The Liberation Struggle of African Women

BOULDER, Colo. - April 6, 2014 - PRLog -- Contact: Fatou Doumbia
Phone: 720-227-6208
Email: fatou@agile-international.org
Web: www.agile-international.org

Till this day, the role of African women in the struggle to liberate Africa has not been duly honoured. Women in Africa must still fight against countless economic, social, cultural huddles and inequalities.

Much has been written about the struggles of African men in the liberation but emphasis on the struggle of African women has not been documented as much. Just like everyday life in society, women have always played a major role in building a strong community. It is such roles and many more that saw women become a great asset in the struggle for Africa’s liberation throughout the 20^th Century.

African women today continue to struggle for the freedom they participated in bringing to this great continent. The worst part is that this struggle has now been converted to ideologies that only benefit the imperialists within and outside Africa. Philosophies like feminism have been used to turn the colonized women against their colonized male counterparts. This ends up fuelling political, social and economic turmoil across the continent and further slowdown the original goals of getting women to enjoy the fruits of true freedom that was fought for by their fore parents.

Culture

Despite the increasing percentage in the number of girls enrolling in schools around Africa, owning property such as land has not yet become a culturally acceptable occurrence in many parts of the continent. You will still find a lot of educated women being held captive in the chains of old cultural practices that dictate only the man should own all physical property and the woman; despite her level of education will always remain a caretaker of the same property.

The sufferings of these women are enormous especially when by the loss of their husbands or through separation and they are forced to fend for their children with little or no capital. That is why organizations such as Agile International have come up with initiatives to empower African women with projects such as the current land investments in West Africa. When these women in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Guinea, Senegal, Ivory Coast and other west African nations are given the opportunity to take charge of their own destinies by owning land, they will be able to educate their young girls to not only stabilize their future but to also avoid the increasing issues of teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections. Owning land will enable these women to practice sustainable farming practices with the training they get from professionals such as Colorado State University’s Department of Agricultural Science hence increasing the food supply and ultimately increase their income.

Policy

Policies that empower women, encourages and supports this struggle.. For example in Kenya, the constitution that was promulgated in 2010 encapsulated the compulsory election of women representatives from the 47 counties to sit in the National Assembly. This move, though viewed as controversial by some men was received well by not only Kenyans but the continent as a whole. Also having nations such as Malawi and Liberia being led by women, in this case Her Excellency Dr. Joyce Banda and Her Excellency Ellen Johnson Sir leaf respectively; there is hope for more policies to be put in place with the aim of liberating African women on all fronts.

International Policies

International policies from international organizations have continued to foster women empowerment in Africa. This has mainly been channeled through funding of Non-Governmental Organizations that draw policies to empower the African children and the women. The challenge remains large with the recurring big number of teenage pregnancies leading to school dropout and other cultural practices such as early marriage and female genital mutilation.

Two sad issues worked against the liberation struggle for African women in Africa: TheAfrican leaders who shy away from empowering women and the world community. It took some parts of the world centuries to empower their women before enticing other continents like Africa to follow suite. Besides, the diverse cultural practices across the continent constitute another impediment. These practices are slowly being phased out or merged with modern practices to ensure that girls for example, go to school and enjoy equal rights with boys.

Till all African women enjoy the freedom they so much deserve, the liberation struggle for the African continent continues.

For additional information, please visit http://www.agile-international.org