NORTHERN PROVINCE MUSANZE—Women in the rural communities have been asked to embrace family planning in order to reduce on their burdens and be able to engage in gainful work. This was the message delivered to hundreds of rural women in Musanze sector who turned up to mark the district Rural women’s Day. Addressing the women, MP Theresa Murekatete, said that celebrating the day is a realistic way of recognising women’s efforts in development. She pointed out that the challenges facing women hinge on social cultural stereo types -where women’s rights are being violated including denying them access to basic necessities like land. “In the past, rural women did all the family chores; they carried babies, hoes, a basket and water every morning while men remained the bread winners,’’ she observed. At the function women pointed out failure to access loans from banks as the most outstanding challenge to their economic emancipation. Pascal Butunge, the vice Mayor in charge of social affairs, asked the women to stand up and start working intensively by joining cooperatives through which they can sell their products. Rural women who are mainly farmers form more than half of the total food producers, but they are said to receive little from their agriculture produce. During the function, five most successful women in the rural areas of Musanze were each rewarded with goats and hoes. Ends
