Democratic Governance Case Study RWANDA

8/2/2019 Democratic Governance Case Study RWANDA

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EXPERT GROUP MEETING ONDEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN AFRICA

6th 8th DECEMBER 2005 NAIROBI KENYA

STRATEGIES FOR INCREASINGWOMENS PARTICIPATION IN GOVERNMENT

CASE STUDY OF RWANDA

Prepared by: Mr. John MUTAMBA MB A (MsM)

CONSULTANT


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACRONYMS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

GENERAL INTRODUCTIONObjectivesMethodology

Chapter IBACKGROUND1.1 General and Historical Overview1.2 International Framework1.3 National Development F ramework1.4 Underlyi ng Causes o f the Genocide1.5 Status of Women in Rwandan Society

Chapter IISITUATION ANALYSIS OF WOMENS PARTICIPATIONAND DECISION-MAKING IN GOVERNANCE2.1 The Role of Women in Reconstruction and P eacebuilding2.2 Government Efforts to Enhance Participation2.3 The Role of Female Leader ship2.4 Sensitizing the Population2.5 Womens Participation in Gacaca C ourts2.6 Women and Decentralizati on

Chapter IIIIMPACT OF WOMENS POLITICAL PARTICIPATION ON THECONDITION OF WOMEN

Chapter IVCHALLENGES, LESSONS LEARNED AND STRATEGIES FORSUSTAINABILITY4.1 Challenges4.2 Lessons L earned4.3 Strategies for the Way Forward4.4 Conclusion

ANNEXResource persons interviewedBibliography


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Acronyms

APRM African Peer Review Mechanism

CBO Community Based Organizations

CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of al l Forms ofDiscrimination Against Women

COMESA Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa

GNU Government of National Unity

ICT Informati on Communication Technology

MDGs Millen nium Develo pment Goals

MNRD National Revolutionary Movement forDevelopment

NEPAD New Partnership for African Development

NGO Non-Governmental Organisation

PRS Poverty Reduction Strategy

RALGA Rwandan Agency for Local GovernmentAssociations

RPA Rwandese Patriotic Army

RPF Rwandese Patriotic Front


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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The government of Rwanda has demonstrated politicalcommitment at the highest level of leadership in pursuit of its

goal of promoting gender equality in democratic governance andpolitical decision-making. This commitment by the RPAgovernment, which came to power in the elections following the1994 genocide, is to transform Rwanda into a peaceful andprosperous country where the rule of law and human rights arerespected.

The participation of Rwandan women in post-genocidepeacebuilding and reconstruction at the national, local andcommunity levels has had a significant impact leading to majoroutcomes such as the enacting of a gender-sensitive constitution,the highest representation of women in parliament of any

government in the world, and public sector reforms.

The role of key players such as the Ministry of Gender andWomen Promotion, National Women Councils, Forum of RwandanWomen Parliamentarians and the Womens Civil SocietyMovement, combined with substantial resource flows from donors,has been instrumental in generating momentum for Rwandasprogressive gender equality platform.

Important lessons from the Rwandan experience are numerous: The need to turn political commitment into action; concrete

measures have to be undertaken to turn political will intotangible results

The importance of building and strengthening partnershipsbetween government and civi l society, and men and women

The need to fully involve grassroots womens groups in orderto reinforce a sense of community ownership.

The importance of harnessing positive cultural values thatpromote gender equality

The importance of building the capacity of institutions andpersons to spearhead gender mainstreaming to ensuresustainable gender equali ty

The importance of continuous support and political

commitment in order to strengthen womens participation inpolitical decision-making The need for continuous multiple strategies using all available

channels, such as educational institutions and media, to raiseawareness and combat resistance to change.

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Study Context


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Rwanda is emerging from one of the most destructive conflicts inmodern history. Despite that, the country has swiftly moved froma failed state to a re -established nation which now serves as amodel of accomplishment in a politically unstable andeconomically challenged continent. Rwanda s achievementsprovide an important lesson: There is no crisis or challenge that

is insurmountable if the leadership and the population sha re acommitment to creating a better society and working togethertowards common goals.

The country is among the vanguard of nations making progress ingender equality and womens empowerment. It is thereforepertinent to analyze the progress that has been made and thefactors behind Rwandas success .

ObjectivesThis study has the fol lowing objectives:

1. To analy ze t he progress and impediments to achievinggender equali ty in Rwanda.

2. To present Rwandas experienc e as a lesson to othercountries emerging from conflict on how best to advance theparticipation of women in government and post-conflictreconstruction.

3. To propose additional measures to be undertaken in orderto make the participation of women in political decision-making sustainable.

MethodologyThe study will involve reviewing documentation and conductingin-depth interviews with key players such as persons fromgovernment, civil society, UN country teams, bilateral andmulti lateral agencies.

