…..Promoting the financial inclusion alongside the 50 Million African Women Speak Networking Platform Project (50MAWSP) is a social responsibility for East African Media outlets.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, 24th June 2019: The East African Community Secretariat under 50 Million African Women Speak Project (50MAWSP) has been engaging different Media houses in the Republics of Rwanda and Burundi in an effort to gain the media’s support as key Project stakeholders.
The 18th to 21st June 2019 discussions focused on how best to ensure effective media coverage during the 50MAWS platform launch and as well as awareness raising campaign after the launch.The 50MAWS platform, which has been under construction for the last eight months, is expected to be launched by December 2019. The technical development of the platform has been finalized and the Partner States have embarked on populating the platform with information.
East African Community Secretariat, Arusha, Tanzania, 30th March 2019: The 50 Million Speak Project (50MWS) conducted a user training on the Digital Platform from the 25th to 29th March 2019, in Lusaka-Zambia, aimed at providing women with access to information on financial and non-financial services while creating a community of women who will act as peers, advisors and mentors to each other.
The training was organized by the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), which is the Coordinating Regional Community in the implementation of the 50MWS Project.
The objective of the training was to equip the users with the required skills in managing the Platform ahead of the official launch planned in a few months.
East African Community Secretariat, 22nd March, 2019:The 50 Million African Women Speak Networking Platform Project (50MWS) is working with different stakeholders to help solve the various issues that women in business face, including access to finance.
On the 21st March 2019, a 4-member delegation from the East African Community Secretariat together with two Officers from the Tanzanian Ministries in charge of East African Affairs and the Ministry responsible for Gender paid a visit to women empowerment organisations in Dar es Salaam.
The objective of this field visit was for the project to understand better how these organisations operate so as to enable the 50MWS Project forge partnerships around the women economic empowerment agenda.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, 8th March, 2019: The East African Community has joined the rest of the world in marking the 2019 International Women's Day under the theme, Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change. The 8th March 2019 event was held at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
As provided for in Articles 121 and 122 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC, Partner States have undertaken various efforts to enhance the Role of Women in Business and Socio-Economic Development.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, 13th December, 2018: A first consultative meeting with financial institutions in the Republic of Uganda on the implementation of the 50 Million African Women Speak Networking Platform (50MWS) Project was held on 11th December, 2018 in Kampala, Uganda.
The objective of the meeting was to introduce the project to the financial institutions and to solicit their support as key stakeholders in the implementation of the project.
EAC Director of Social Sectors, Mary Makoffu, reiterated the critical role of financial institutions in the implementation and success of the project.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 25th November, 2018:An EAC Secretariat delegation has completed a week-long visit to financial institutions in the Republics of Kenya and Rwanda. The objective of the 19 to 23, November 2018 visit, was to engage through consultative meetings with key financial institutions on the implementation of the 50 Million African Women Speak Networking Platform (50MWS) Project.
Leading the Delegation, EAC Director for Social Sectors, Mary Makoffu, noted that the EAC Secretariat had embarked on this engagement with financial institutions at a time when the World is striving to promote financial inclusion, encouraging financial institutions and decision makers to facilitate women access finance the same way men do.
“Women are the pillars of our shaky economies and need to be supported for the interest of the whole society. It is however visible that there are still many more men with access to financial services like loans and bank accounts than women”, added Ms. Makoffu.
Wilson Muyenzi, 50MWS Project Coordinator expounded that on average, only 4.3 per cent of women entrepreneurs have access to loans in Africa. ”
While visiting the Republic of Kenya, Verity Mganga, the Deputy Director, Gender Affairs, Ministry of Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs in the Republic of Kenya, stressed on the critical role financial institutions have in the implementation of the 50MWS Project.
“I believe that cooperation between the Project and financial institutions is paramount, we must take cognizance of the ability of our financial institutions to promoting financial inclusion”, stated the Deputy Director.
During the Rwanda leg of the visit, the Director of Women Economic Empowerment, Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion, Jean Bosco Murangira, saluted the initiative of engaging Financial institutions around the implementation of the 50MWS Project.
“The 50MWS Project is coming to complement the efforts that are already being deployed by the Government of Rwanda in the fight against unemployment”, the Director remarked.
The Republic of Rwanda has embarked on a plan to create 1.5 million jobs by the year 2024, half of which target women and girls. Mr. Murangira noted however that most of the women targeted still lack skills that would enable them utilize the opportunity fully.
“I urge the implementers of the 50 MWS Project to prioritize building the capacity of women entrepreneurs therefore helping fast track the regions goals in the domain of women economic empowerment,” he added.
During the visit, Ministries involved in the implementation of the project in Kenya and Rwanda reaffirmed their commitment and called upon all stakeholders to support the innovative initiative.
Representatives of the Financial Institutions who attended the meetings highlighted that one of the biggest challenges that women entrepreneurs face besides lack of capital is the lack of confidence, right attitude and mindset to succeed in business.
