eBusiness Weekly
Dear future President
I am writing this letter to inform you that for the first time in my life I registered to vote, and I am eagerly awaiting for July 2018 to exercise my right.
As a young woman, I want leadership that recognises the role of women in society, a Government that promotes the empowerment of women and girls to ensure they reach their full potential.
Globally, women have fewer opportunities to economic and political participation, have less access to basic and higher education than their male counterparts. In Zimbabwe women make up 53 percent of the total population yet still lag behind their male counterparts. As a voter, I will look to a Government that will empower my sisters, mothers, aunts, nieces and of course myself.
Education is key not only in Zimbabwe, but the world over. Although Zimbabwe is highly rated in literacy rankings in the region, with progress made towards achieving gender parity, girls still make up a higher percentage of out-of-school children than boys.
This is rampant in rural areas and other remote parts of the country because of religion, traditions and other societal norms and values such as early marriages. Some families also rely on girls and women for household labor and therefore do not allow them to go to school and work.
I want a Government that does not condone a culture, by parents, gurdians and leaders, of preventing young girls from accessing education. I am also looking forward to a Government that takes punitive measures against perpetrators of child marriages or rape.
Another area of focus I will look to decide where a place my voting is women’s economic and political empowerment. According to Peace Corps, women own only 1 percent of the world’s wealth despite constituting more than 50 percent of the global population.
In some parts of Zimbabwe, women still lack rights to own land or to inherit property, access credit, earn income and face discrimination in the workplace. In most levels, starting from the family level to national level, women are still under-represented as decision makers.
As a voter, I want a government that guarantees the rights of women and increase their political participation, which is crucial in achieving gender equality and equity.
I want a leadership that will look at the laws of inheritance and ensures they do not disadvantage women in marriages or at the end of marriages by death or divorce.
As a woman I want to be able to access funding from the bank in the same manner my brother does.
I also want a Government that understands the biology of women and how that disadvantages them in the workplace, at school, and everywhere.
I support the motion that Government should provide sanitary towels for free in schools and colleges, the same way, if not more than condoms are, because menstruation is not a choice unlike sex.
Women in Zimbabwe still also have limited access to prenatal and infant care which results in complications during pregnancy and at childbirth.
As a woman, naturally, I will vote for leadership that takes this seriously and pledges to even provide crucial information on women’s health. No woman should lose life while giving life.
After all is said and done, I want a leadership that will create a conducive environment for economic growth and job creation not only for women, but everyone qualified enough.
Enacy
Mapakame
