Women and Law in Southern (WLSA), in partnership with Gender Links and Padare/Enkundleni/Men’s Forum of Gender, on November 1 conducted a Capacity Building and Induction training program for Elected Female and Male Councillors in Harare. The training program aimed to empower and sensitise women councillors, as well as their male counterparts, on gender and governance processes in local government in Zimbabwe.
The program was attended by 50 councillors from the 10 provinces in the country, representing two main political parties. The training covered a range of topics, including gender budgeting, the role of councillors in promoting gender equality, and the importance of women’s participation in decision-making. The program also provided a platform for sharing experiences and best practices among councillors from different provinces and political parties.
Speaking at the training, Peeter Kaaman, First Secretary of the Sweden Embassy in Harare, emphasised the importance of continuing to work on different levels to ensure that women have equal rights and opportunities to participate in politics. “We need to keep working at different levels to try to influence to make sure that women have the same rights and opportunities to participate in politics,” said Peeter Kaaman.
The training was a follow-up to a series of Cross-Generational Capacity Building trainings which were held in 2022 in the lead-up to the 2023 elections; many of the young women who participated in these trainings successfully contested the August 2023 harmonised elections and were elected as councillors.