WINDHOEK – Namibia scooped three awards at the 2014 SADC Regional Gender Summit that took place in Johannesburg, South Africa last week.
The Namibian delegation that submitted eight entries was led by, Victor Shipoh a director in the ministry. Shipoh received an award as the winner in the government category through a presentation on “Gender Mainstreaming in Namibia.” He said once again the country has proven to be champions and drivers of change in gender mainstreaming, which is a prerequisite for achieving gender equality. This year summit was held under the theme – ‘50/50 by 2015 and a stronger post- 2015 agenda’. The conference brought together 350 delegates, gender activist, drivers of change, media, government and faith-based organisations from around the southern African region, to make a concerted push for gender equality in the countdown to 2015. The summit was hosted by Gender Links in-conjunction with the South Africa Protocol Alliance. It featured 1961 participants (1345 women and 616 men), brought together 973 entries from across the region, of which 20 were high level delegates from across SADC. Some 185 winners (53 men and 132 women) from the district and national summits competed at regional level. During the summit, gender focal persons from local authorities who won in national competitions made presentations on how they are mainstreaming gender in service delivery.
The event rewarded gender champions and also served as a platform to call on governments to step up the pace to fulfill the 28 targets of the SADC Gender Protocol before the 2015 deadline. It also placed special emphasis on the 50/50 campaign and the need for stronger post-2015 gender equality instruments.
ktjitemisa@newera.com.na
By Kuzeeko Tjitemisa