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Remarks at Global Power Women Network Africa Conference
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
May 24, 2012

His Excellency President R.G. Mugabe,
Vice President Hon. Joice Mujuru,
Deputy Prime Minister Prof. Arthur Mutambara,
The President of the Global POWER Women Network Africa and Deputy Prime Minister of Zimbabwe, Hon. Thokozani Khupe,
Cabinet Ministers here present,
Guest of Honour and Nigeria Minister of Finance, Hon. Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala,
The visiting UN High Comissioner for Human Rights, Dr Navi Pillay,
Heads of UN and African Union Commissions,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Hon. MPs, Invited Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen

I want to start by saying that every human being on this earth is a product of the woman and the girl child.

So today we meet here to celebrate and discuss the challenges facing the woman; in essence the problems and challenges facing the very essence of humanity.

Because the woman is the cradle of humanity; indeed the genesis of our existence and that is why God made her as a perfection of his initial creation called man.

I want to congratulate the Global Power Women Network Africa for hosting this great event in Zimbabwe and for providing a platform for discussing the challenges facing women and the girl child.

I notice that your major objective is to accelerate action for women empowerment and gender equality in the area of HIV and Sexual reproductive Health and Rights.

I am told that in Africa, 59 percent of people living with HIV/Aids are women and more than half of the world's maternal deaths occur in Africa.

These are frightening figures and we need to harness our collective effort to address and mitigate these scary statistics.

The status of women remains critical and requires urgent interventions. Coupled with endemic poverty due to gender imbalances, women and girls are more vulnerable to HIV and AIDS and governments have to be seen to be taking a major role in addressing this problem.

I am aware that the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare in Zimbabwe has come up with several initiatives to mitigate the scourge of HIV/Aids, but it remains a challenge in Africa that is mainly linked to poverty and gender inequality and can only be addressed by dealing with those issues affecting women.

This means that while intervention in the form of improving basic social services such as health, education and social protection are important for Governments to take seriously, addressing gender inequalities is the long-lasting solution. Africa and the rest of humanity in general would benefit immensely from addressing gender issues.

Education remains a cornerstone in the improvement of women welfare and that of the generality of our populations. The education of the girl child remains a challenge in Africa in general with fewer and fewer girls and women found in tertiary education.

Moreover, gender-based violence against women and children is largely limiting their participation in the development of their countries

The attainment of the Millennium Development Goals would go a long way towards addressing challenges afflicting African communities and the welfare of women in particular. MDGs 1,2,3,4 and 5 all relate directly or indirectly to the need to improve the status of women and I know that most governments, including Zimbabwe, have not achieved them. We must ensure we achieve them. Therefore, Global Power Women Network Africa comes at a crucial time to ensure implementation of protocols already agreed to by member African States and the broader international community through the auspices of the United Nations.

Women are still to see benefits from the famous Beijing Women Conference or CEDAW and various other protocols at regional levels and international level. I also applaud the theme of the Conference; Getting to Zero

• Zero to new HIV infections
• Zero to maternal and child mortality
• Zero tolerance to violence against women and girls
• Zero to hunger and poverty.

This theme demonstrates the commitment of Global Power Women Network Africa towards arresting the HIV pandemic, poverty, hunger and gender based violence I also wish to congratulate the Global Power Women Network Africa for this conference and I equally acknowledge the collaboration with the African Union and UNAIDS as well as the support from all other stakeholders who made this conference a reality. We must always remember the role of women worldwide but especially the role of the rural women in Africa who continue to toil for the betterment of their families and the upliftment of the living standards of our people.

They are unsung heroines of the human struggle for equality and a sustainable life.

I am glad to see so many powerful and successful women from across the continent who are contributing to the betterment of our societies.

We have to keep in mind that 60% of all the work in the world is done by women even though they only possess 1% of all property in the world. Only 5% of all world leaders are women and of all poor people in the world, 75% are women.

Despite the advancements made, regrettably, too many of the women are still afflicted by daily challenges in the homes, in the communities and places of work - challenges which we must consistently strive to minimize or eliminate.

Governments must therefore have a conscious effort to empower especially rural women through access to land, water, education, training, financial services and strong organisations.

The important contribution of women in bringing historical and current issues to the attention of so many people is commendable as it showcases their desire for an equal life with their male counterparts.

At a personal level, I am aware of the great role my mother played in my life. Of all the many things that I still remember about this great woman's contribution in my life, nothing stands out more than her trips to a clinic 50 kilometers away from my rural home in Buhera in Manicaland province. I vividly remember how she would cycle that great distance with me as a passenger to access medical care in a trip that would take days, way back in the 1950s.

I know we all have similar experiences that show the resilience of the women-folk in our lives; these great people whose lives and welfare you meet to discuss here today.

My plea is that let not this conference end as an elitist discussion of power-point presentations that will not leave the boardrooms to have a practical impact outside our i-pads and flash sticks.

Let us not be power-point activists and cyber-revolutionaries whose work has no real meaning to the millions of women out there. Let these discussions mean something to the forlorn woman in rural Africa; those village women in Kenya, the rape victims in South Sudan, the refugees in Somalia, the victims of domestic violence in our various homes and the poor girls throughout Africa who are failing to access education and other basic social services.

I wish you fruitful deliberations, only hoping that the women of Africa will remember this particular conference as one of the landmark occasions that changed their lives forever.

I thank you

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