On Valentine’s day this year, Malawi’s national assembly passed a bill that called for the Constitution to raise the marriage age with parental consent from 15 to 18 years. Chimwemwe Manyozo, 27, a Correspondent from Lilongwe, Malawi, reports that the news was received with excitement, especially from activists and youth. One of the leaders in the fight …
India’s transgender community has been a target of chronic violence, intolerance and stereotyping. Sugandha Parmar, 23, a Correspondent in Kanpur, India, writes that the Transgender (Protection of Rights) Bill promises protection of rights and facilitates acceptance in social spaces. Such a legislative move engenders fresh questions amongst those aspiring for reform. Underpinning several LGBTQI discourses lies a …
Seven years after the promulgation of a new, all-inclusive Constitution in 2010, Kenyan women’s journey to full institutional and de jure equality remains a daunting mission, writes Aisha Anne Habiba, 27, a Correspondent from Mombasa in Kenya, as she looks at what she describes as the convoluted quagmire of gender equality. Women still have little …
It has been a long struggle to give women a voice, writes Judith Akoth, 25, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Kisumu in Kenya. Although it has been an uphill journey to ensure that women enjoy equal opportunities in leadership, education and income, she questions the concept and results of legislation aimed at electing women. In all these …
Gender-based violence reportedly affects an alarming one in five Nigerian women aged 15-24 years. Kelechukwu Iruoma, 23, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Lagos in Nigeria, writes that experts at a recent Rotary International Nigeria public lecture offered some solutions to GBV. Gender-Based Violence (GBV) or ‘violence against women’ are terms that are often used interchangeably as most gender-based …
In Africa, feminism is a dream beyond reaching due to the oppressive nature of society, writes Kiyara Matambanadzo, 16, a Correspondent from Harare in Zimbabwe. She argues the sobering view that to be a girl in Africa is hard, to be a teenaged girl is harder, but to be a vocal feminist teenaged girl is the …
Survivors of abuse face a number of hurdles in recovery and rebuilding their lives. Ruth Adeyi, 24, a Commonwealth Correspondent in the UK, tells how the government has taken measures that will remove one hurdle and assist survivors in their efforts. The government in the UK is taking more action to protect abuse survivors from stalking. …
Giving in to the ‘#menaretrash’ trend could sabotage the progress that feminists have long fought for, writes Tshwanelo Fokazi, 24, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Ekurhuleni, South Africa. Lately, I’ve been struggling with the urge to fit in on social media. One recent example that underscored this sentiment was a message I saw posted on Twitter which said, …
“Only ‘faux-feminism’ disempowers men by classifying them as ‘trash’” Read More »
The campaign against FGM is reaching out to a wider audience, writes Oluwasegun Olakoyenikan, 23, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Benin City, Nigeria, who describes advocacy training for a network of social media users in southern Nigeria. Due to the increasing number of social media users in Nigeria and the need to reach out to them, …
Among the talk about girls and women, gender equality and reduced inequality, Amit Jain, 26, a Correspondent from Pune, India argues there is one area where women are most harmed, yet few people are working toward innovative solutions. What I’m talking about here is the grave issue of the life of widows. Absent in statistics, unnoticed by …