Empowering rural women top priority, says Wina
VICE president, Inonge Wina says Zambia is doing the best in empowering women especially those in rural areas.
Ms Wina has however stated that the country was ready to share the best experiences with other countries in the world in tackling the challenges of achieving gender equality particularly for women in rural communities.
The Vice president arrived in New York on Friday for the 62nd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), which officially opens today and called on women across the globe to begin speaking with one voice on matters of gender equality.
She said Zambia was on a clear path to achieving gender equality and that given time, there was much more that the country would be able to address in resolving gender imbalances at all levels.
Ms Wina said this after she was briefed on the 62nd CSW by Zambia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN) Lazarous Kapambwe.
This year's CSW theme is "Challenges and opportunities in achieving gender equality and the empowerment of rural women and girls"
“We look forward to actively participate at various levels in the 62nd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women. Zambia is doing the best in our efforts of empowering women, especially women in rural areas.
“Our country is on the right path and our hope is that we are going to learn and share experiences with other UN Member States on how we can effectively tackle the challenges women face to achieve gender equality,” Ms Wina said.
She stated that Government had put in place policies and programmes that support the empowerment of women in a number of economic sectors such as agriculture, Livestock and Gender.
Ms Wina said the CSW would be interesting as Zambia would be able to learn from other countries how they are working to change the status of women in rural areas.
The Vice-President is accompanied to New York by Minister of Community Development and Social Welfare, Emerine Kabanshi.
And His Excellency, Ambassador Kapambwe informed Ms Wina that Zambia was being represented at the CSW at the highest level and that Africa would be looking to the leadership of Zambia’s first female Vice-President.
The Ambassador said Zambia was one of the few countries at the CSW to be represented with the Vice-President and that Africa would therefore be looking at the Vice-President Wina to project the interest of African countries. This is according to a statement made available to Daily Nation by First Secretary for the permanent mission of Zambia to the United Nations Wallen Simwaka.