National Women conference opens in Juba

By Simon Deng

The second National Women Conference bringing together women leaders from different sectors of society to discuss challenges and harnessing opportunities for women affirmative action opened on Tuesday in Juba.

Speaking at the opening of the five-day event, Vice President for Gender and Youth Cluster, Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, called on women leaders to build network to lobby for their rights and also work collectively to empower the girl child.

“We need to build strong network of support for one another, we need to reinvest in our young girls and equip them with education, and we need to push for policies that put women at the center of economic development,” said Mabior at Radisson Blu Hotel.

Jemma Nunu Kumba, Speaker of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly, said the government has made progress in realizing affirmative action and economic empowerment for women, while alluding to a raft of legislation and international protocols the government has acceded to in recent years.

“We also need to appreciate our president, since  2021 we have done our best to make sure all the laws, protocols, and conventions that are related to women empowerment are successfully ratified, more notably  the Maputo protocol,” said Kumba.

 Robert Mayom Deng, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Juba said that women need to register with political parties in order to participate in key decision making process in the country.

“There is also need for political parties to provide strong support and engage with women unions to ensure that gender is mainstreamed within political organizations,” said Deng.

Rukaya Mohamed, the Country Director for UN Women emphasized the need to beef up efforts to improve on the critical gender equality landscape, adding that women need to work hard to achieve the 35 percent affirmative action enshrined in the 2018 revitalized peace agreement.

“We have to reflect on the ongoing work to enhance gender equality, we must unify our efforts to achieve gender equality and we have to work hard to attain or even surpass the 35 percent affirmative action,” said Mohamed.

Ayaa Benjamin Warille, the Minister of Gender, Child and Social Welfare said South Sudanese women must strategize on how to address negative societal norms that hinder access to education of girls.

 “Although we have made the stride in recent years, there is still a long way to go; statistics reveal that women remain significantly underrepresented in decision-making positions. It is crucial that we identify the barriers,” said Warille.

“We must mobilize our networks, engage with stakeholders and advocate for inclusion of women rights in the constitution. We must be visible, vocal and vigilant in ensuring our perspective is woven into the fabric of our nation,” she added

The second National Women’s Conference taking place under the theme, “Towards strengthening women’s structure for gender equality” is organized by the South Sudan Women General Assembly.