All posts by : Iccao

GENDER EQUALITY seems like a far-away dream these days, while progress has been made by a

number of groups it is still a discouraging story. Over 2 billion women don’t have the same

employment options as men and at this rate it will take about a century to close the global pay gap. In

the case of human trafficking, where men as much as women are affected, statistics show women and

girls make up over 70% of the world’s human trafficking victims, with regards to this data, gender

equality needs to be a priority.

The Integrating Capacity and Community Advancement Organization (ICCAO) has noted the efforts of

the world in fighting this injustice to attain sustainable development in Tanzania and the world in

general because of the following factors.

IT SAVES LIFE

Because of their lack of empowerment and resources in many places, women and girls face life

threatening situations e.g women and girls of color in the US tend to have higher rates of poverty,

greater challenges accessing health care, reduced access to education employment opportunities

(lower wages when they do find work). At the 2005 world conference on Disaster Reduction, experts

discussed how gender inequality plays a role in death and injury and other data shows that climate

change which results to natural disasters puts women and girls in even more vulnerable positions.

Bringing gender perspective into discussion it allows women to play a bigger role in their own

protection.

IT RESULT IN BETTER HEALTHCARE

Research shows that women in general receive substandard healthcare with regards to men, there

are many reasons for this including lack of education and lower income. Diseases that affect women

more than men such as (Chronic pain condition) aren’t as well-researched and they are often not

taken as seriously by medical professionals. When women are equal in society, their health will be

impacted positively.

IT HELPS BUSINESSES

When women receive the same education and job opportunities as men, they can improve any

organization they join. Studies show in USA (United States of America) that diversity of all types

(gender, race, sexual identity) increases an organization’s productivity and innovation. One 2016

study from the University of California looked at big companies in the state and found that the ones

with women in the top leadership positions performed better than the companies with mostly men at

the top.

IT IS GOOD FOR THE ECONOMY

Women’s impact does not stop with individual companies and organizations. Studies show that

increasing women’s participation in the economy is good for the economy in USA. In the Organization

for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, if the female employment rates were

raised to match Sweden, it would lead to a GDP (the total monetary or market value of all the finished

goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a specific time period) increase equivalent

to $6 trillion dollars. Gender pay gaps end up costing the economy in these countries.

IT REDUCED POVERTY

Poverty rates are the highest among young girls. As boys and girls get older, the gender gap in poverty

gets larger and this is more likely to happen because girls don’t receive the same education and job

opportunities as boys and when girls marry they often don’t work. Gender inequality keeps women

and their families trapped in a cycle of poverty. When women receive better education, healthcare

and job opportunities they can thrive. Investing in gender inequality is a sustainable and highly

effective way to reduce poverty.

IT LEADS TO BETTER RACIAL EQUALITY

Gender and race equality are closely linked. With issues like the gender pay gap, race plays a big role,

white and asian women earn more than black, and native women in the United Kingdom. In the

United States black women face a higher risk of death from pregnancy-related causes. When gender

equality does not considers race as a factor, it improves race equality at the same time.

IT CAN LEAD TO PEACE

Research shows in human rights, gender equality is linked to peace even more so than a country’s

GDP or level of democracy. In the USA, states with better gender equality are more lenient towards

women serving in the military while in others states women continue to face gender based violence

from their male counterparts. When a country addresses major areas of gender inequality like

education and employment, it fosters peace.

IT REDUCES HUMAN TRAFFICKING

While men are also vulnerable to become victims of human trafficking. Women and girls make up the

majority, they are more vulnerable and traffickers see them as easier targets. With better education

and job options women will be less likely to end up in trafficking situations as often. Gender equality

can also strengthen a country, reducing poverty and instability which fuel human trafficking.

Addressing gender equality is crucial for achieving sustainable development and building a fair and

inclusive society. It requires efforts to challenge social norms, promote equal opportunities, provide

access to education and healthcare and ensure the full participation and representation of women in

all spheres of life. Efforts should be put to promoting legal and policy strengthening and or reform

and empowering women and girls to exercise their sexual and reproductive health and human

rights.

Integrating Capacity and Community Advancement Organization ( ICCAO ) is a Non-Governmental Organization dedicated to helping disadvantaged groups in Tanzania, with a main focus on out of school girls and youth in general. ICCAO aims to help create an independent generation of entrepreneurs and leaders all across Tanzania. To achieve this it has developed programs such as ‘Kijiwe Kipya’ where youth can demonstrate skills with an opportunity to acquire funding to promote these skills, but also have a chance at learning new skills to be used for self improvement.

