SIGNATORY:Rwanda ratified protocols

Religious leaders have been called upon to play a key role towards the promotion of gender equality in the country.The call was made, Wednesday, by the deputy head of Gender Monitoring Office (GMO), Ramathan Barengayabo,  while addressing over 150 religious leaders at a consultative meeting on gender issues.Barengayabo said GMO monitors how gender issues are implemented in public institutions, the private sector, civil society and religious associations in the country. He added that the meeting was aimed at sharing ideas and views on how best religious denominations can improve gender balance and its related issues among their respective congregations."As you know, Rwanda is among the countries that signed various international agreements concerning the promotion of gender balance. It’s in this regard that I encourage you, as God’s servants, to collaborate with GMO and other concerned stakeholders in changing people’s mindsets on this issue by teaching your followers about the importance of fighting against any form of injustice based on gender,” he said.He requested the participants to always send monthly and annual reports to GMO about their respective activities regarding promoting gender in their activities, saying it will help his institution get a clear understanding of the contribution of religions in improving gender in the country.Speciose Mukagahima, in charge of Gender and HIV programmes in the Rwanda Protestant Council (CPR), observed that lack of updated laws, rules and regulations regarding gender balance is some of the factors still hampering the process of gender promotion among religions in the country.She called for revision of the available laws."According to my analysis and observation, ladies play a minor role when it comes to issues related to decision making among Rwandan religions, and this is a serious hindrance. It has to be addressed as soon as possible,” Mukagahima said.She noted it was imperative that religious leaders give women and girls equal opportunities to participate in all decision making, saying it would spur Rwandan development in general.Sheikh Swaleh Nshimiyimana, the Executive Secretary of the Rwanda Muslim Association (AMUR) said: "The Muslim community in this country gives total respect and value to gender promotion because everybody was created in God’s image. This means that there is no one who should violate the rights of his or her colleagues because of gender differences”.He added that AMUR also promotes gender equality through education, saying that currently over 55 percent of Muslim girls are in school which was not the case in the past."I thank our government for putting in place various laws against gender based violence because it has acted as a guiding tool for us ,” Sheikh Nshimiyimana said.