Rwanda will on Tuesday March 8 join the world to celebrate the 111th International Women’s Day, which will be marked under the theme; ‘breaking the bias’. The theme is crafted with an aim of rallying the global community to work towards a world free of stereotypes and discrimination. A world that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive. We are all familiar with some gender biases that still exist within our communities and many people have been affected by them at some point in life. Below are some of the most common and persistent gender biases even in this era of ensuring equal rights for women and men without prejudice to the principles of gender equality. Gendered job roles There are these common stereotypes where some people still think it is taboo for one gender to do certain jobs. Some of these biases include pronouncements like; “men don’t cook, mop the floor, etc.…” Others include; “Women shouldn’t ride motorbikes, cars/taxis (at least not when men are there)” The likes of those examples are referred to as gendered job roles. Most of them are rooted in outdated societal biases putting a limit to what a man or a woman can do and what they are capable of doing. Intellectual capabilities or career orientation biases For example; “Girls are better at memorizing and boys are better at math” “Girls are not as interested as boys in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects;” “Boys should engage in sports and refrain from more creative pursuits;” This kind of thinking could be problematic as they go as far as shaping the workforce. According to UNESCO, only 8 percent of women are currently enrolled in engineering, construction, manufacturing, and even fewer, in ICT, 3 per cent. This disparity in educational attainment is responsible for the underrepresentation of women globally in different sectors. Behavioral biases For example; “Girls should be well behaved; boys are expected to act out;” “Boys and men are expected to use violence and aggression to prove their manliness;” “Girls should be kind, shy, quiet and speak only when asked;” Experts say that lack of conformity to these stereotypes often result in being bullied, isolated and depression on the side of the victim. More biases “Women are natural nurturers; men are natural leaders”. “Women don’t need equal pay because they should be supported by their husbands/partners”. “Women who appear less feminine risk not finding spouses”. “Women should choose between raising children or being devoted to their jobs”. “Men who spend time with family are less masculine and poor breadwinners” “Women are too emotional to undertake certain kinds of work, especially while pregnant”. “Men are too insensitive and not emotionally apt to take on certain tasks “better done by women” Gender biases cannot be exhausted. Most of them are the thoughts behind most of gender based violence cases, human right denials and foundation of many discriminatory laws. However, a number of improvements have been made so far in establishing more inclusive and gender friendly environments. The Africa Gender Equality Index, 2015, ranked Rwanda second country with gender parity, owing in large part to its high number of female occupying parliamentary seats. Also in 2018, Rwanda was ranked in the top five countries with high gender equality by Global Gender Gap Report. It was largely due to setting policies that favor women’s participation in the economy, educational achievements, health and political involvement. Nonetheless, a lot more still needs to be done. Breaking mentioned gender biases could be one way towards this. Happy Women’s Day.
