An appraisal of gender-focused non-governmental organizations as agents of women empowerment and gender equality in Zimbabwe : A case of Harare City
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Date
2017-09
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University of Fort Hare
Abstract
It is the realization that women around the globe are alienated in terms of accessing resources and opportunities essential for their holistic development that has necessitated the crafting of the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) Number 3 by the United Nations as well as other relevant gender instruments such as the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Number 5. Zimbabwe, the focal country of the current study is not immune to the prevalence of gender inequality as it is a signatory to both commitments. Due to the overwhelming and arduous nature of the task, the government of Zimbabwe has long borrowed a hand from developmental agents such as Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and other philanthropic organizations. Apart from NGOs' different visions and missions, a National Gender Policy (NGP) has also been put in place as a benchmark and a guideline to the eradication of gender disparities in Zimbabwe. It is against this background that this research has been undertaken in order to appraise gender-focused NGOs in Harare city on their interventions to promote women empowerment and gender equality in Zimbabwe. This broad aim was broken into four objectives: to investigate the gender issues prevalent in Harare; to find out how women NGOs are fighting such disparities, to discuss perceptions pertaining to NGOs' interventions as well as discussing the challenges faced by these gender
NGOs. In order to achieve this, the utility of the mixed method paradigm was preferred in the current study with the focus group discussion, a key informant method and a mini-survey chosen as data collection techniques. The feminist theory and its concomitant branches together with the political-economy theory were selected as lenses framing the study.
The findingsĀ· revealed that women in Zimbabwe continue to suffer infringement of their rights as social injustice and subjugation continue with a manifestation of gender disparities such as domestic violence, susceptibility to poverty, HIV/AIDS and economic exclusion. The findings further unearthed the emergence of 'pornographic revenge' and the spreading of violence against women in public places. Moreover, women NGOs have been found tilting away from traditional methods of interventions, taking advantage of the advancement in technology and the popularity of the social media. Findings from the current study again discovered that there was little evidence to trace and pin-point the impact of NGOs in promoting women
empowerment and gender equality mainly because of the immeasurability nature of some of the achievements by NGOs. Additionally, research participants opined that
Zimbabwe's political and economic environment, religious and cultural factors appeared to largely thwart the efforts by NGOs thereby compromising the effectiveness of NGOs interventions. Again, the paucity of resources made it almost impossible for them to operate and translate their visions into practical programs and projects. From these findings, it can then be concluded that gender NGOs in Harare lack the necessary resources, support and an enabling environment to adequately annihilate gender disparities for the empowerment of women, and the attainment of gender equality in Zimbabwe. The principles of empowerment for self-reliance as emphasized in Social Work Practice are not adequately implemented for the holistic development of women - the very factors necessary for sustainability. Salient recommendations forwarded include NGOs initiating indigenous ways of fundraising
and shunning the dependency on international donors; putting in place tracking systems or panels that can ensure that policies such as gender-sensitized budgeting are effectively implemented; adopting innovative-advocacy methodologies such as a gender call centre and perhaps a gender TV show; including gender issues in the basic educational curriculums in order to socialize children into gender parity attitudes. Such radical shifts as supported by radical feminists may increase the effectiveness of the interventions being made by women NGOs in Harare.
Description
PhD Thesis
Keywords
Non-governmental organizations, Employee empowerment, Sex discrimination, Equality
Citation
Mafa,I.An appraisal of gender-focused non-governmental organizations as agents of women empowerment and gender equality in Zimbabwe : A case of Harare City.Alice.University of Fort Hare.