Women in Bulawayo north district of
Bulawayo metropolitan province have decried some cultural practices in Zimbabwe
that have relegated women and girls to the periphery of society.
The women, who had gathered at
Montgomery Hall in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe for a workshop facilitated by the
Creative Centre for Communication and Development, said women and girls
continue to be side-lined on issues such as inheritance for the mere reason
that they are women. They said such challenges have impoverished women and
further exposed them to other challenges such as HIV/AIDS and sexual abuse and
exploitation.
To alleviate the daily challenges
facing women and girls, the Creative Centre for Communication and Development
convened the one-day workshop to empower women and girls with knowledge and
information about their rights, particularly on issues such as HIV, inheritance
and reproductive health rights. The workshop ran under the theme: Becoming a woman of influence.
The workshop, which was attended by 115
grassroots women and adolescent girls sought to build women’s capacity to
create, access, utilise and share information and knowledge that enables them
to achieve their full potential in promoting their sustainable development and
improving their quality of life premised on the purposes and principles of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The workshop was also attended by
several other civil society organisations that included Self Help Development
Foundation, Hope for a child in Christ, Susceptible Iyanai Chinoda OVC Care,
Heal Makokoba Trust and Emthonjeni Women’s Forum.
