and how we can deal with this.

“So we are still on the journey of documenting women’s stories and the documentary is part of feeding in and adding onto the research paper that we did.

“So the project that has facilitated the continued documentation of these stories was supported by the Southern Africa Trust,” she added.

EJWP is a young women-focused, non-profit organization dedicated to addressing gender inequalities through strengthening women’s active participation in the economy at all levels.

The key principle underlying EJWP’s work is ‘making economies work for women’ informed by the need to reduce the structural causes of poverty and vulnerabilities among young women.

Soccer to fight drug and substance abuse

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

During the Covid-19 lockdown, a lot of mental health cases were left unchecked, as the effects of being idle had its toll on many people, especially the youths.

Unfortunately some youths found comfort in drug and substance abuse, leading to various tales and to avoid such risks, a football team was established in Budiriro.

In an interview with this reporter, Bunders FC Secretary General Isaac Tapfumaneyi, revealed that the team was established in the Covid lockdown period in March 2020 by Mr Kujinga.

“The name of the team was inspired by the Bundesliga and our objectives when we started were plenty but the main ones were to alleviate the risk of drug and substance abuse, to empower young talented boys to excel.

“So basically Bunders FC becomes a springboard for these guys as it gives them a platform to showcase their talents.

“And also to give entertainment to the community when playing friendly matches, to improve the basic healthy lifestyles of young people through sport and to foster a spirit of team work and sportsmanship in the young guys,” said Tapfumaneyi, popularly known as Gwaze.

Gwaze further revealed that on the course of their journey, their aim was to at least have players playing in the various soccer divisions in the country, a fete the have managed to achieve.

“The journey has been not been an easy one especially from the beginning.

“However the establishment of an Area Zone in Budiriro has helped us to reach our goals. If I can single out some of our guys are playing in Division 1 and 2.

“We also have the talented Chris Mukambira who was part of the boys when we started, is now playing for Bikita Minerals.

“The impact and influence has been huge and even if you come to any one of our matches, you will notice how Bunders has become a darling of the community as people spare their precious time to come and witness our boys playing.

“It is not only about soccer but we have mentored some of the boys to be business professionals as well.

“We have guys in the engineering field and some entrepreneurs as well,” added Gwaze.

He added that this is no longer a project, but has since become culture or religion.

“We have left a template that when other people come, there will continue with our way of style.

“We have won many accolades in our area zone and we are the team to beat.

“And like everyone else, we do face challenges financially, we are on a shoe string budget that is financed by the executives and some players who are working.

“The team also faces the risk of sprouting social soccer leagues and boozers who lure our players to play for them in return of small tokens.

“Be that as it may, we have managed to survive over the years and I owe the success hugely to passion of seeing the team going,” he added.

Meanwhile Bunders FC which is top of the log, will be playing Wonderers FC in Budiriro.

Need for more STIs point of care tests

**Anna Machiya, National Coordinator for STI Prevention and Condom Distribution in the Ministry of Health and Child Care**

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

There is need for more Sexually Transmitted Illnesses (STIs) point of care tests so as to determine the exact burden of the diseases in the country.
And without reliable data, more STIs continue to spread as the majority of them are asymptomatic.
This was revealed by Anna Machiya, the National Coordinator for STI Prevention and Condom Distribution in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, at a recent Media Science Café organised by the Health Communicators Forum.
“We also need to have some surveillance that maybe gives us an indication as to how big the problem of STIs in the country is, and without data on surveillance, on the magnitude of STIs it is very very difficult to really know what is happening.
“What we see now are those that become sick and present themselves at our facilities and these are the STIs that we are able to capture.
“So these ones that are asymptomatic continue to spread, and this is one reason that also fuels the spread of STIs.
“So now there is also talk of considering to move from syndromic approach to etiological approach, where we also use the specific laboratory tests to identify these STIs but the cost of doing such tests is quite high.
“So as more cheaper point of care tests are available on the market, the better it will be for us to also be able to screen,” said Machiya.
She added: “right now we have point of care test for syphilis and we are actually providing that to clients or to people that present with an STI, so we test for HIV and we test for syphilis.”
It is said syndromic approach focuses on the diagnosis and management of a specific set of symptoms or a syndrome, without necessarily identifying the underlying cause.
As for the etiological approach, it seeks to identify the underlying cause or origin of a disease, or symptom. It focuses on understanding the root cause, mechanism or pathophysiology.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 1 million curable STIs are acquired every day worldwide in people 15-49 years old, the majority of which are asymptomatic.
WHO further adds that in 2020 there were an estimated 374 million new infections in people 15-49 years with 1-4 curable STIs: chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and trichomoniasis.
Machiya added that the main aims of STI control are to prevent the development of diseases, complications and sequelae, to interrupt the transmission of sexually acquired infections and to reduce the risk of HIV infection. She stressed that STIs are avoidable, treatable and curable hence early treatment is essential.
“For prevention, we should take note of social and cultural determinants, promote safer sexual behaviour (abstinence, delayed sexual debut and promote use of condoms for penetrative sexual acts,” added Machiya.

