Marching Forward for Ethiopian Women’s Empowerment in the Spirit of International Women’s Day

March 8, 2025

Ever since the days of Clara Zetkin (1857-1933), women across the globe has always been voicing for women’s equality, freedom, access to justice and economic resources. Even in the most developed countries, women and their children are still grappling with lack of basic democratic rights. In many of the less developed countries too, women and children are still subject to war-induced displacements, harmful traditional practices shrouded in stereotypes, biases and traditional perception.

This year the world is celebrating the international Women’s Day under the theme #Each for Equal. The first International Women’s Day was marked in 1911, supported by over one million people. Today, IWD belongs to all groups collectively everywhere. IWD is not country, group or organization specific. The 2025 theme, ‘Accelerate Action,’ calls for rapid advancements in gender equality. It focuses on recognizing strategies and tools that drive women’s progress in education, employment, and leadership.

March 8 has a special place in the history of the struggle of Ethiopian women who were subjected to the unprecedented oppression and repression during the imperial era and the totalitarian regime of the Derg. Today tribute is to be paid for all those who labored to improve the status of women in Ethiopia. Today, the fact that women occupy 50 percent of the cabinet and that more than 30 percent of HPR seats figuratively shows a promising trend. But when it comes to economic empowerment, decision making at middle level government positions and women lecturers at the higher institutes of learning specifically covering engineering and other hard science fields, there is indeed more to be desired.

Some women in rural Ethiopia are still subject to FGM and EM while millions of women across the country and their children are suffering from the effects of ethnic based conflicts compounded with a trauma of unparalleled scale. Most of the constitutional rights of women are still far from being put into practice. Whether they are public servants with the highest post in the government nomenclature or engineers engaged in road building, they are also responsible for household affairs and raising children.

The author observes a glimmer of hope for Ethiopian women in the context of the current reforms even then despite the institutionalization of women and children’s affairs at ministerial level and a standing committee in the HPR and office of the PM, the effective implementation of women’s democratic and economic empowerment is yet to come.

The reform in Ethiopia is so comprehensive that it has already gained international recognition and acceptance but ultimately the bottom line is the extent to which it could help to improve the livelihoods of women whether married single or widow.

Of special importance is the change of attitude that we all have about women in this country. Concerns about women’s empowerment through education and promotion of technologies that ease their life is critical for uplifting women. In this regard, support for disabled women and women headed families need to be one of the top priories in the government reform and development programs.

The improvement in the quality of life for women is an important indicator for social development in Ethiopia.

Women in Ethiopia have shown remarkable achievements are showing their ability to serve at all levels of government and civil society activities by thrashing the traditional and customary stereotypes that they had to face.

For Ethiopian women what matters is not that their participation in all aspects of public life is ensured. It is not a matter of participation but owning them as the most important segment of the Ethiopian society. Over my pervious opinions, I have stressed that women’s question in Ethiopia is a human question primarily because what affects them affects the entire Ethiopian society irrespective ethnic, age, religious affiliation or gender difference.

As the national election is looming, women’s participation in the entire system and their rightful power of competing for seats in the parliament is a litmus paper that would test the nature of the democratic process in the country. Women need to be not partners in the election but co-owners of the entire electoral process.

Women achievers have already surfaced up in every aspect of socio-economic and political life in this country. They need to speak for peace as lack of peace primarily affects them and their children. This year’s celebration of March 8 needs to be crowned with heralding the achievements of women at all levels.

Women living with HIV need to be uplifted through occupational therapy of higher quality. Women who are in correctional centers need to be empowered so that they can mix with the society after they complete their prison terms. Special programs are to be designed for women sex workers. Rape of girl children should be stopped and no women should be left out of any social activity in Ethiopia. We need to march with our wives, girl children, young women to their empowerment as we all celebrate March 8, the International Women’s Day.

The multi-faceted role of women in Ethiopia’s development and prosperity is ever more becoming decisive. Ethiopian women ministers, commissioners and heads of agencies have continued to prove their capacity by leading major public organizations that are key to the development of the country.

Women organized in various caucuses in the HPR are effectively participating in the law making processes in the country and promotion of a democratic order. Ethiopia is undertaking various programs in ensuring gender parity across various sectors in the county. The reform programs that are unfolding in the country are opening up full participation of women in all spheres of socio-economic and political life of the country. The sphere of their participation is growing at promising level.

Enhancing women’s leadership in Ethiopia requires targeted policies, social transformation, and economic empowerment. Here are key strategies to strengthen women’s leadership roles:

Strengthening legal and policy framework by further enforcing gender equality laws and ensure implementation. This could include Advocate for quotas and affirmative action in political and corporate leadership. Aligning national policies with global commitments like the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Further Improve girls’ access to quality education at all levels is very important to improve gender parity at all levels. This could include Provide leadership and soft skills training for women in the areas of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education for girls.

Moreover, supporting women entrepreneurs through access to credit and grant must be considered as a component of women’s empowerment mechanism. Promoting equal employment opportunities in all industries and strengthening financial literacy programs for women will empower them to manage and decide on their own activities and projects.

Women in Ethiopia, particularly those who live in the rural areas, should be supported with awareness programs on their legal rights and leadership role. The media in Ethiopia is not doing enough on promoting the achievements of women in rural Ethiopia. They do not touch upon stereotypes on women. Men should rally in the forefront to advocate for women’s rights as citizens.

The author thinks that women who head families due to several reasons need the support of communities and private sector organizations. They need to have access to both modern technologies and appropriate technology products that can ease their burden as heads of families.

In addition, disabled women and those who live with HIV virus need to be provided with a special health care that the government extends to lower income families. Ethiopian women have achieved a lot over the last six years based on reforms on gender parity but still there is more to be done particularly in the rural areas of the country.

Ethiopian women still face several challenges related to gender violence in various parts of the country. In conflict ridden areas, women and their children are subjected to gender violence which is in most cases remain unreported and unpunished. This has been going on for decades and seems unabated every year. The government should come up with more laws that could help to stop and punish the offenders.

Although some improvements have been made over the years, women in Ethiopia are still suffering from harmful traditional practices in some rural areas of the country. The government and CSOs have been organizing various sensitization programs across the country and promising results have been attained but more is still to be done.

During the advents of climate-induced natural disasters like drought and floods, women and their children again suffer the most. Over the last several decades, women were forces to take care of their families under extremely difficult conditions particularly in the rural areas of Ethiopia.

Now therefore, what is to be done to improve the living conditions of women and their families? The author wishes to forward several recommendations. In the first place, all public and private development programs including investments and projects need to ensure gender sensitivity of their interventions. Schools and institutions of higher learning in the country need to ensure that quality-learning environment suited to the conditions and needs of girl children is put in place.

Moreover, affirmative actions mentioned earlier need to be organized to create enabling environment for women Establishing day care centers in public institutions and ministries is quite encouraging to enable women workers to concentrate on their duties. This needs to continue in a more sustainable manner.

BY SOLOMON DIBABA

THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD SATURDAY 8 MARCH 2025