A free and Equal World for Women

Growing up as a young girl I always knew that one day women would be at the same level as the men. The women around me were always negative, claiming that it is a man’s world. I would get so angry when I saw the boys going out to play and us the girls not allowed to, even after our chores.

Surprisingly out of nowhere my dad stood up for me and stated that I should be given the same treatment as my brother. From then on, he always encouraged me to pursue what I wanted and to never let anyone hold me down. It is now 16 years since my father was taken away from us but he is always in my heart. When we I feel I cannot, I hear him whispering in my ears “yes you can”.

I have been given an opportunity to work with marginalized and vulnerable groups in remote villages and I see how women and children are suffering. Most of them have resigned to the way they live and are not eager to change the way the community feels about culture. Many of them were married off at early ages and do not have a choice when it comes to child birth. They are giving birth every year and they are the ones who fend for their families and on top of all this the men subject them to domestic violence.

I envision a future where girls are given the chance to go to school and they are free to choose their own marriage partners. I also envision a future where women are given a chance to control the number of the children they want and are also given free family planning services. I envision a future where women and men compete fairly for jobs, I envision a future where women are not sexually harassed at work. I envision a future where 90 percent of the Government leaders are women. I envision a future where Ida a 24 old woman can leave her matrimonial home because her husband is so violent towards her and her children and is able to look for a job and look after herself and her children.

For this vision to come to pass we need to empower these women especially those at the grass root level. Being a VOF correspondent will help my voice be heard all over the world. Being able to interact with as many women from different organizations and cultures, I am able to learn how women overcome various challenges and this will enable me be a better leader in my community, country and world at large. This VOF program will teach me how to articulate the issues and challenges that I have identified within my community. It will also teach me how to advocate for these crucial issues on the various international platforms.

This program will help be a strong woman, a woman who can advocate for the issues of her community and her country at large.

World pulse has made a part of the many sisters who have the same heart beat. I can no longer live without this community because it has become part of my life and being. Therefore the VOF correspondent program will make me a more intelligent sister of this great platform, who will reach the heights to ensure that women’s’ voices are heard.

VOF will be my amplifier for the women in the community.