Feminists For Choice

As the year ends, Africa looks forward towards the next 10 years. Recently, the assembly of the African Union (AU) declared 2010-2020 will be African Women Decade. This is a call on African member states and other leadership bodies to participate and implement programs for women.

 Some significant gains have been made in Africa regarding women’s equality. When you look at women’s involvement in government it seems like they are ahead of even the United States in terms of power sharing between the sexes.

 Liberia inaugurated Africa’s first female president in 2006. Her Excellency Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was a leader in her country’s peace movement. She defeated a soccer star with nearly 60% of the vote.

 In other African nations women make up a significant part of their governments. Rwanda leads all nations in this regard with 48.8% of its parliament being women. Other African nations with high percentages of women in government include Mozambique at 34.8%, South Africa at 32.8% and Tanzania at 30.4%. It makes our government seem quite inadequate on the gender equity frontlines. In the U.S. congress women only hold 17% of the seats.

 However, there are still a lot of issues that need to be addressed for African women. Africa is on track to see minimal gender disparity in primary education; however secondary education is another story. Lack of access to education is a major factor in reproductive health. Women that achieve more years of education are more likely to have fewer children and wait later in life to start having a family.

 Africa also sees a disproportionally high maternal mortality rate. This is in part due to a lack of access to medical care and proper nutrition. Criminalization of abortion and cultural standards on birth control also contribute to this problem.

 Violence against women, conflict, poverty, and HIV/AIDS still need to be eradicated in order to ensure women in Africa (and around the world) are able to live up to their full potential. Many leaders and NGOs are trying to accomplish these goals and empower women. Just recently, UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women Announced grants of US$10.5 Million will be given to 13 Projects in 18 Countries.

 This year marked thirty years after The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was adopted by the UN General Assembly. Unfortunately, the United States still hasn’t ratified it!

It is my hope that 2010-2020 will produce an increase in gender equity everywhere.