Considering women as mere aides for men is a flawed view that has no place in Rwanda, President Paul Kagame has said.

The President was addressing over 120 members of Unity Club and Rwanda Women Leaders Network (RWLN) at a dinner in Kigali on Saturday.

The event was part of activities to celebrate the International Women’s Day and Rwanda’s achievement in advancing women rights. "It is said that men are the heads of families but you must know that women are the hearts of our families,” Kagame said.

Unity Club is an organisation of current and former senior government leaders and their spouses while the Rwanda Women Leaders Network (RWLN) is a platform that brings together women leaders and achievers to share their experiences and leverage their potentials to nurture young women toward the development of the nation. The First Lady Mrs Jeannette Kagame, who attended the event, is the Chairperson of Unity Club 

The two groups joined hands to host an event to celebrate International Women’s Day marked worldwide on March 8 annually.

"Rwandan women are now at a level where they can effectively contribute toward national development,” said Dr Monique Nsanzabaganwa, the Vice-Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda who is also the First vice-chairperson of Unity Club.

The International Women’s Day was celebrated in Rwanda under the theme; ‘Make it happen: Strive for Sustainable Development’, which is a call to all Rwandans to sustain the achievements made in the promotion of women rights and their participation in the country’s development.

Rwanda is one of the places in the World where gender equality is at an advanced level with Rwanda’s Parliament boasting the highest number of women legislators in the world, while Rwandan women hold key decision making position in the government, civil society, and the private sector.

President Kagame urged all to think beyond numbers and work to achieve even more.

"We cannot lose our focus or determination, despite the encouraging results recorded in Rwanda,” he said.

"This is not just about numbers and statistics, but also the responsibility, that we have toward each other,” the President added.

"Rwandan women understand that we have to celebrate our achievements but also work toward achieving more,” Nsanzabaganwa said.

She said that there was still a challenge of pulling hundreds of Rwandan households out of poverty, especially women who remain subsistence farmers in rural areas.

During the event, President Kagame denounced violence against women and encouraged the latter to speak up against violence inflicted to them.

"Rwandans need to respect each other and their spouses. Gender based violence will not be tolerated. Asking a man to stop beating up his wife shouldn’t be negotiable; we have the responsibility to apply the law to stop it,” Kagame said.

President Kagame added that equality is essential to achieving development.

"Promoting gender equality does not take place in isolation. It is an integral part of our national commitment,” he said.

At the dinner, it was made clear through discussions that men and women should both complement each other and not shame one another if Rwanda is to achieve further development.

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