By Eunice Wanjiru
BUGESERA DISTRICT, Rwanda, Nov 29 2009 (IPS)

Traffic flowing in and out of her office, each interruption addressed with effortless calm, the nurse in charge of Hospitalisation and Immunisation at Nyamata Health Center in Bugesera District, is a confident woman in her element.

Settling down to talk to us in her small office – an examination bed in one corner, a file cabinet opposite, a long wooden table holding hospital equipment like thermometers, a stethoscope and a few documents – Demitiri Mukandashimiye, gazes across her neatly arranged work desk.

The bulk of her work, she says, consists of admitting pregnant mothers and immunising infants. And following up on the mothers to ensure they don’t skip any immunisation days.

Mukundashimiye – who attends to emergency cases even at 7 pm when the hospital is supposed to be closed – strongly believes that formal education has played a huge part in making her life what is today.

Comfortable she calls it. A widow for the last six years, she says she has been able to take on the responsibility for making sure her young children do not lack for anything.

A woman who is not educated will not be able to take of herself and her family financially. Walking into a bank to ask for a loan, what collateral will she have? She has no source of revenue.

IPS: How has education affected your status in the community? DM: People respect me more; whenever I go anywhere I am received warmly. They remember the services I provide them and regard me so highly.

Yes, I would say I am listened to more and respected even more, and that is something that has come through my job. The women who come to the hospital hang on to my every word. Anything I tell them is taken seriously.

Because of my position my colleagues also respect me, and treat me with the esteem I deserve.

IPS: Is formal education tied to women’s development according to you? DM: Absolutely. It’s necessary because it is obvious that even the women who are in leadership are there because they went to school. They have the knowledge because they acquired it through education and that has enabled them to reach leadership positions. You can’t be a leader unless you are educated.

IPS: Has your education influenced you as a mother, or your ability to raise your children? DM: In life there are many things I cater for by myself. Being a widow, it is all on my shoulders. Although I do not lead an extravagant lifestyle, I can afford the basic necessities. Materially I get along just fine.

Education has also brought me closer to my boys. I am able to help them with their homework, because I understand how important school is.

I want my children to excel in school, acquire knowledge and go even further in life. At this point they get everything they want from me, thanks to education that got me a job. I am also able to understand their problems as they grow older and how best to tackle them.

I am not saying uneducated mothers are unable to understand their children, it is just that with formal education, I believe understanding many things becomes easier.

IPS: Would you consider taking your education even further, given a chance? DM: Yes, absolutely. I would like to, but I do not have the means to finance that now and I do not know where one can go to ask for sponsorship. I don’t even think such a place exists. I’m not sure whether the government offers sponsorships to those who would like to further their education

I also think nursing schools here in Rwanda are not easy to find, if you know what I mean. Good nursing schools, with equipment, good trainers and other facilities to help one enhance their career in this field.

IPS: What are your hopes for sons’ education and would be the most important thing for them to learn in school? DM: I simply want my children to be the best they can be, I never want them to ever fail to achieve something and that is why I lead by example. I want them to acquire the knowledge to get them through life’s problems like financial difficulties but most importantly I want them to learn from school that nothing comes easy and everything has to be worked hard for.

Excerpt:

By Eunice Wanjiru
KIGALI , Jul 29 2009 (IPS)

Fifty-six percent of Rwanda's parliamentarians are women, a manifestation of the active role women have taken in rebuilding the country since the 1994 genocide.

Influencing the population: Nyiramilimo says Rwanda's women now have confidence in themselves that they can be politicians, entrepreneurs, and scientists. Credit: John Banda/IPS

She believes the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995 was a key influence for Rwandan women; as is the firm commitment from President Paul Kagame that women's rights are human rights and that development is not possible whilst leaving behind 52 percent of the population.

Excerpts of the interview follow.

IPS: Many countries have statements, laws, and quotas designed to increase participation of women in government, but still fail when it comes to implementation. What has motivated and sustained Rwanda's efforts to achieve gender parity in the legislature? Odette Nyiramilimo: I can say the thirst for development. If more than half the population remains behind, you can be sure of failure.

