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Education: Keeping women ahead and changing traditions
2006-10-06 09:28:16
By Martha Jared Kangia
From Bagamoyo District, the District Commissioner is up against parents who marry off their children to deny them a place in school.
Lt Serenge Marengo was lashing out at the local people who still believe that girls are tools that can be exchanged with money.
In bringing up this important issue to the public, the district commissioner reminds Tanzanians how backward thinking can be detrimental to development.
Women must be educated, if a country is to realise its economic development goals.
Women are the economic engines of development, doing most of production activities and feeding the family.
If a woman is sick, the whole family is concerned for there will be something missing.
Children will not eat because the husband will bring food but there will be no one to make sure it is cooked and distributed.
Women fetch firewood, water and look for the older and sick members of the family. The house is in safe hands when the in charge is present. When she is indisposed of, the house tends to be all affected.
The education for women was given prominence by Mwalimu Nyerere when he campaigned for girl education, increased their boarding schools and exempting some national undertakings to ensure the girls were given equal chances as boys.
The women wing of the ruling party CCM owes its recognition to Mwalimu’s efforts. How can parents of today still think that girls are for marriage only?
One of the great achievements in the government policies today is the emphasis on women empowerment. But education must come first.
An educated woman knows where and how to plan her life and that of her family. And so is the one serves the district, the region and nation.
Some nomadic families treat their girls as items to be sold. They thus do not wait for their girls to graduate from schools, but will either cut them short or decide not to send them to school.
The girls will therefore be exchanged for cows which is regarded as a sign of wealth. Many girls get married forcefully and are taken to live with older men some old enough to be their grandfathers.
In Manyara for example, a 12 year old girl was beaten to death by her community for running away from her 70 year old husband.
Of course the rights of the girl is trampled. She lives in perpetual fear and is unable to plan for her life and that of her family.
If we believe that there is a need to help the girls to access education, it is because we believe in a healthy nation. You ignore girls’ education, you don’t think the development of the country is important.
Meaningful development takes women onboard. Countries which are developed have their women equal to men in education and social status.
Many African countries have availed education opportunities to women. It is from these women that ministerial posts and such influential positions are availed.
However, the political climate, much conducive as it is for women leaders, has not allowed them to become elected presidents. Apart from Mrs Eilen Johnson of Liberia, other women have been able to reach ministerial posts only.
This means that the system of political parties do not give women chances to automatically ’inherit’ top party leadership, although this is not said openly.
There is no reason for preventing women to attend school or lead a party in the case of the learned lot. Nations benefit from their educated women because their contribution to the economy is immense, if only they were given a chance.
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