Minister Amongi Urges Action on Women’s Rights, Empowerment Ahead of Women’s Day Celebrations

The Minister of Gender, Labour, and Social Development, Hon. Betty Amongi Ongom, has revealed that this year’s International Women’s Day celebrations are scheduled to take place on March 8th, 2024, at Boma Grounds in Katakwi District.

The theme for this year’s celebration is “Accelerating Gender Equality through Women’s Economic Empowerment.”

During her statement to the media on Thursday, Minister Amongi stated the importance of gender equality and women’s economic empowerment in Uganda.

“The government of Uganda considers gender equality and women’s empowerment as critical. It’s the reason Government has put in place different Programmes and Projects aimed at addressing challenges women still face.”

She emphasized the significant demographic advantage of women, who constitute 51.2% of the population and stressed the need to address challenges such as high maternal mortality rates, teenage pregnancies, and intimate partner violence.

“Women constitute Fifty-one percent (51.2%) of the Uganda population… No Woman should die while giving birth. Despite their demographic advantage Women still face numerous challenges.” she stated

Minister Amongi outlined various government interventions aimed at promoting women’s economic empowerment, including programs like the Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme (UWEP), the Social Assistance Grant for Empowerment (SAGE), and initiatives to support Jua-kali enterprises and skilling underprivileged girls.

“The 2020 Master Card Global Index of Women Entrepreneurs indicated that Ugandan women are very enterprising. However, women owned businesses continue to face a number of constraints.” said Amongi

Additionally, she mentioned partnerships with organizations like the World Bank and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to further support women’s economic empowerment aimed at bolstering rural women’s livelihoods and resilience.

The Minister also highlighted legislative amendments to enhance women’s participation in public procurement and secure land rights for women under customary land tenure systems.

Amongi urged all stakeholders to prioritize and invest in women’s economic empowerment, further stating its role in creating a more just, equitable, and prosperous society for all.

“I call upon all stakeholders, including the private sector, civil society organizations, individuals to join the government’s efforts in achieving this through prioritizing and investing in women’s economic empowerment.” she said