For ICCAO to thrive, as is the case for any organization profit or non-profit, there has to be a state of sustainability in the economy, politics and culturally. To understand how a country can have a state of sustainability it is best to understand the global goals of sustainable development for least developing countries.

In the year 2015, world leaders decided on 17 goals for Sustainable Development. These goals were to ensure a better future, with the goals targeting the year 2030 as minimum target to have achieved the global goals. With respect to these goals, ICCAO reiterates its actions based on the Global Goals of Sustainable Development.

POVERTY

Refers to when one lacks resources to provide the basic necessities of life, being food water or clothing. On a national level poverty can either be “Absolute” or “Relative”. Absolute poverty refers to when household income is way below the capability of providing basic needs such as food, shelter, water, education or healthcare. Relative poverty is when a household is able to meet 50% of its basic needs.

Globally, about 9.2% of the world population lives in poverty, that is almost 700 million people. With countries such as South Sudan, Equatorial Guinea, Madagascar, Eritrea and Burundi exhibit the highest rates of poverty in the world. In Tanzania, according to World Bank statistics has about 55.6 million people living in poverty.

With such high rates of poverty, ICCAO has endeavored to help reduce the burden by providing entrepreneurship training to help the youth change the circumstances they were born into. ICCAO also aids the fight against Child Marriages which is a major cause for young girls not being able to finish schools, girls who could have been beneficial to the economy through various ventures.

The main targets in the fight against poverty include;

1.        Eradicate Extreme Poverty
2.        Reduce Poverty by at least 50%
3.        Implement Social Protection Systems
4.        Equal Rights to ownership, Basic Services, Technology and Economic Resources
5.        Build Resilience to Environmental, Economic and Social Disasters
6.        Mobilize Resources to implement Policies to end Poverty
7.        Create Pro-poor and Gender-Sensitive Policy Frameworks

Hunger is defined as the feeling of discomfort or weakness caused by lack of food, coupled with the desire to eat. Hunger is the leading cause of death in the world, our planet has provided us with tremendous resources but unequal access and inefficient handling leaves millions of people malnourished. About 8.9% of the world lives in hunger an estimated 690 million people, with the highest statistics comes from Lesotho, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Rwanda. With recent studies proving that the world is not on track with conquering world hunger.

The Integrating Capacity and Community Advancement Organization has noted the efforts of world organizations in fighting this epidemic, and has endeavored in ensuring this sustainable development goal is met in Tanzania.

In order to end world hunger milestones to be observed have been put in place, and ICCAO works to meet these target goals.

UNIVERSAL ACCESS TO SAFE AND NUTRITIOUS FOODS

In order to end world hunger, there must be access to nutritious foods particularly to the poor and people in vulnerable situations such as infants and disadvantaged groups.

END ALL FORMS OF MALNUTRITION

It is strategized that by the year 2030, all forms of malnutrition such as stunted growth in children should end, this also includes addressing the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant women and lactating mothers as well as senior citizens.

DOUBLE THE PRODUCTIVITY AND INCOMES OF SMALL SCALE FOOD PRODUCERS

Efforts to improve agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers, particularly women, indigenous people, local farmers, pastorals and fishers have been put in place; this includes securing equal access to land and resources such as knowledge financial aid and access to markets.

SUSTAINABLE FOOD PRODUCTION AND RESILIENT AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES

It is targeted that by 2030, the world will be able to have sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, whilst also maintaining the ecosystem, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, floods and other natural disasters while all the while improve land and soil quality.

MAINTAIN THE GENETIC DIVERSITY IN FOOD PRODUCTION

To end world hunger it is necessary to maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated plants, domesticated animals at the national and regional levels. Countries should also promote access to markets at the international levels while sharing the benefits from the utilization of these genetic resources.

INVEST IN RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE, AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY AND GENE BANKS

To fight world hunger, there should be an increase in investment through enhanced international cooperation, improved infrastructure in rural areas where agriculture is prominent, technological innovation in plant livestock gene banks in order to enhance agricultural productivity particularly in least developing countries.

PREVENT AGRICULTURAL TRADE RESTRICTIONS, MARKET DISTORTIONS AND EXPORT SUBSIDIES

For food to be universally accessible countries need to correct and prevent trade restrictions and distortions in agricultural markets, including the parallel elimination of all forms of agricultural subsidies and all export measures with equivalent effect.

ENSURE STABLE FOOD COMMODITY MARKETS AND TIMELY ACCESS TO INFORMATION

The epidemic that is world hunger can only end when countries adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and their derivatives and facilitate timely access to market information, including on food reserves in order to help extreme food price volatility.