Chapter I. BACKGROUND

1.1. General and H istorical O verview:Rwanda is a country located in the Great Lakes Region of Africawith a total area of 26,000 km and a very high population densityof 400 inhabitants per km . It has a total population of 8.2 mill ion

(2002 population census) of which 52.2% are females. Excludingchildren ages 15-19, the percentage of women rises to 57% in the20-44 year age group, and to 58% in the 45-64 year age group. Indifferent terms, in the 25-29 year age group, there are only 69men per 100 women. Rwanda ranks among the least developedcountries, with a per capita income of $250 per year. Its grossdomestic product fell by 50% in 1994, and it has still not attainedpre-war levels of economic activity. Poverty increased


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dramatically; in 1993, 53% of households were under the povertyl ine, but by 1997 the percent age had risen to 70%.

Rwandas history has shaped the role women have played atdifferent periods. Rwandas pre-colonial history is marked by acentralised system of administration under the monarch (umwami)

assisted by chiefs (abatware) and advisors (Abiru). The queenmother (umugabekazi) played a crucial role in state matters asthe chief adviser to her son.

Rwandas existence as a nation state dates from the 11 th century.Rwandan society comprises of three social groups , the Bahutu,Batutsi, and Batwa, who despite having much in common havehad bloody conflicts. According to the 1991 census, 91.7% ofRwandese were Hutus, 8.2% were Tutsis and .1% were Twas.They speak one language, Kinyarwanda, occupy the samegeographical areas , and constitute 18 clans whi ch haveintermarried extensively. During the pre-colonial era, clan

membership was the defining component of identities andrivalries

From 1957 onwar ds, Rwanda experienced massive social andpolitical upheavals, resulting in large-scale massacres of Tutsipeople in 1962, 1967 and 1973. The post-independent regimeswere characterised by the institutionalisation of ethnicpolarization of the population, regional and religious baseddiscrimination, political repression, economic hardships and largenumbers of refugees. This preceded the 1990 civil war that wasstarted by the Rwandese Patr iotic Fr ont (RPF ), a Tut si-dominatedrebel group comprised mainly of Rwandan exiles based in Ugandaand led by Paul Kagame, the current President of Rwanda .

From 1990 to April 1993 there were many reform initiatives aimedat restoring peace, democracy, human rights and national unity,including peace talks in Arusha Tanzania, and the signing of apeace pact between the National Revolutionary Movement forDevelopment (MRND) government and the RPF. Political partieswere allowed to operate and Agathe Uwilingiyimana became thefirst women prime Minister appointed in Rwanda.

1.2. International Framework

The government of Rwanda is a signatory to many internationalmechanisms to enhance gender equality and womens rights.These include the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms ofDiscrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Beijing Platform forAction, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) the AfricanCharter on Peoples Rights and Womens Rights and the AfricansUnions New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD)programme, which has as a long-term objective the full andeffective integration of women in political, social and economic


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development. Recently the country submitted its progress reportin accordance with the Beijing Platform for Action . Rwanda is thesecond country to be reviewed by its peers under the AfricanPeer Review Mechanism (APRM) mechanism. One of the areas ofgovernance where progress has been significant is genderequality in decision-making and governance.

1.3. National Development F rameworkThrough extensive consultations with different sectors ofRwandan society on the future of the country after the 1994genocide, the government identified bad governance as a rootcause of the terrible experiences of the last 40 years. Theconclusion of this consultative exercise was to formulate a policy,legal; constitutional and institutional framework that wouldguarantee good governance as the foundation of political stabilityand economic prosperity. Among the key policy frameworks thatwere developed as guid ing principles include the fol lowing:

Vision 2020: A long-term development initiative to build aprosperous society, devoid of any form of discrimination, andintegrating gender-equality mechanisms.

The Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS): A medium-termdevelopment strategy which contains important elements ongender equalit y, such as the Nati onal G ender Policy which wasadopted in 2003. One of its core principles is that all localgovernment plans include a gender equality component.

The National Constitution : Promulgated on 4 th June 2003, itstrongly reinforces the principle of gender equality. It decreesa quota of 30% of women in decision-making position s.

Decentralization Policy: The objective is to promote goodgovernance and democracy through the effective participationof the population in decision - making that affects their l ives.

1.4. Underlying Causes of the GenocideThe Rwandan genocide in 1994 was preceded by a civil war andan ideology of exterminating batutsi that went on for severaldecades. The genocide was orchestrated and fomented by thegovernment but perpetrated in large part by the civil ian

population. Analysts have divergent views as to the actual causesof the Rwandan genocide but all are in agreement on the issue ofbad governance policies of discrimination and wanton abuse ofhuman rights being the major root causes. The genocideshredded the countrys social fabric and created huge challengesin terms of meeting the needs of hundreds of thousands oforphans and widows and internally displaced people. The civilwar and genocide had a disproportionately strong impact on


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women, as rape and genocide survivors, widows, heads ofhouseholds, and caretakers of orphans .

1.5. Status of Women in Rwandan SocietyRwandan society has historically been essenti ally patriarchal.Women faced official legal discriminat ion in Rwanda. Ma ny laws

blatantly disciminated against women. For example, a royal (pre-colonial) law denying women the right to engage in any commercewithout her husband's permission was only repealed in 1992.Today, wome n in Kigali regularly engage in commerce, but inrural areas women often do not know that the law was modifiedand are therefore unwill ing to openly do so. In the Civil Code andthe Family Code the husband was identified as the legal head ofhousehold, and in the case of disagreements over parentalauthority, the father's will automatically prevails.