They therefore recommended the Project to include capacity building sessions to supplement women entrepreneurs in their endeavors.
Most of the banks the EAC delegation engaged with said they have already embarked on the financial inclusion path by setting up products that specifically target women. The banks further expressed their comfort in working with women having noted an impressive trend in their loan repayments.
Meetings in the two countries were attended by participants from the financial services sector including commercial banks, Women banks, Government funds, micro finance institutions, cooperative banks, savings and credit cooperatives (SACCOs) as well as from the public sector mainly from Ministries of Gender, ICT and EAC Affairs.
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For more information please contact: Achel Bayisenge, Content Manager for the 50MWS Project, EAC Secretariat, Tel: +255 786726230 Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
About the East African Community Secretariat:
The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of five Partner States, comprising Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, 17th September, 2018:The East African Community Secretariat has launched Gender Policy that seeks an inclusive Community which guarantees equal rights and opportunities for women and men, boys and girls.
The EAC Gender Policy, which was launched at the EAC Headquarters, in Arusha, Tanzania has been developed to provide guidance on institutionalizing gender strategies in the EAC integration process in addition to ensuring that the rights of women and men, boys and girls are promoted, protected and realised on an equal basis.
The policy further aims at strengthening the mainstreaming of gender concerns in the planning and budgetary processes of all sectors in the EAC Organs, Institutions and Partner States.
Speaking at the opening session, on behalf of the EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of Productive and Social Sectors, Hon Christophe Bazivamo, the Director of Social Sectors at the EAC Secretariat, Ms. Mary Makoffu, said that the Gender Policy was developed out of the recognition that there still disparities among men and women in various spheres of life.
“For example, despite various accomplishments by Partner States in educating the girl child, and possessing various skills by women and girls, there was poor representation of women in the employment sector and more so in political representation,” said Director Makoffu.
Ms. Makoffu informed the participants at the launch that there was still misleading data and contradictions between targeted programme interventions and those incorporating gender perspectives across different sectors.
“This lack of accountability delays progress in advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women, girls and other marginalised groups,’’ she said.Ms. Makoffu said that Gender Equality was a key principle of the EAC integration process.
She said that under Article 6 (d) of the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC, Partner States committed to adhere to the principles of democracy, the rule of law, accountability, transparency, social justice, equal opportunities, gender equality, as well as recognition, promotion and protection of human and people’s rights.
Oh his part, Hon. Abdikadir Aden, Chairperson of the General Purpose Committee at the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) informed the participants that in a bid to contribute to the quest for Gender Equality, EALA passed the EAC Gender Equality and Equity Bill, 2017 on Women’s Day of 2017 in Kigali, Rwanda.
Hon. Aden said it was expected that the Bill, when fully assented to, would give an unprecedented boost to the observance and practice of gender equality in the region.“I am informed that the training that has been organized to provide relevant knowledge, skills and values that will allow participants to contribute effectively in the implementation of the EAC Gender policy and all efforts at mainstreaming Gender in their respective organizations and in the Partner States,” said the legislator.
He congratulate the EAC Secretariat for this great stride of launching the policy and called for all the EAC Organs and Institutions to practice, encourage and advocate for Gender Equality.
Dr. Kirsten Focken, the GIZ Programme Manager, underscored the importance of the EAC Gender Policy as an instrument saying that it would bridge the gender income inequality gap that has existed for over two decades within the EAC region.
Dr. Focken, who was represented by Joyce Kimaro, Senior Adviser at the GIZ called for joint research among stakeholders on laws and regulatory environments which facilitate or hinder gender equality and women’s economic participation, and develop specific activities or interventions to remove the barriers in the region.
Notes to Editors
In 2012, the EAC Secretariat with support from the Society for International Development (SID) and the Eastern African Sub-Regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI) commenced the process of developing the Policy. This was in compliance with the directive of the 25th Meeting of the Council of Ministers (EAC/CM25/Dir25) of August 2012 where the Council directed the Secretariat to develop policies on Gender Equality, Youth, Children, Social Protection and Community Development.
The EAC Gender Policy is anchored in Article 6 (d) of the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC where Partner States committed to adhere to the principles of democracy, the rule of law, accountability, transparency, social justice, equal opportunities, gender equality, as well as recognition, promotion and protection of human and people’s rights in accordance with the provisions of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights of 1986.
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For more information, please contact:
Mr Owora Richard Othieno Head, Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Department EAC Secretariat Arusha, Tanzania Tel: +255 784 835021 Email: OOthieno [at] eachq.org
About the East African Community Secretariat:
The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of five Partner States, comprising Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, 13th September, 2018:The East African Community Secretariat will launch a Gender Policy that seeks an inclusive community which guarantees equal rights and opportunities for women and men, boys and girls. The launch of the EAC Gender Policy is scheduled to take place on 17th September, 2018 at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
The EAC Gender Policy is anchored in Article 6 (d) of the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC where Partner States committed to adhere to the principles of democracy, the rule of law, accountability, transparency, social justice, equal opportunities, gender equality, as well as recognition, promotion and protection of human and people’s rights in accordance with the provisions of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights of 1986.
