Source: Tanzania Daily News
AS the Constitution Review Commission started meetings to collect people's view here last week, women's participation was dismal. Perhaps the same system that the constitutional reforms are meant to change is what had kept them away from meetings.

For example, at Kiomboi centre, Iramba district's major centre in Singida region last week, only three women showed up and spoke at the microphone out of the 35 people that spoke. And some 100km away at Mtwike area in the afternoon, no woman turned up to speak out of the 18 people who spoke at the microphone.

At Shelui centre in late afternoon that day, only two women turned up to speak out of the 25 people who spoke at the microphone. It was just a small sample out of the many areas the Commission is moving to collect people's views. When they eventually started turning up in the subsequent districts where the Commission went, it was in hundreds. The women turned up and spoke -some farmers, others in civil service, female students and retired female teachers largely.

Admittedly, these are women within small village borders, but interpreted - their views were as important as any basic need that a human being would need in order to live better life. Their views extended to bigger issues they wanted enshrined in the proposed new constitution, some watertight provisions for gender equality at leadership levels. From personal issues such as divorce and inheritance, to social issues , employment and education opportunities and freedom of speech, their views so far give a great deal of insight into women's concerns in rural areas here.

Some want a progressive document that gives them the right to inherit under customary law, while other views ranged from a need for a new constitution that grants significant health budgets for district councils, since they are closer to them, so that they can in turn allocate more funds for health centres which they access in villages. It was easy to decipher how important health services are to a mother.

For example, at Mtekente in Iramba district, 42 year old farmer, Mariam Rajab, said they want public systems to make health care services more available in rural areas. "We want better deployment of health workers in all our centres and better provision of health services. Many of our colleagues don't deliver in hospitals and we don't have reliable access to family planning services," she said She said they should have land rights and get their land formalized to be able to access loans from banks, also adding that women should have more access to elective and appointive offices.

For her, couples should be entitled to equal rights at the time of marriage, during the marriage and even at the end in case they decide to dissolve it. Ms Maria Kashonda, a member of the Commission, informed that the current laws provide for that. But Ms Rajab said it was not usually the practice in their area. Sarah Daudi (63), a farmer at Nduguti in Mkalama district, said their children should not be sent away from school just because they are of low income mothers who can't afford the required school contributions.

She said women should be empowered through their women's groups so that they can have access to loans to run their small development projects. Margaret Mota (48) and a petty business woman and Nduguti Viilage Chairperson, said there are many women farmers in the area but are not getting support in terms of farm inputs. Maria Godfrey (48), a farmer of Mnguli village in Mwangeza said they usually get problems when going to health centres because they have bad roads.

"The road is bad, how can pregnant woman pass through such roads when she is in labour pain?" she queried. She also said that access to water is poor, a challenge she noted is affecting women as they walk long distances searching for water. Nema John, 30, at Mwangeza, said women like them in rural areas would want to take up entrepreneurship, but some of their male partners stop them from joining business.

Another farmer, 38 year old Halima Msaga said that they face problems when they are going to hospitals and expecting. "For example, at our health centre, we find only two nurses and sometimes one who gets overwhelmed by the number of patients, so we suffer as sometimes we are forced to give birth on the facility verandah," she said She also said that construction materials were getting expensive for them, making it difficult for women to own houses even in rural areas in case they decide to.

Elizabeth Lucas (54) a nutritionist working as extension officer in the area, said there should be support to women's groups as a way of affirmative action to empower women. She also said that women involved in farming should be given pension when they reach the age of 60. "These women work all their lives in the agricultural sector, which is very important for this country, but when they get old after 60, they are viewed as people who never worked because they never got employed. This should change," she said. Dorothy Mwago (45), a farmer at Mwanga village in Iramba district, said the next constitutional should give priority to women in terms of national funds and loans from public financial institutions.

Members of the Constitution Review Commission said that while some requests may not be put in the constitution, they would certainly be included in a general report that would inform policy and some law changes subsequent to the Constitution review exercise. As the Commission collects more views from other districts here, the highlights so far among women are whether it will give them the right to health including reproductive health to all.

They wonder if it would ensure that women are able to pass on citizenship to their children regardless of whether or not they are married to Tanzanians. They ask whether there will be laws to promote the representation of women, persons of disabilities and other minorities and marginalized communities in Parliament and whether it will ensure that women and men have the right to equal treatment and opportunities in political, economic, cultural and social spheres without discrimination. 

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