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MAPUTO. – Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on Wednesday declared that gender equity and the empowerment of women are priorities for his government, as shown by the policies and strategies under implementation in the country.

He was speaking at a ceremony where Mozambique formally joined the United Nations’ “HeForShe” campaign. This is a solidarity campaign for the advancement of gender equality which seeks to involve men and boys as agents of change to promote the rights of women and girls.

“Mozambique has a long political tradition of stressing gender equality and women’s empowerment”, said President Nyusi. As a government, we are complying with the obligation of promoting equal opportunities among men and women through a legal framework that formalises gender equality”, said President Nyusi.

“Gender equity and the empowerment of women necessarily involve guaranteeing that girls have access to school and remain there. It involves fighting against child marriage”, stressed the President. “And we can guarantee that we are part of this struggle”.

President Nyusi declared that men and boys must become part of the movement to promote women’s rights as interested parties in ensuring that gender equality can become a reality for everyone in Mozambique.

“By involving men and boys in order to eradicate inequalities and the violence against women and girls, we shall be creating a generation that is increasingly aware of the challenges of gender equality, and who are at the same time relevant actors in this struggle, which is a struggle for everybody”, he said.

Gender equality is not just a problem for women, warned President Nyusi. It is a question of human rights that affects everyone, “and the time has come to recognise that the empowerment of women and girls is fundamental for inclusive economic growth, cohesion and social justice”.

In Mozambique the “HeForShe” campaign is led by UN Women in partnership with the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare, and focuses on the elimination of violence against women and girls. – AIM