Because the Rwandan civil code made no provision for regulatingproperty in the context of marriage, women's property and

inheritance rights were governed by customary law. Women hadonly usage rights over property, be i t household goods or land,while the actual ownership remained in the hands of her husbandor father. In addition, women could not inherit property or land,which frequently left them unable to provide for themselves andtheir families after the death of a father or husband. Women'saccess to land and property is also particularly important in thecontext of Rwanda's pos t-confli ct reconstruc tion. Many womenwere widowed or orphaned and, because of customary lawbarriers, were unable to claim their father's or husband's land andproperty. Women returning from refugee camps, often withoutmale family-members, were left without any legal channelsthrough which to reclaim their family's property.

Women played a predominantly domestic role while menmonopolized the political arena. Political decision-making at thecommunity and national levels was almost exclusively theprovince of men. With the consequent unequal power relations ,gender-based discrimination continued unabated. However,interviews with a cr oss -section of Rwandese reveals that withinthe Rwandan culture there existed positive examples of womenenjoying relative autonom y in managing domestic resources andplaying a critical role in advising men, such as the institutions of

queen mother,.

During the colonial period, the introduction of modern educationand the abrupt shift from a traditional to a monetary economyfurther disadvantaged women. The post- independence regimeswere characterised by considerable progress in the economic andsocial sectors but governance continued to adhere todiscriminatory pol icies based on ethnicity, gender and otherfactors. A centralized system of government reinforced womens


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marginalisation in politics and decision-making processes. Inresponse to international womens conferences , a womensmovement emerged comprising of NGOs and womensassociations with the shared objective of promotin g womensrights, despite there being negligible political will on the part ofthe state to forward this agenda . However, after 1994 the

situation began to improve in terms of womens participation indecision -making organs. The proportion of women in relation tomen in decision-making posts within the executive branch issummaris ed in t he synoptic table below

Gender MinisterandSecretaryof state

SecretaryGeneral

Member ofParl iament

Senator Prefet BurgomasterOr DistrictMayor

Year

1995 M 19 17 59 - 10 142W 2 5 11 - 1 0%W 9.5 22.7 15.7 - 9.1 0.0

1997 M 23 23 59 - 11 142W 2 4 11 - 1 3%W 8.6 14.8 15.7 - 8.3 2.1

1999 M 19 14 59 - 12 153W 2 7 15 - 0 2%W 9.5 33.3 20.3 - 0.0 1.3

2000 M 18 16 54 - 12 151W 3 5 14 - 0 2%W 14.3 23.8 26.0 - 0.0 4.0

2001 M 21 16 58 - 12 151

W 4 5 16 - 0 12%W 16.0 23.8 27 .6 - 0.0 1.3

2002 M 21 16 57 - 11 151W 4 5 17 - 1 4%W 16.0 23.8 29.8 - 9.1 2.6

2003 M 19 16 41 14 11 106W 9 2 39 6 1 2%W 32.1 11.1 48.8 30.0 9.1 1.9

Chapter II. WOMENS PARTICIPATION IN DECISION-MAKINGAND GOVERNANCE

2.1. The Role of Women in Reconstruct ion and PeacebuildingThe 1994 genocide shook Rwandan society to its foundation. Thepost-genocide period was characterized by a total breakdown ofbasic services and widespread insecurity in rural areas. Theconsequences were so devastating and challenging that everysurviving Rwandan adult had a responsibil ity to fi l l the vacuum.Women played a cri t ical role. The women of Rwanda stepped


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forward together to begin economic and social reconstruction andrestoration of security. From there the y formed linkages betweeneconomic empowerment and political empowerment. This sectionaddresses the contributions of women in the post-genocideperiod. Some of their contributions are difficult to quantify, yetthey were cri t ical to the countrys progress towards gender

equali ty and good governance.

2.2. Government Efforts to Enhance ParticipationLooking at this phenomenon closely, it is evident that thegovernment and the international community played a facil itatingrole in enhancing the role of women . The new government ofRwanda viewed promoting gender equality as a human rights anddevelopment issue. The political commitment towards genderequality is linked to its vision of transforming the Rwandansociety through legal, policy and administrative reforms. This isreflected in the public statements made by leaders of the country.The political will is further stimulated by an international and

regional environment that is developing greater commitment togender equality.

The overriding factor behind womens increased participation indecision-making capacities and democratic governance is theprevailing strong political will towards the promotion of women..Rwandas commitment to the inclusion of women is evidentthroughout all levels of the government. At the national politicalleadership level, the Rwandan government has made womenmore visible, with high level appointments including Ministries,Ministers of State and positions in the Office of the President, theMinistry of Justice and the Ministry of Lands, Resettlement andEnvironment. Mechanisms have been cinstituted to addresswomens issues and gender concerns. The Ministry of Gender andWomen in Development is the institution charged with theresponsibil ity for coordinating the governments efforts regardinggender and women issues.

