Members of the Rwandan community in different countries in West Africa have committed to reinforcing the dialogue related to gender equity within their families so as to help rally the youth on the subject.

Last weekend, the Embassy of Rwanda in Senegal hosted a virtual event bringing together Rwandans and friends of Rwanda living in Senegal, Mali, Cabo Verde, Guinea Bissau and The Gambia to celebrate International Women’s Day.

Globally, the day is celebrated on March 8.

The Rwandan envoy to Senegal, Jean Pierre Karabaranga, together with participants discussed this year’s national women’s day theme “Women, be at the forefront in Covid-19 World”.

The discussions revolved around the level of women in self-empowerment, the role of women in development of the country, the challenges encountered by women or young girls in daily life.

They also reflected on the message that President Paul Kagame gave on the day, in which he urged Rwandans not to view gender equality as a solely a women issue.

Different speakers at the event recognized and encouraged the increasing participation of women in various sectors in Rwanda like education, health, economy, leadership, security and justice.

Karabaranga reiterated that the current development in Rwanda can only be attributed to the inclusive policy that made women part of the journey.

“Until 1994, a woman or a young girl were not respected in their families and at the national level. Things only started to improve after the genocide against Tutsi in 1994,” Karabaranga said.

Guest speakers at the event included Rose Rwabuhihi, the Chief Gender Monitor, Fatou Aminata Lo the UN-Women representative in Rwanda and Fidel Rutayisire, the Executive Director of RWAMREC, a civil society organisation in Rwanda, among others.