Another reason is that in the aftermath of the genocide, women played a great role in rebuilding the country. Women worked hard, took care of the orphans, brought communities together, so everybody could see women were key players. After that, the reality fell upon us that women's voices need to be heard.

IPS: What are some of the major challenges you've faced along the way and how did you overcome them? ON: To have women participate fully in political positions, the biggest challenge was women themselves. They were not trained to be politicians; they were not even trained to be leaders in any sphere, which was very clear during the electoral periods. You wouldn't see a single woman vying for any position. But today women have realised that they too have to be part of the development process.

The other challenge is men. They did not understand how a woman could be a leader. They thought women are better at home taking care of families or doing some social work as nurses, institutors… but today they do understand, because they have seen what women can do. They have experienced the leadership of women.

The other challenge is cultural barriers, where women feel that they have to let men lead. A woman being the heart of the family has limited time to spend in an office, to look for information by reading newspapers or listening to news. They have other responsibilities of taking care of the children and the husband.

But now there is some change of heart in men, who now understand that they too need to be proactive in taking care of their families as compared to a few years back.

I would say the challenge that women face today is balancing careers and family, being leaders – especially as women – needs to start at home. We cannot abscond from our duties as mothers and wives, and therefore need to learn the delicate art of balancing. Failing at home will more often than not be interpreted as weak or incapable leadership.

It is time men stop seeing women as competitors but as partners. We still experience hostilities as women from some of our male colleagues. Some of them started feeling threatened by the large number of women in parliament and started advocating for a change in the law, saying that women should not receive special treatment in the next elections.

But we are fighting for the same cause: and that is development for our country. That is what they should understand.

These were the major challenges. We recognise that we are still not yet there and there's a lot more to be done to achieve equality for all. Our aim is to have 30 percent of women in every sector, commerce, education, health, and so on.

IPS: How did you manage to achieve this? How were you able to encourage women and convince men that women too can lead? ON: First by drawing up laws that gave women more rights. In 1999, we passed a law on inheritance and for the first time women could inherit land from their families. After that several other laws were passed that made sure women too had a say.

In 2003, the new constitution allocated 30 percent to women at any decision making position, which ended up having 48 percent of seats in parliament held by women, an effort that encouraged women to participate in politics, from local governments to highest level.

Women's associations like Unity Club, Rwanda Women Leaders Caucus, Rwanda Women Parliamentary Forum, also played a big role at sensitising women to take part. Their members, as women in leadership, also held educational conferences for women and girls. We went to schools, talked to associations, to public gatherings, to opinion leaders, and so on… It is still an ongoing process.

A good example is an initiative by the first lady called the Imbuto Foundation, which awards girls topping their classes in primary and secondary education. Women in leadership positions are invited by this organisation to encourage the girls not only to perform in class but also outside class and it has had tremendous results in changing the mindset.

IPS: You and other women have been in a position of power for a significant time now. What changes have you brought to parliament and government and how have these changes translated into general improvement for the Rwandan women? ON: First and foremost is the change in the mindset that says women should always play second fiddle. Rwandese culture – and African culture – generally spells out a woman’s position as second to the man.

That has now changed. Women now have confidence in themselves that they can be politicians, entrepreneurs, and scientists. A significant number of them are doing quite a job influencing the rest of the population.

Today it is easier for women to access bank loans – that was unheard of a few years back. In my own personal experience I couldn't get a bank loan simply because I was a woman!

The number of girls and women in higher institutions of learning has increased; especially the number of those doing Sciences and Technology has shot up significantly as compared to yesteryears.

IPS: At what levels would you say women have been able to influence government the most? ON: I would say at the national level, because that is the level that has potential for most tangible results. A good example being passing of crucial laws: inheritance law, law against gender based violence, gender mainstreaming in budget, to mention a few.

Women in leadership believe that a continued advocacy for gender equality is needed at all levels, particularly at the grassroots, and educating our male peers on the importance of involving equally women for the greater growth of our nation.

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