The Gender Monitoring Office (GMO) will on Friday, May 10 certify more institutions for their efforts in promoting gender equality in the workplace.

This initiative is part of the Gender Equality Seal Programme, launched in 2017 in partnership with the Private Sector Federation, UNDP, UN WOMEN, and USAID, to encourage both public and private organisations to create equitable working conditions for men and women.

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The Gender Equality Seal is awarded to organisations that meet stringent criteria for gender equality, including a gender-responsive culture, fair hiring and promotion practices, support for career development, and robust policies against sexual harassment.

In a recent statement, the GMO announced plans to certify 12 institutions and recognise eight more. Since 2017, 54 companies have participated in the program, with 18 earning the Gold Seal for their exemplary commitment to gender equality.

Among the certified institutions, 15 are private companies and three are public.

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This year, the program expanded to include small and medium enterprises (SMEs), with nine joining the initiative. The program evaluates institutions in six key areas: closing gender-based pay gaps, increasing women's roles in decision-making, promoting work-life balance, enhancing access to non-traditional jobs for both genders, combating workplace sexual harassment, and encouraging inclusive, non-sexist communication.

The GMO is urging more companies to participate in the Gender Equality Seal Programme to promote gender equality, especially in the private sector, which employs 90% of the workforce. The office referenced a recent statement by President Paul Kagame, emphasising the urgency of achieving gender equality. Recent studies show that it could take more than a decade to achieve gender equality targets at the current rate of progress. We must challenge ourselves to do things differently and with a sense of urgency.

Under the National Strategy for Transformation (NST1), the GMO's contributions to economic transformation focuses on promoting gender accountability in the private sector through the Gender Equality Seal and continued monitoring of gender-focused budgets.