The establishment of this Ministry h as had a strong impact on theagenda of enhancing gender equality in the country. The Ministryis a critical institution in Rwanda for ensuring that policy gainstowards gender equality continue and are strengthened. TheMinistry of Gender organized women into elected representative

councils . The Ministry was an efficient instrument in shapingpolicies and programmes that have benefited women, forexample , by implementing programmes to alleviate rur al povertyamong women, and starting revolving credit funds , whichspecifically target women. The advocacy and influencing role theministry has so far played has contributed to the enactment oflaws such the law on inheritance enacted in 1999, defilement law,employment law, land ownership law, and laws on theenvironment. The Ministry has compi led a list of all discriminatory


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laws that need repealing and a list of laws to protect and equalizewoman which need enacting. It has acted as a conduit for theviews and voices of women to be heard and taken into accountduring planning and legislation.

In order for programmes targeting women to be successful and

yield results, the Ministry has from time to time acted as a liaisonwith development partners. This served to activate and energisewomens initiatives. The Ministry works closely with gender focalpoints in key institutions to monitor progress on womens issueswithin each ministry. The ministry has taken steps such asestablishing communal funds to encourage womens economicself sufficiency. Similarly, womens political empowerment hasbeen promoted through the establishment of womens councils .

2.3 The Role of Female LeadershipBehind this commitment also lie other factors like the greatcontribution of women to national reconstruction and recovery.

Women took over some of the responsibil ities of looking after andproviding services originally managed by men, in houseconstruction, for example. Women were being recognized asbreadwinners ably performing non-traditional functions. In thearea of security, the role of women is crucial. One case in point:The cessation of the insurgency in the north of the country in1998 was almost certainly due to the active role of women asmediators and civi l ian authorit ies. Women also play a cri t ical rolein mobilizing their displaced husbands and relatives to repatriateto Rwanda.

Unlike many other post conflict countries with a large number offemale combatants, female fighters constituted a smallpercentage of the former gueril las of RPF who stopped thegenocide. However, the demobilized female combatantscontributed greatly to the peacebuilding process. Those who wereeducated joined the mainstream administration of the country.One important step taken by former combatants was to form theirown association to promote the well-being of their members andto be agents of peace in their communities and the country as awhole. The Association they formed, Ndabaga, is serving as apoint of reference in the sub-region partly because of itsinnovative approach to reconciliation. Former RPF rebels and

former FAR government combatants came together in thisassociation to promote reconciliation within the country. Themessage is if former fighters and enemies can come together ascomrades and partners, everybody else can also do it. This groupplans to share their experiences with their sisters in Burundi,DRC, Sudan and other countries emerging from confl ict.

After the 1994 genocide , a transitional parlia ment was put inplace in which women represented a small proportion: 17 out of


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74, or 23%. These women formed a caucus, prompted largely bythe need of women parliamentarians to work together acrossparty l ines. This caucus promoted unity and reconciliation byserving as a model of women working together irrespective oftheir diverse background - a very important gesture in the post-genocide reality of the country. The caucus ushered in a new

spirit of cooperation, guided by higher principles of commongood, and served as an example of unity in action. The forumalso became a model of how Rwandans in leadership positionscan transcend their differences and promote general good.

The uniting factor was the shared desire to promote peace withinRwanda and outside its borders. In its advocacy role, the womenparliamentarians caucus made important contributions whichimpacted strongly on womens role in post-genocidereconstruction. For instance, their advocacy ensured that a lawwas passed punishing sexual assaults and rapes committedduring the genocide as crimes against humanity. The perpetrators

of these crimes are categorized as planners of the genocide.Women parliamentarians were responsible for the adoption of alaw on inheritance succession which for the first time in thecountrys history grants equal rights for men, women, boys andgirls to inherit property.

Women parliamentarians played a critical role in ensuring the newconstitution adopted on 4 th June 2003 was highly genderresponsive. The process of drafting the constitution was done in aparticipatory manner from the inception to the finalisation phase.The composition of the constitution and judicial commissions wasgender balanced, comprised of women from government and civilsociety as well as men with an established record of being gendersensitive. The international agencies provided financial andtechnical supports. Grassroots meeting were organised andconducted to ensure men and womens views of general issuesand those of special interest to women were amplified. As aresult, many of the articles on gender included in the newconstitution make it one of the most gender-inclusiveconstitutions ever. The process gave the population a sense ofpartnership and become an opportunity to enrol the public inrecognizing the importance of gender equality.

The critical role played by women leadership in championing thecause of promoting gender equity and equality cannot beunderestimated. The favorable conditions created by thegovernment through the establishment of institutions such as theMinistry in Charge of Gender Equity, coupled with an emergingwomen leadership in the post genocide period became an impetusfor promoting unity and reconciliation. Women leadership acrossthe spectrum, from civil society, faith based organizations, andexecutive and legislative arms of government, contributed to the


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momentum of empowering women and increase their role innational reconstruction.

Women leaders played a key role in mobilizing rural women to beinvolved in mainstream political activities. Women from differentpolitical backgrounds embarked on campaigns to actively

encourage women to participate in elections and policydiscussions. Womens councils have helped prepare women forpositions in government at the local and national level. They learnleadership skil ls and develop competences necessary for theireffective performance. This had a strong impact judging from thehigh level of involvement of women across the country in shapingnew policies and legislation. Much as there is sti l l a gap betweenenacting a law and implementing it correctly, these laws mark abig achievement in the area of gender equality promotion.However, despite their great role in increasing womens visibil ity,they remain under funded, and so the technical capacity tomaximize their positive impact remains to be developed. Such

structures represent a good model of how women participate in,and contribute to, the countrys development agenda with a senseof ownership - hence the sustained spirit of voluntarism in whichthey serve.

