Women’s Day Celebration in Buea:

Fako Women Swear Oath to Send their Children to School

By Boris Esono in Buea

Women of the arm forces communing with their female counterparts of other services

Women in the South west have been tasked not to relent their efforts in the fight against discrimination on women and to accept leadership positions when they are given. They were also called upon to register and vote so that they can bring the much change they crave for.

            These were some of the echoes that came out of Buea March 8, 2018 as women in Buea and across the country joined the rest of their counterparts to celebrate the 33rde edition of the international day of the woman.

According to the regional delegate of women’s empowerment and the family, Moffah Judith Lyengu Luma, gone are the days when women and girls were considered suitable only for child bearing, home keeping and whose place was in the kitchen.

            “Today things have turned around and women are in some male dominated profession. They are equally acknowledged as developmental partners who contribute significantly to the development of their nation”.

            One area in which women faces discrimination to the regional delegate is that of non-recognition of their potentials and great achievement.

            “Hardly does the community promote news of excellent performances of women. The most projected information is when they are caught in negative actions. They are equally violated through various practices such as forced and early marriages, rape, incest, female genital mutilation and others”.

            She further encouraged all her fellow women to register and vote during the upcoming elections.

            “My humble plea is that everyone in their own corner should develop gender eyes and offer equal opportunities to both men and women in every sphere of life, to close the gender gap and development will be ours”.

A high point of the celebration was the award of prizes to women who have distinguished themselves in various domains. Mercy Wangyia was voted the 2018 woman of the year while 61 year-old Eposi Comfort was also given a prize for passing the GCE A Level in flying colours.

To Mercy Wongyia women should know themselves and do various tasks assigned to them well and not to listen to what other persons are talking about you. “If you sit there without knowing yourself, you won’t know what other persons are doing”.

            To Governor Okalia Bilai, the success in bringing gender equality requires the women themselves in order to speed up sustainable development.

            The Governor used the platform to remind the women of the role educating a woman can be and he says education is the future of female recognition.

            “Education o the girl child and women includes the biggest success in the fight against violence as she can stand up and fight unlike an uneducated woman”.

            Women were then called upon by the Governor to take an oath indicating that they will continue to send their children to school.

            In 1910 in Copenhagen, Denmark, the 8th of March was chosen as the day to advance voting rights and institute equal remuneration for both male and female workers. It was finally instituted by the UN General Assembly in 1977 and Cameroon commemorated it for the first time in 1985.

            Gender based discrimination has a negative impact on peace, social justice and generally retards the development of any nation. If Cameroon must emerge by 2035 and if the 2030 agenda of the sustainable development goals notably goal number 5, which is that of ensuring gender equality and women’s empowerment, efforts must be doubled and concrete action taken by all stakeholders, religious, traditional, civil society and the government to improve on the status of women.