2025: Year of Action for Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality in Zimbabwe

By Ilyana Sithole

The Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development has unveiled a wide-ranging plan to enhance women’s empowerment and gender equality in 2025. In an exclusive interview, the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Mavis Sibanda, outlined the Ministry’s ambitious multi pronged approach, citing a range of strategies that cover economic empowerment, health and well-being, political engagement, and prevention of gender-based violence (GBV).

Economic Empowerment Takes Center Stage:
Among 2025’s most important areas of emphasis will be the growth in women’s access to funds. The Ministry will achieve this by providing grants, microfinance institutions, and low-interest loans specifically for women entrepreneurs with increased support. Most importantly, training initiatives will be implemented to allow women to learn how to most efficiently utilize these funds and expand their businesses. Market access shall also be accorded, with efforts to link women-owned enterprises and businesses to local, regional, and global markets via trade fairs, online presence, and strategic alliances.

Health, Well-being, and Climate Resilience:
Considering the interlinkages of most challenges, the Ministry shall deal with major health and well-being issues confronting women. This involves placing reproductive health, mental health, and healthcare service access at the forefront through campaigns of sensitization, enhanced service provision, and counseling. Eliminating period poverty is also a significant one, with increased training in reusable sanitary ware to make sure individuals have access to sustainable and affordable menstrual products. Future ambitions include the Ministry collaborating with other stakeholders in offering training on climate change, enabling girls and women to be adapted to, and reduce, effects of climate change at the community grassroots level.

Aspiring towards gender equality across all sectors:
Apart from economic empowerment and health, the strategy outlined monumental measures in advocating for overall gender equality. Revised National Gender Policy (2024-2030) will be rolled out and implemented, initiating a national template for gender equality and women empowerment programs. Political and decision positions participation by more women will be made easier by advocacy forums such as bi-annual Women in Leadership Summit and Intergenerational debates. The Zimbabwe Climate Change Gender Action Plan will introduce a gender-responsive climate change program response.

Elimination of Gender-Based Violence and Harmful Practices:
GBV remains a top priority. The Ministry will enhance GBV prevention and response systems, strengthen data management, and focus on decreasing the occurrence of all types of GBV. It will do so by rolling out the Zimbabwe National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence (2023-2030) and the High-Level Political Compact on Leaving No One Behind: Ending GBV and Harmful Practices. Operationalization of Safe Shelters and One-Stop Centres, GBV and gender equality research, for example, the cost of GBV, will also serve as the source of evidence-based programming. Above all, there will be a male engagement strategy to mobilize men to become champions of the GBV movement.

Institutionalizing Structures and Interconnectedness:
The Ministry attaches importance to the importance of sound institutional structures and coordination. Actions will be undertaken to reinforce gender accountability structures, enhance coordination of Gender Equality and Women Empowerment (GEWE) at all levels, and increase data production and analysis on gender equality. Zimbabwe will also lead the regional and international GEWE platforms, e.g., hosting the SADC Ministers of Gender/Women Affairs meeting, as evidence of commitment to benchmarking against the best global practice.

Dr. Sibanda reiterated that the plans of the ministry are a major advance towards achieving meaningful and sustainable progress in Zimbabwean gender equality and women empowerment issues. This concerted effort by government ministries, civil society, and development partners is expected to bring about deep change in girls and women across the country.