At the international level, Rwandese women vigorouslyparticipated in the fourth International Conference on Womenheld in Beijing in 1995. The establishment of the Beijing Plan ofAction and the Beijing Permanent Secretariat were strategicoutcomes of this conference. This generated the momentum forwomens empowerment and progress towards gender equali ty.This was a turning point for women in Rwanda at a criticalmoment which marked the beginning of partnership among womenand between government and civil society. They were empoweredby being connected to the global commitment to gender equali ty.

The role played by grassroots movement at the community levelwas crucial in fostering womens partic ipation in local decisio n-making processes. Local NGO s functioned as training grounds ,developing womens leadership skil ls. Among the current womenMPs, about half have at one time or another been involved inNGO work. The same is true of members of womens councils ,whose volunteer members often used as a springboard to

mainstream leadership positions.

Women came together in associations to address issues thataffect them, creating self-help groups and cooperatives to assistsurvivors, widows or returned refugees, or simply to meet theeveryday needs of providing for their families There are over onehundred of these groups in each community. They may beinformal, or formally registered with the government. Hundreds ofthousands of orphaned children were brought under their care


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and protection. At the provincial level, gender programmes aremanaged and coordinated by a Director of Health, Gender andSocial Affairs. In every district there is a Vice Mayor for Genderwhose main mandate is gender mainstreaming, specifically withregard to development activities. Women joined microfinancecredit programmes to address the needs of their families and

implement socioeconomic initiatives at the community level. Theincome-generating activities they initiated become important entrypoints for economic empowerment.

The role of women leaders, from the national level through to therural level, in mobilizing Rwandas population, and women inparticular, was of great importance in promoting gender equalityand womens empowerment. Across the country, women with thesupport of various institutions managed to participate in theconstruction of new settlements locally known as Imidugudu. Thiswas facil itated by several factors, including the role of theministry of Gende r and both international and local NGOs. These

initiatives also stem from the spirit of solidarity among womenwhich had existed for a long time. The voluntary spirit is alsoimportant in the dynamics within womens organizati ons workingto bui ld unity and reconci l iation.

Women's associations are also active at the national level,working on meeting the special needs of women survivors andreturnees, empowering women politically and economically andreconstructing Rwandan society. Thirty-five women'sorganizations who work in women's rights, development or peacehave organized themselves into a collective called Pro-FemmesTwese Hamwe (Pro-Women All Together). The Pro-FemmesTriennial Action Plan (1998) states that the organization works for"the structura l transformation of Rwandan society by putting inplace the political, material, juridical, economic and moralconditions favorable to the rehabilitation of social justice andequal opportunity, to build a real, durable peac e." In addition totheir programmatic activities in peace and reconstruction, Pro-Femmes also provides its members capacity-building support andassists them with communication, information and education. Theadoption of a Campaign of Peace Action Plan enabled ProfemmesTwese Hamwe to earn a Terrance, the prestigious InternationalPeace Award, from UNESCO in 2000. The National Women

Council is an organization that the Ministry of Gender establishedwith the aim of empowering women from the grass roots toundertake their own advocacy and mobilise fellow women tocontribute to the national development process.

Womens councils have played a crucial role in mobilising fellowwomen to participate in all policy making legislation process ofthe country. They have also been used as channels formobilisation by different agencies involved in national


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rural areas. This strategy has been instrumental in developing asense of local ownership instead of viewing gender as animported and imposed approach. The issue that remains to beaddressed is who should be targeted and what capacity is therein the country to effective ly carry out the t raining andsensitisation programme in the country.

The media, particularly the radio, has a history of being used as astrong weapon of state mobilisation and control. The radioreplaced the use of the chiefs dru ms to mobilize the populationfor war or public works. During the genocide the radio was usedto fuel ethnic hatred and direct the genocidaires to locationswhere Tutsi and alleged Tutsi sympathizers were hiding. As aresult, radio messages are taken as gospel truth because radio isa symbol of authority.

Post-genocide, radio and print media were used for the elites andthe radio for mainly rural women. Through their associations of

women journalists, women were able to successfully reach out torural women and mobilize them for unity and reconciliation. TheMinistry of Gender and other government departments used radioto air programmes on various policies and activities. Messagesare communicated to the public to enlighten the population onissues of national interest such as reconciliation, fighting poverty,HIV/AIDS etc. For example, the HIV/AIDS campaign used radioprogrammes to mobilize women for voluntary counseling andtesting. Many women came forward to be tested. The majority ofpersons living with HIV/AIDS in Rwanda are women.

There are specialized papers like Kinyamateka, the Echo, andothers, to which women associations contribute essays toeducate the public on womens rights. Some importantassociations which promote and defend womens rights issuepublications relating to womens performances and rights.

