Men celebrate women
WOMEN are slowly but surely making their way to top positions in different fields.
In the field of law and justice we have ladies who have raised the country’s flag high by representing other women in legal issues, for example Beatrice Mtetwa who is an internationally-recognised lawyer and award-winner of the International Women of Courage Award. We have other female lawyers in Bulawayo like Thandekile Ngwenya, Tariro Takuva and Marygold Sibanda who have helped in enlightening women on their legal rights around the city.
We enjoy the good fortune of having such role models in our midst. You may remember that in honour of the International Women’s Day (IWD) 2019, we celebrated inspirational females everywhere by showcasing some awesome, yet totally relatable, career stories from ladies who set the bar high for their male counterparts as the theme was “Think equal, build smart, innovate for change”.
We learned loads, from the importance of staying curious, to putting in the ‘‘hard yard’’ and having the courage to demand what we deserve. Fast-forward to IWD 2020 with the theme — “I am Generation Equality”, Realising Women’s Rights. In the spirit of #EachforEqual, we spoke with some of our influential male leaders in Bulawayo about what International Women’s Day or women’s month means for them.
We (gently) insisted they share with us a little about who their female role models are, and what the inspirational women in their personal and professional spheres have brought to their lives and they did not disappoint.
The founder of TechVillage and entrepreneur, Mr Takunda Chingonzoh said he believes that issues around women empowerment and inclusivity are not limited to a particular day or month.
“It is a continuous conversation and it’s an area where I have chosen to do work and get an understanding because I am man. It is good that we have particular day to celebrate women but I feel it should be done every day.”
He said there are a lot of conversations that need to be heard that are rooted in our current situation.
“We have to talk about rights in our African context. It is when we contextualise these rights when we will have progress, otherwise we will have people talk about equal access and opportunity but the exact same people are the ones steeped in patriarchal society which does not share equitable access. We need to contextualise the issue of equity so that we see the change in society,” said Mr Chingonzoh.
He also said the media can assist in highlighting issues affecting women and create spaces where we can debate about them and come up with solutions. “I believe more can be done by the media because its role is to educate and inform the society. It plays a big role in the evolution of culture and tradition. The new media should play a role in creating safer spaces of expression for women based on our African context,” said Mr Chingonzoh.
He works in a male- dominated industry however, they have tried to encourage more women participation. “We try to promote them as a way of motivating young girls to be self empowered. As business owners we need to address the issues of why women have challenges in thriving business. These conversations are important so that men understand these challenges because we have not faced similar challenges. As men we have normalised some challenges faced by women. In my company we have had conversations of equal pay.
“For example we have a man and woman earning the same pay, but we should consider that women have extra costs which shouldn’t be an additional cost because its nature. It’s a cost that they cannot choose to incur because it is their biological makeup. Therefore, as a growing male business owner I give women hygiene allowance that mirrors the real cost of accessing these products. So I am not looking at equality but at equity,” said Mr Chingonzoh.
He said there are women that have defied the norms of society and risen above men.
“My mother is one of the powerful women I know. She is my role model because she rose from being a mere science teacher to being a director at the ministry of ICT. Mum did everything that my dad could do professionally and as a parent. She taught me that there are no specific roles for women or men as I was taught how to clean and cook which is known to be a female’s job,” said Mr Chingonzoh.
In an interview with Zimbabwe Brand Ambassador, Bulawayo best Male Model and Zimbabwe Best Promotional model, Ben Chest said to him women’s month means it’s a time to reflect and celebrate, the most important people in our lives, people with the biggest heart of caring, who fight so many fights of freedom. “The significance of this day is that it helps fight discrimination against women and also it helps them gain power in terms of global development, which is a positive goal even for our daughter’s as they grow up. This year’s theme is a great initiative in the sense that it empowers them to have legal equal rights.
“I believe that all genders can move altogether towards achieving women rights through spreading the awareness and even have men advocating for women just like I’m doing right now and above all by celebrating our own mothers and sisters in our homes. It all starts at home,” said Mr Chest.
Padare/Enkundleni Men’s forum on gender, Programmes Officer, Mr Ziphongezipho Ndebele said their organisation educates men on the importance of women rights and they are keen in helping women to be empowered.