TheCable

Rwandan President Paul Kagame says political pushbacks across Africa are worsening gender equality progress on the continent.

Kagame spoke on Monday at the opening ceremony of the Women Deliver conference in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda.

“Across the globe, women remain vulnerable to poor responses of empowerment with many of them employed in the informal sector and providing concrete labour,” the Rwandan president said.

“This situation has been exacerbated by some political pushback movements in certain countries across the continent. Women and girls are in disproportionate shape over climate and economic crises which the world has been facing for the past few years.

“Recent studies show that it will take more than a century to achieve gender equality at the current rate of progress. We must challenge ourselves to do things differently and with a sense of urgency. We must set an example for the generation before us.”

Kagame called on African leaders and concerned organisations to intensify efforts to reframe social norms and views that negated the gains of gender equality across the continent.

Hungarian President Katalin Novák said women in professional spaces are often forced to make difficult choices, citing an instance — between work and family — due to a lack of opportunity in the economic space.

Novák who is the first female Hungarian president commended the gains made in the struggle for global gender parity but added that “there is still much work to be done”.