In concluding this section, one may ask this fundamentalquestion : What factors have made this process possible andsuccessful despite the challenging situation which the countrywas emerging from? It is a combination of factors that cannot beexhausted here. First, the existence of pol i t ical wi l l at the highestpossible level and the seriousness and consistency with which

the executive arm of government pursued a strategy for achievinggender equali ty, including enshrining i t in the new consti tution.

Interviews with a cross section of people highlighted the fact thatalthough there are influences within the Rwandan culture thatdiscriminate against women, there are also other cultural valuesand practices that assign women important roles as advisers,sources of power and wisdom, and managers of wealth. Theexistence of mother-queen institutions, women chiefs, and female


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religious leaders and custodians of indigenous technicalknowledge partly explain why men in Rwanda are not generallyopposed to the womens empowerment agenda . The use of themedia, particularly the radio airwaves, the most reliable mediumof communication, to mobilise women to play a more active role inthe countrys development and sensitize the population to the

advantages of gender equali ty was very effective .

2.5. Legal and Constitutional ReformsRecovering from genocide and its consequenc es required morethan the conventional methods . In the case of Rwanda, a countryemerging from its dark past and forging a bright future of stabilityand prosperity, this called for marshalling all efforts to achievethe common good. The commitment of central government wasdemonstrated by new policies and laws. Important legislationinstitutionalised gender equality. The new law on inheritance andsuccession, which give women and children equal rights, is nowused as a point of reference in sensitizing general public on

issues of gender equality. The anti-violence bil l wil l soon beenacted. The most fundamental change in the legal andconstitutional framework is the adoption of the 4 th June 2003consti tutions with i ts strong content as gender. The bui lding ofpartnership between government, civil society and communitybased organizations for a common purpose of promoting womensparticipation in governance is another unique contributing factor.This is contrary to the common tendency for civil society andgovernment to clash over their interests.

Regarding the specific role played by women in local governance,the policy of decentralization occurred before the new constitutiondecreed that 30% of decis ion-making posts be fi l led b y women .Participation of women in local governance has remained ratherweak. For example, out of the current 11 provinces and the city ofKigali there is no single female governor, and out of the 106mayors of districts only 6 are women. This area remains to bestrengthened within the new framework of administration reform.

On a positive note, the voices of women have continued to bestrong in local governance through the affirmative action agendawhich provide for a third of the seats on the executive andadministration committees to be fi l led by women. These

committees play an instrumental role in influencing local nationaldevelopment processes and enhancing women participation inpoli t ical and social processes that shape their l ives.

2.6. Women participation in Gacaca courtsFollowing the 1994 genocide, the country faced unprecedentedchallenges to their judicial system. Hundreds of thousands ofgenocide suspects were in jail awaiting trial. The system ofjus tice was so overburdened that it could not cope. The


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government of Rwanda undertook a restructuring of its justicesystem to include indigenous, traditional methods . In creating anational institution to revive and formalize Gacaca, thegovernment of Rwanda indirectly contributed to the promotion ofwomens participation.

Women are represented in all Gacaca courts. Currently, therepresentation of women judges in these courts is 29%. This is animportant achievement given that women did not traditionallyserve as Gacaca judges or observers. The responsibil ity ofsettl ing community disputes was reserved for a communitys wiseand respected men (Inyangamugayo). This institution presentsyet another opportunity which women have seized to advancetheir participation in the democratic process and governance. Theskills they acquire and the experience will later be used to qualifythem for leadership when the duration of these courts expire.

2.7. Women and Decentralizati on

The government of Rwanda has identified bad governance as oneof the major issues behind the genocide, and the reason for theunderdevelopment the country has experienced sinceindependence. In the consultative talks that the GNU undertook in1998, it was agreed that the centralized power structure is mainlyresponsible for authoritarian rule which has , among other things ,promoted human rights abuse and discrimination. Rwanda hasembraced the principle of decentralization through which power,authority, functions and responsibil ities and the requisiteresources will be transferred from the central government to localgovernment.

The local government act stipulates that women fi l l a third of alllocal posts. As a result, the 2001 local government electionsearmarked 27% of the local government structures for women. Itis important to note that the implementation of this policy took theconcerted effort of the Ministry of Gender and civil societyorganizations, women councils, members of womenParliamentarians caucus and many other actors. There was adeliberate campaign to mobil ize women from al l walks of l i fe tocome forward and present their candidature and also activelyparticipate in the electoral process. National women councilsplayed a crucial role in mobilizing the women at different levels.

Institutions such as the Electoral Commission played a facil itatingrole in integrating the quota for women in the electoral laws. Thishighlights the extent to which national policies like gender policyand decentralization policy can be translated into action at locallevels. The participation of women in the post-genocide periodwas significant in terms of promoting reconci l iation, providingsurvival needs for families, and taking care of orphans. Throughchallenging and important roles women were able to demonstrate


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their capability to manage domestic and public affairs effectively,contrary to the commonly held beliefs of womens inadequacies inpublic affairs.

