A delegation of women from Zimbabwe visiting Rwanda has much to learn from the country.

The women who include a deputy Minister, Members of Parliament, feminists and gender- activists are on a one-week study tour to learn what the country has achieved in the advancement of women’s rights.

Rwanda is known and celebrated for its remarkable achievements in not only uplifting the status of women, but promoting them to leadership positions, in strategic ministries, key institutions such as the judiciary and police.

Not only are women occupying positions previously thought to be exclusively male domains, they have also spearheaded reconstruction and national building efforts.

Rwanda is where she is today, because of men and women who in partnership held hands and took on the insurmountable task of rebuilding a nation shattered by decades of misrule, culminating in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

A foundation for development had to be established, one that is based on the basic tenets of democratic principles, in which gender equality is key.

Understanding that uplifting the status of women is a key ingredient in national development; Rwanda has scored high across the board, be it in ICT, economic growth or just delivering in social services.

Rwanda has become a knowledge base, not just for those who wish to understand the role women have played in national development, but visitors come in daily droves to find out more about the success of national healing and reconciliation processes.

The Zimbabwean sisters will also draw much inspiration from their Rwandan counterparts, who in spite of the horrors of the Genocide they went through, stand tall, not defined by that dark history, but a future that gets brighter by the day.

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