Ruth Butaumocho Gender Forum
Saturday was a remarkable day in Zimbabwe’s calendar where millions of people across the political divide joined hands to celebrate Independence Day. You could not help but marvel at the spirit of unity exhibited as people wined and danced in their different social circles to celebrate Zimbabwe’s attainment of independence, which came about as a result of a protracted liberation struggle.

As I partook in the festivities that took place at the National Sports Stadium, I reflected on the achievements the country has made, the challenges we are facing as a nation and the solutions to our myriad challenges.

It also dawned on me that the celebrations should not be a one-day event, but should be an all year round exercise that should afford each one of us to celebrate the good in each sector while highlighting positive spin-offs that Independence brought to our doorsteps.

One of the positive spin-offs of Independence has been the total emancipation of women, something thousands of black women in Rhodesia never dreamt of attaining in their lifetime

It is a result of independence that a good percentage of women are now running business empires, have become employers of repute, are sitting in big boardrooms chairing powerful meetings, while others are flying high in sectors that were once male-dominated.

It is within that context that we are re-branding this column to share success stories, trials and tribulations of women in different social circles in recognition of the contributions they have towards women empowerment and gender equality in Zimbabwe.

In their own words, space and time, women will have an opportunity to share their stories, on how they have defied the odds and continue to break the glass ceilings by venturing into areas once considered to be male-dominated.

Through their inspirational stories, women will also highlight the challenges they faced, their moments of despair and hopes they hold for millions of the Zimbabwe female populace, who want to achieve as much, but have no formula.

Women now have a bigger role to play than before, and their role in the economic and political matrix of this country cannot be ignored.

It started before independence, where women played an instrumental role in the liberation struggle both on the war front and in keeping homes intact, while their husbands, fathers and uncles fought against the colonial regime.

When Zimbabwe attained independence, women’s ascendancy in politics, social and economic era, did not happen overnight, but was a result of sheer hard work.

Inspired by the need to succeed, hundreds of women with the assistance of Government embraced all forms of affirmative and other empowerment policies to improve their economic, social and political status. They have broken the barriers and have achieved phenomenal success in their areas of specialisation, whether it’s in business, health, education, aviation and politics. But they will attest that it has not been easy.

It has been a gradual transition which has been riddled with problems, bottle neck systems and in some instances downright discrimination, resulting in women falling by the wayside.

Apart from failing to get cheap finances from banks, and failure to broker mega deals, failure by society to accept that women are as good as men, has also been one of the challenges snail-pacing women’s total emancipation. The pull her down syndrome has also resulted in women slowly moving to the top.

This is despite the fact that they are game changers, with a trailblazing history of success.

At the nadir of Zimbabwe’s economic woes around 2007, women did not sit on their laurels, but contributed significantly to the country’s economy by engaging in cross border trading as well as exporting labour in neighbouring countries like Botswana, Mozambique and South Africa. Even the woman in the village and the townships did not just sit and moan about her problems.

She defied all the odds to put food on the table for the family.

Yes, the woman who crocheted all night long, sold the doilies in neighbouring countries or became the first to own a small but modest machine to process peanut butter, much to the awe of the whole village.

She sounds familiar, does she not?

Her success, trials and tribulations are worth sharing with the whole nation on this forum.

I am awed and inspired by the progress and lasting contributions women have made throughout the past few centuries, including their eagerness to explore unknown territories just to put food on the table.

They have also eagerly embraced a number of Government empowerment policies such as the Broad Based Women’s Economic Empowerment Framework that has helped women gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Yes, we have shared the narratives of the likes of Divine Ndlukula, Grace Muradzikwa, Dr Primrose Kurasha and Professor Hope Sadza, but a lot more narratives of women remain unknown. So we will be tracking down narratives of successful women who have contributed significantly to the social, political and economic dynamics of this country in their own way and at their different paces.

For feedback: [email protected] or whatsapp 0773 026 189 if you know any phenomenal woman.

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