Chapter III. IMPACT OF WOMENS POLITICAL PARTICIPATION

ON THE CONDITIONS OF WOMEN

The overall government policy of rebuilding new governancestructures and promoting greater community participation, ofwomen in particular, from grass roots to national level, has beensignificant, and an upward trend of womens involvement andrepresentation has followed. Participation of women in grassroots structures such as women councils, womens associations,and civil society organizations has greatly increased womensvisibil ity and also created more community recognition ofwomens political representation and participation as a night onits own. This partly explains the growing recognition among men

of the importance of gender parity in governance, especially atnational and local levels. It is gradually becoming a normalpractice that in any important decision-making forum leadersquestion the absence of womens representation.

The presence of women in parliament, executive and judiciaryorgans of government structures and women councils supportedby the ministry of Gender and the women civil society movementhas made it possible to enact legislation on land ownership,property inheritance, employment, sexual crimes, environmentallaws and for such laws to have a strong orientation towardssensitivity to womens rights national law such provideguarantees for womens rights to be respected. What remains isto have proper legal education to women particularly atcommunity level majority of rural women remains largely ignorantof their rights, especially their legal rights. This is a majorconstraint to improving their quali ty of l i fe.

In the overall national policy of promoting gender mainstreamingin all policies, programmes and projects, gender issues aregradually taking center stage in education, national and ruraldevelopment programmes. What is important is to turn politicalwill into actions. In the case of education , womens views resulted

in the Ministry of Educations offensive to promote girl seducation.


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Chapter IV. CHALLENGES, LESSONS LEARNED ANDSTRATEGIES FOR SUSTAINABILITY

4.1 ChallengesThe challenges and opportunities that presented themselves inthe aftermath of the 1994 genocide were seized on by Rwandese

women, the transitional government, Rwandas developmentpartners and the international community at large. Despite theprogress and the firm foundation achieved thus far, there remainobstacles that continue to impede Rwandas goal of attaininggender equali ty. Some of the key challenges are outl ined below:

1. The persistence of the threat posed by gender based violenceaffecting women and young girls. Limited capacity arising fromhigh il l i teracy rates a nd low levels of education is sti l l a majo rhindrance. In some areas of governance it is difficult to findwomen candidate s with the appropriate academic qualificat ions.

2. Negative gender stereotypes persist, as well as stubbornresistance in some quarters to abandoning Rwandas historicall yentrenched p atriarchal structure. Some Rwandan men ,particularly in rural areas, remain biased against the concept ofwomen in positions of power. Women are adversely affected bythese traditional stereotypes, which undermine their sense ofself-esteem, confidence and potential to lead.

3. Womens organisations, both formal such as NGOs, andinformal such as the FBO and Women Councils for example ,despite being major protagonists for womens mobilisation andadvocacy, lack funding, logistical support, technical capacity andpersonnel to run function more effectively.

4. Much of the progress made in the area of womensparticipation in democracy and governance is attributed to therole of institutions. Many ministries, commissions and localgovernment enti t ies do not have sufficient expertise in the arenaof gender parity to execute proper planning, monitoring andevaluation to ensure that the objective is being properly pursued .The Ministry of Gender, itself recently restructured, lacksexperienced personnel. Institutions responsible for advancinggender equality lack the political muscle and authority to demand

accountabil i ty from other insti tutions.

5. There is a weak system of coordinating interventions on genderissues. This is characterised by duplication of efforts, lack ofinformation exchange and lack of serious prioritizing. There aremany structures or mechanisms involved in promoting genderequality at national, local and community levels. Their functions,roles, and working arrangement are not well developed. The


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coordination system is sti l l weak thus creating problems ofduplication and weak networking.

6. Donors who intervene in gender issues are not effectivelycoordinated. This worsens the problem of overlap andmisallocation of resources. Donors and institutional networking

between institutions within the country and the sub-region is weakand there is no mechanism in place to improve it.

8. The policy on gender parity is well articulated but it has notbeen adequately translated into programmes and action. Thisresults in pol icy evaporation.

9. Limited and poorly coordinated research on gender issuesresults in lack of reliable data. Lack of an adequate, wellmanaged databank hampers efforts to accurately quantify theresults of ongoing gender parity efforts and identify what aspectsneed to be shored up.

11. The rapid changes in the International Regional and Nationalenvironments that need appropriate coping mechanisms andstrategies to ensure gender equali ty priori t ies remain on focus .

4.2 Lessons learn edImportant lessons other countries can learn from Rwanda andwhat the country itself needs to do better in future aresummarised below:

1. It is critically import ant to have a st rong political willtowards gender equality if womens participation is to bedeveloped. However, political will must be supported bystrong gender advocacy and gender sensitisation to achieveresults

.2. Countries emerging from conflicts must take advantage of

opportunities that arise during the formulation of thenational constitution to enshrine gender parity as a tenet ofthe new consti tution.

3. For gender equality to be attained and sustained, it isimportant to have a strong training programme to provide

necessary expertise in gender.

4. For gender programmes to be effectively managed , it isimperative to establish a coordination systems so thatwastage and supplication of effort and resources areminimised.


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5. It is important to identify t hose traditional values thatsupport the enhancement of womens status, anddiscourage those that reinforce gender based stereotyping.

4.3 Strategies for the way forward

1. The government should integrate gender training in nationalhuman resource development insti tutions.

2. With the support of donors, regional research centres ongender should be established and information sharedamong member countries.