MCAZ seeks to regulate cosmetics

BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA

The Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ) has announced plans to introduce a comprehensive regulatory framework for cosmetic products sold within the country, in a move aimed at safeguarding consumer health and enhancing product quality.

In a statement issued by Richard Rukwata Director General, the regulations, known as Medicines and Allied Substances Control (Cosmetics) Regulations seek to address growing concerns over the proliferation of sub-standard, falsified, and potentially harmful cosmetic products in Zimbabwe. “MCAZ has identified several issues requiring stricter oversight, including the use of harmful ingredients, poor product quality, and lack of traceability.

“Under the proposed regulatory framework, MCAZ will establish guidelines for defining, registering, labelling and testing cosmetic products.

“Manufacturers, importers, and distributors will be required to comply with stringent safety and quality standards, submit detailed product information for evaluation, and adhere to proper labelling and marketing practices.

“The Authority has lined up several stakeholder engagement meetings to solicit input from various stakeholders to finalize these draft regulations.

“This collaborative approach aims to ensure the final framework addresses the needs and concerns of both the industry and consumers effectively,” said Rukwata.

He added: “the primary goal is to protect public health and well-being of Zimbabwean consumers in line with the mandate of the Authority and international best practices. By regulating the cosmetics sector, the aim is to restore confidence in the market, promote product innovation, and empower people to make informed choices about the products they use on their skin and bodies.

“The proposed cosmetics regulations are expected to be implemented soon, subject to the necessary legislative and administrative processes.

“MCAZ encourages all stakeholders, including manufacturers, importers, retailers, and consumers, to stay informed and engage with the Authority during this critical process, and members of the public are urged to take precautionary measures in using some of these cosmetics.”

Barriers to women’s participation in politics and activism

BY LINDA TSUNGIRIRAI MASARIRA

Zimbabwean women face numerous challenges that hinder their participation in politics and activism. These obstacles are deeply rooted in cultural, religious, and traditional beliefs that perpetuate gender inequality.

One major issue is the expectation that women should prioritize caregiving, household chores, and family duties over political engagement. This limits their time, energy, and opportunities for political involvement. Additionally, women are often looked down upon, and their capabilities are underestimated, leading to a lack of confidence and self-belief.

Religious sects, such as the Apostolic Church, restrict women’s leadership roles, perpetuating gender inequality. Similarly, some churches, like the SDA, do not allow women to become official pastors. These religious beliefs perpetuate gender stereotypes, confining women to submissive and nurturing roles.

Cultural beliefs and traditional practices also hinder women’s political participation. For instance, women are expected to prioritize family and domestic duties, and those who choose to pursue political careers are often viewed as neglecting their responsibilities. Moreover, women are often excluded from decision-making processes and leadership positions, perpetuating male dominance.

Education is also a significant barrier. In some families, boys are prioritized over girls, limiting women’s access to education and opportunities for political engagement.

The notion that women should submit to men, especially in customary marriages, perpetuates gender inequality. This belief is often reinforced by churches and cultural practices, restricting women’s autonomy and agency.

To address these challenges, Zimbabwe needs to implement policies and programs that promote gender equality, challenge harmful gender stereotypes, and support women’s political participation and activism. This includes education and awareness-raising initiatives, quota systems, and mentorship programs.

By addressing these barriers, Zimbabwe can empower women to take on leadership roles, participate in politics, and contribute to the country’s development. It is essential to recognize the value of women’s participation in shaping a more inclusive and equitable society.

ActionForEquality #TimeIsNow

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