ERA OF SPECIAL SEATS FOR WOMEN TO END

Burundi’s conflict mediator Mohamed Rukara has called on women in the country and across the continent, to be proactive and take initiative to access and acquire better education if they are to compete effectively and overcome the many challenges of the globalised world.

Rukara made the call recently in Dar-es-Salaam during a workshop prepared by the International Conference on the Great Lake Region to discuss the role of religious leaders in maintaining sustainable peace and social cohesion in Tanzania.

Rwanda’s parliament has the worlds highest female representatives with more than half (56.6 percentages) of its parliament been women and speaking to that effect, Rukara asserted that the era of ‘special seats’ for women in the parliament has to end and rather embrace equal representation by merit of votes.

It is to be noted that Tanzania has about 36 percent female representation in its parliament while Burundi has 30.5 percent and neighboring Uganda 35 percent and Kenya lags behind with only 9.8 percent.

He also addressed the matter of child labour which is, prevalent in the country calling an immediate end to the practice and for laws to enforce the will. Child labour is common in Tanzania with millions working. It is more common with girls rather than boys and they are commonly employed as domestic servants, sometimes by force through some family arrangement.

This despite the fact that, Tanzania’s labour laws are compiled in the extensive Employment and Labour Relations Act of 2004 and covers almost all aspects of labor law and establishes a regulatory authority The act has several broad regulations, including a prohibition against child labour (up to age 14) and forced labour.

Given that in a country of well over 45m and where the youth make up over 47 percentage of the population it is imperative that they are enabled to grow in caring healthy environments that help them be creative, open to change ,energetic and resourceful.