3. Affirmative actions in economic empowerment andeducation need to be initiated and strengthened bygovernments to close the capacity gap

4. Donor support should be better coordinated and focused onstrategic areas for gender equality promotion. Moreresources should be made available to new areas like ICTand promotion of export trade

5. Government should strive to build a system of coordinatingthe various innovations on gender.

6. The departments of statistics should produce anddisseminate data in a gender-disaggregated manner. Asystem of monitoring and evaluation indicators that aregender sensitive should be developed.

7. Civil society organisations should be provided withadequate resources to intensify gender awareness andadvocacy programmes, particularly at the grass roots level.

8. More resources need to be invested in training women inskil ls-related to legislation, politics, communicationmanagement to enable them perform their new roles better.

9. Gender awareness and training compaigns should beintensified at al l levels.

4.4 ConclusionRwandas experience in the progress towards gender equality isstrongly l inked to the role of political leadership, the role ofwomens organisations , the support of donors, and its owncultural and historical context. However, critical challengesremain to be overcome in order to strengthen the role of womenin governance and t o ensure its sust ainabil ity.


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ANNEX 1

PERSONS INTERVIEWED

1) Stephen Kooshak , Program officer , senior Projectcoordinator Good Governance for poverty reduction ,UNDP , Rwanda office.

2) Ms Faby Ngeruka, Program Officer in charge of Gender inUNFPA Kigal i office.

3) Ms Dona Kamashazi , Program officer UNIFEM Kigal i office.4) Cyriaque Ngoboka , Communication Officer , UNICEF Kigali

.5) Odette Kabaya , Program officer charge of Gender in

Canadian Cooperation in Kigali.

6) Nety Butera , Administrator at DFID Office .7) Josephine Uwimana , Program officer RALGA .8) Leoncie Mukamisha , Executive Secretary of National

Womens Counsils .9) Oda Gasinzigwa , Presi dent of National Women Councils .10.Judith Kanakuze President Rwandan WomenParliamentarian caucus MP11. Athanasie Gahondogo MP12. Isaac Sengorore Employee of the Ministry of Gender andFamily promotion in charge of women empowerment programs13. Elizabeth Powley Director women waging peace Rwandaoffice14. Edward Kasumba Programme officer NEPAD secretariateKigal i Rwanda

Bibliography

1. Ms Ecoma Alaga and Ms Thelma Arimiebi, Ekiyor : Womenin Peace Building, Vol 1 , 2004

2. Pan African Conference Peace Gender and Development ,Kigal i 1-3 March 1997 .


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3. Mutamba John: The role of Women in Reconciliation andpeace Building in Rwanda: Ten years after genocide 1994 2004.

4. Mutamba John: Factors for sustainability of Womensparticipation in decision-making , A case of Rwandan

Parl iament 2004 , Thesis .

5. Africare , SNV Rwandan Women in local government :Challenges and opportunities Kigal i Oct 2001.

6. Strengthening Governance the Role of Women in RwandasTransition, Elizabeth powley women waging peace policycommission September 2003

7. Women taking a lead progress towards Empowerment andGender Equality in Rwanda women for women International,Briefing Paper September 2004

8. UNIFEM : Report of the learning Oriented Assessment ofGender Mainstreaming and Womens EmpowermentStrategies in Rwanda, Sept 2002.

9. MIGEPROFE, Etude quantitative sur les att itudes, lescroyances et les pratiques de la culture en rapport avec legenre , analyse des rsultats, Kigal i , 2001

10. MIGEPROFE- MINECOFIN : Rapport sur le prof i l de lafemme et de lhomme au Rwanda, Kigali, 2002

11. MINIJUST ( Ministre de la Justice), Loi N 22/99compltant le l ivre premier du Code civil et instituant lacinquime partie relative aux rgimes matrimoniaux, aulibralits et aux successions, Kigal i , 1999

12. ONAPO, Enqute socio-dmographique du Rwanda,1996 : Principaux dfis en matire de population, Kigali,2003

13. ONAPO, Polit ique nationale de population pour ledveloppement durab le au Rwanda, Kigali, 2003

14. ONAPO-ORC Macro, Enqute dmographique et desant, 2000

15. PR O-FEMMES/TWESE HAMWE, Recherche sur lesraisons de la non scolarisation des fi l les au Rwanda ,

Kigal i , 200016. Richard Dackam Ngatchou, Les indicateurs relatifsaux programmes dintervention relatifs aux questions de

genre, FNUAP, 200317. SERVICE NATIONAL DE RECENSEMENT,

Recensement gnral de la population et de lhabitat au 15aot 1991, Rsultats dfinit ifs, Kigal i , 1994

18. UNFPA, Gender, population and development themesin United Nations Conf erences 1985-1995, 1997


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19. UNIFEM, Le progrs des femmes travers le monde,2000,

20. MINALOC, Implementation strategy for NationalDecentral isation Policy , November , 2001.

21. MINALOC , National Decentralisation Policy , May2000.

22. MIG EPR OF, UNIFEM AND UNDP , National Plan ofAction for the Follow up and implementation of Beijing Platform of action 2004 - 2007.

23. World Bank report no 29913, Rwanda institutionalreform credit project 2004-2007.


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