AU to Launch ‘What African Women Want’ Campaign

As the world marks the 2022 International Women’s Day (IWD), the African Union (AU) has announced plans to launch the ‘What African Women Want’ campaign.

The project, Development Diaries understands, aims to rally more action to the commitments on gender equality and women’s empowerment.

The 2022 IWD, which is themed ‘Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow’, is in recognition and celebration of the women and girls who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation and response.

‘In a push to make gender issues more visible, the “What African Women Want” campaign seeks to highlight key issues still faced by women in their pursuit of parity and equity and provides actionable recommendations to address the existing and emerging challenges’, the AU said in a statement.

‘The campaign aligns to aspiration six of Agenda 2063 which advocates for “An Africa, whose development is people-driven, relying on the potential of African people, especially its women and youth, and caring for children”‘.

Africa, it is understood, has progressive normative frameworks that guarantee gender equality in social, economic and political affairs.

According to the AU, through years of activism and legal reforms, many countries are seeing progress in terms of women’s rights and status in societies.

However, the continent still lags behind in realising the goals set in various continental legal frameworks including the African Charter on the Rights of Women in Africa.

The AU noted that the campaign is an opportunity for people across the continent and in the diaspora to engage and share success stories, testimonials or best practices on what has worked and projects that are advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment.

‘Such contributions can be shared as an article or video and all materials will be vetted to establish suitability for posting on AU platforms’, the statement read.

The campaign also seeks to end child marriages, gender violence and harmful traditional practices; eradicate preventable maternal mortality, HIV and AIDS and ensure affordable, accessible, youth friendly sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights services.

Child marriages, female genital mutilation (FGM) are among the challenges that face many girls in Africa.

For example, in Tanzania’s Maasai communities in Arusha, a great number of girls are affected by these harmful traditional practices which hinder them from achieving their academic dreams.

Development partners, both at the national and local levels, have been taking various steps to ensure communities are aware of the oppressive harmful practices in Africa.

Photo source: Michael Fleshman

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