Africa-Press – Rwanda. As the world concludes a campaign of 16 days of activism against Gender-Based Violence 2021, youths have been urged to join the efforts against GBV. All stakeholders are encouraged to put special focus on mobilizing the growing number of young people as allies in promoting gender justice and preventing GBV on and offline.
The call was made by rights organizations AfriYAN Rwanda, Health Development Initiative (HDI) and Rwanda Men’s Resource Center (RWAMREC) and supported by the Ministry of Gender as they marked the end of the ‘Orange Campaign’, themed: “Speak Out! END GENDER BASED VIOLENCE”.
Evode Niyibizi the Country Director of AfriYAN Rwanda says, “Rwanda is lucky to have a very dynamic young generation with commitment to drive positive changes in our society. When it comes to eliminating gender related issues and GBV, putting them at the center and investing in their potentials are key towards a gender just and violence free society.”
Country Director of KOICA Chon, Gyongshik said, “The 16 days of Campaign provided us an opportunity to reflect on the emerging issues of inequality that put women and girls at risk especially in COVID 19 pandemic era. KOICA will continue to cooperate closely with the government of Rwanda and local organisations to end GBV and to contribute to achieve the global goal in Gender Equality.”
The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence is an annual international campaign that kicks off on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs until 10 December, Human Rights Day.
The ‘Orange Campaign’ was organized during the 16 Days of Activism to raise awareness, boost advocacy and create opportunities for discussion about the challenges and possible solutions on how best Gender Based-Violence (GBV) can be prevented and eliminated.
Under the ‘Orange Campaign’, the three organizations conducted social media campaigns and hosted several inter-university debate competitions. They also hosted a workshop for young influencers aimed at encouraging adolescents and youth under 35 who make up 78% of Rwanda’s population, to participate more in meaningful and inclusive policy and decision making.
Silas Ngayaboshya Director General of Gender Promotion and Women Empowerment noted, “Fighting GBV concerns us all. However, changing mindsets and attitudes that have been instilled in our society for centuries requires multiple interventions. One of those is to involve young people who can be groomed from a young age to have a more gender sensitive approach in everything that they do. While culture and religion should be respected, we must evolve, sieve through and identify which of the norms and beliefs encourage discrimination and abuse and which ones are progressive. That is the only we will win this fight.”
“Fighting GBV is a commitment that we should all sign up for and the 16 Days of Activism are not only a reminder of our responsibility but also a challenge to all of us to evaluate and check ourselves, to push for more and most importantly, to do more as individuals and institutions,” says Sylvie Nsanga a Local Gender Activist.
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