The EAC Gender Policy has been developed to provide guidance on institutionalizing gender strategies in the EAC integration agenda in order to ensure that the rights of women and men, boys and girls are promoted, protected and realized on an equal basis.
The policy further aims at strengthening the mainstreaming of gender concerns in the planning and budgetary processes of all sectors in the EAC Organs, Institutions and Partner States
The launch will be followed by the regional training of trainers on the EAC Gender Policy and Gender mainstreaming to the staff in the EAC Organs, Institutions and Partner State Ministries for effective policy implementation with a lens of gender equality.
The training is based on the recommendation of the Participatory EAC Gender Audit conducted in 2013 that emphasizes the review of the current Training Strategy/Program at the Secretariat to enhance gender mainstreaming capacities for the EAC Staff.
The expected outcome of the training will be to increased knowledge, skills and level of awareness among the participants; Clear recommendations for EAC Organs, Institutions and Partner States on Gender mainstreaming adopted and implemented, and; changes in work practices within the EAC Secretariat, Organs and Institutions among other.
Notes to Editors
The development of the EAC Gender Policy was in compliance with the directive of the 25th Meeting of the Council of Ministers (EAC/CM25/Dir25) of August 2012 whereby the Council directed the Secretariat to develop policies on Gender Equality, Youth, Children, Social Protection and Community Development.
The EAC Gender Policy has been developed to provide guidance on institutionalizing gender strategies in the EAC integration agenda in order to ensure that the rights of women and men, boys and girls are promoted, protected and realized on an equal basis.
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For more information, please contact:
Mr Owora Richard Othieno Head, Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Department EAC Secretariat Arusha, Tanzania Tel: +255 784 835021 Email: OOthieno [at] eachq.org
About the East African Community Secretariat:
The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of five Partner States, comprising Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, 7th September, 2018: Millions of East African women will be left behind if Kiswahili is not included in the languages to be used by the 50 Million African Women Speak Networking Platform.
This was one of the concerns raised by the different stakeholders, during consultative meetings that the EAC Secretariat conducted with various stakeholders in Zanzibar, United Republic of Tanzania. The consultative meetings were concluded on Thursday, 6th September, 2018 where a 2 day visit allowed the EAC Secretariat to meet with the different stakeholders to the 50 Million Women Speak (50 MWS) Project.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, 8th August, 2018: A four-day workshop bringing together implementing agencies of the 50 Million African Women Speak (50MWS) project, a software developing firm and representatives of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the project financiers, is currently underway in Lusaka, Zambia.
The 50MWS Project is being implemented by three different Regional Economic Communities (RECs), namely the East African Community (EAC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern (COMESA), and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
COMESA, which is coordinating the 50MWS Project, recently hired Izertis, a Spanish consulting firm to develop the 50MWS platform and the main objective of this workshop is for the implementers to clarify the scope of the platform and provide design inputs to the consulting firm.
The 50MWS Project aims at contributing to the economic empowerment of women through the provision of networking platforms to access information on financial and non-financial services so that they can start, grow or scale up their businesses.
At the opening of the workshop, Ambassador Dr. Kipyego Cheluget, COMESA Assistant Secretary General, assured the AfDB that the 50MWS project will be implemented for the benefits of all women.
Amb. Cheluget said that the different implementing RECs had held consultative meetings with their stakeholders to gather their views on how they want the project to be implemented.
‘’This is an opportunity for us to utilise the feedback from our partners,’’ Ambassador Kipyego said.
“This project comes when RECs are moving towards Digital Economic Integration, towards the full adoption of digital technologies with the objective of establishing seamless processes across the RECs Partner States to enable ease of doing business/trade and to enhance regional integration using ICT as a tool,” Amb. Kipyego added.
Amb. Kipyego urged the participants to volunteer ideas that would assist the consulting firm to create user-friendly platforms that could easily be accessed by women entrepreneurs.
The COMESA official suggested that the ideal platform should have unique features differentiating it from other multiple social media platforms that were already in existence.
Ms. Mary Makoffu, EAC Director of Social Sectors and head of the EAC delegation to the workshop, said in her opening remarks that the project was being implemented at a time when the EAC Partners States were rolling out instruments of Digital Trade to minimize physical barriers to trade in the reion.
Ms. Makoffu said that the 50MWS project would complement ongoing efforts to enhance the EAC economic integration agenda.
David Sabiti, COMESA 50 MWS Coordinator, expressed hope that women entrepreneurs would start using the platform six months after the Lusaka workshop.
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For more information please contact: Achel Bayisenge, Content Manager for the 50MWS Project Tel: +255 786726230; Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
About the East African Community Secretariat:
The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of five Partner States, comprising Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
