WALVIS BAY – The few Namibian women in the maritime sector are paving the way forward for other women to penetrate the male dominated sector.
About 30 women in the maritime industry gathered in Walvis Bay on Wednesday for their first AGM. They discussed the way forward following the establishment of a local wing for the Association of Women in the Maritime Sector in East and Southern Africa (WOMESA) in Namibia. WOMESA was established in 2008 in Kenya and has over 20 member states from both southern and eastern Africa. However, the Namibian wing was only established in 2012. WOMESA was launched under the auspices of the International Maritime Organisation in line with UN millennium goals on gender equity and development. The organisation aims to advocate gender equity, improve women’s access to maritime training and technology and promote their advancement to key decision-making levels in the maritime sector in east and southern Africa. Its other objective is to promote gender-equality by integrating women in the maritime industry through by creating training opportunities.
Speaking at the meeting, the chairperson of WOMESA-Namibia, Heritha Muboya, said the organisation is much more advanced in other countries compared to Namibia, which is still struggling. She pointed out that countries such as Kenya have already made great strides in the maritime industry. “As for us, we have a difficult task. We have to be the vehicle for other women. We should inspire and transform the lives of young women in Namibia. We need to break the barriers and norms and perceptions that this industry is only for men,” she explained. According to her a strategic plan has already been developed to assist women in their quest, mainly focussing on capacity-building, mentorship programmes, resource mobilisation and also to establish smart partnerships with companies in the maritime industry. “Through this we will be encouraging young women to explore and capitalise on career opportunities in the industry. There are so many opportunities that could be explored by our young women and WOMESA is aiming at empowering them through the development of training programmes with re-owned organisations that can be used as stepping stones into the maritime industry by young career-driven females,” Muyoba said. She further explained that one of the key areas they are currently looking at is the promotion of women in the maritime industry to key decision-making positions.
By Eveline de Klerk