ActionAid international Rwanda (AAIR) has committed to enhance its interventions in women’s economic empowerment as a way of ensuring development that is based on rights and dignity.

Josephine Uwamariya, the ActionAid country director, told The New Times that empowering women not only helps to empower the whole family but also to fight gender based violence in families.

"When a woman is empowered, there is no gender based violence in the family.

Women who do not totally rely on their husbands are not sexually abused or violated. We will focus on women empowerment for socio-economic development,” said Uwamariya.

Leandre Karekezi, the Gisagara District mayor, one of the six districts in which AAIR operates, said empowering women will enable local administrative entities and the country in general to achieve their goals.

He said, "For instance, in our district, AAIR helps us in women empowerment and education, especially in constructing early childhood development centres (ECD) and girls’ rooms at schools,” he said.

Action Aid International Rwanda helps communities with basic services like water, health, education and improved agriculture production, value addition and post harvest handling initiatives.

It also supports programmes aimed at increasing women’s economic capacity for their full participation and inclusion in development and decision making processes so that they can live a dignified life.

Esperance Habiyambere, the president of Tuzamure Agaseke in Gitesi Sector, Karongi District, one of the cooperatives supported by AAIR, said empowering them will make them equal partners in national development"Before, I thought I couldn’t achieve anything as a housewife. I thought only men could engage in income generating activities but I have since realised that I have potential to operate a business. Together I and my colleagues in the association are into weaving and we now own a maize processing plant. Our lives are certainly better,” she said.

Since 1997, more than 30,000 women have directly benefited from Action Aid programmes and more than 300 vulnerable households were provided with decent housing.

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