From cooking and cleaning, to fetching water and firewood or taking care of children and the sick and the elderly, women do at least two and a half times more unpaid household and care work than their counterparts. As a result,they have less time to engage in paid labour due to working longer hours,combining paid and unpaid labour.

The likelihood of "economic disempowerment" is increased due to the unequal load of unpaid care duties placed on women and the human development outcomes of both the women and those being cared for may be impacted because women in the paid labor market may not be able to adequately fill their caregiving duties (Deepta & Zambelli,2017).

The 2022 in review yearly edition aims at keeping our esteemed readers abreast with the endeavors of the UN Women Rwanda programmatic highlights and achievements throughout the year. It encompasses the period of January through December 2022. Within these pages, we have meticulously curated a selection of activities undertaken by our organization, as well as providing a platform for the voices of those whom we have had the privilege of serving, to be heard. We trust that the contents of this newsletter will prove to be both enlightening and informative. Enjoy the read!

The baseline survey on unpaid care work status among women and men in eight districts of Rwanda seeks to understand the care-related dynamics in households, this study utilized both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. Drawing on Oxfam’s Household Care Survey (HCS) and the Harvard Analytical Framework (also referred to as the Gender Roles Framework). The survey helps to understand how women, men and children spend their time, how care activities are distributed in the household and the access that households have to basic public services and infrastructure that facilitate their everyday survival. The study also explored the social norms that shape power relations and gender division of care labor.

The study covers Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, and Uganda. It finds that NEET rates in ESA are above 40 percent for youth in the 20-24 years age bracket, that young women in the region are disproportionally affected by NEET status regardless of their age group, and that this status is more likely to become a permanent state for young women than for young men.

The study covers Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, and Uganda. It finds that NEET rates in ESA are above 40 percent for youth in the 20-24 years age bracket, that young women in the region are disproportionally affected by NEET status regardless of their age group, and that this status is more likely to become a permanent state for young women than for young men.

This study builds on UN Women’s achievements and experience in supporting women and girls during the COVID pandemic within the East and Southern Africa Region and other parts of the world.

The five years in review publication captures the progress made from 2017 to 2021 across its different focus areas: Leadership and Political Participation, Women’s Economic Empowerment, Ending Violence Against Women, Data and Statistics, HIV/AIDS and the response to the unfolding crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study focuses on Rwanda and forms part of a series covering 9 countries in East and Southern Africa. It uses existing statistical data to identify the factors that determine whether a young woman or man (aged 15-24) are not in employment, education or training.

This publication describes the UN Women Rwanda Office's effort in dealing with Gender-Based Violence (GBV) victims using different approaches in both GBV prevention and response. It also provides success stories from different beneficiaries in relation to legal assistance which showed that in most cases it requires strong courage from the victims to bring the perpetrators to justice especially in the context of negative cultural beliefs, women's economic dependence, fear of discrimination and stigmatization among other challenges. The document also highlights the role of mobile legal clinic in increasing the proximity of legal services to the community including awareness-raising and legal literacy.

As the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic roll through societies and economies across the globe, women and girls are expected to bear the heaviest impact.

This series, updated quarterly, illustrates the human impact of UN Women’s work across the world, highlighting the partnerships that make this work possible. These stories share how we and our many partners are striding forward to realize a better world for women and girls

This report presents the findings and recommendations of the UN Women commissioned study on Opportunities for Women Entrepreneurs in the Context of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). This study aimed to identify opportunities for women entrepreneurs with regard to the AfCFTA, focusing on three areas of interest: women in informal cross-border trade (WICBT), gender and value chain analysis, and affirmative action/preferential public procurement.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, the agricultural sector remains critical to local and regional economies. It is the basis for food security and an important source of employment, particularly for women. Yet, studies consistently find that female farmers  have lower rates of agricultural productivity than male farmers. Based on original research in five countries (Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda, Uganda and United Republic of Tanzania), this policy brief shows that gender gaps in agricultural...

The three-day experience sharing forum on budget tracking tool development for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) was held from 24 – 26 August 2018 in Debre Zeit town with a call by the Government of Ethiopia on the need to identify financing gaps from gender perspective in sectoral budget allocation and developing a budget tracking system.

This report presents governments’ approaches to the localization and implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with specific reference to seven countries: Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Uganda and Zimbabwe. The report was developed through a collaborative process with selected governments via their representatives, UN Women country/multi-country offices and other stakeholders in East and Southern Africa. Initial data and information were collected from a...

Renewable, clean energy and gender equality are preconditions for sustainable development and for tackling climate change. This linkage is tacit in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Gender equality and women’s empowerment (Goal 5) and women’s and men’s equal access to secure energy services (Goal 7) are central to building more environmentally sustainable and climate-resilient societies (Goals 13 and 15) (UN Women and UNDP-UNEP PEI, 2015).

This is a convening report for the Regional Sharefair on Gender and Resilience in Africa held by UN Women in collaboration with key partners in November 9th –10th 2016 at Safari Park Hotel, Nairobi, Kenya. Focusing on the main theme of “Strengthening Resilience by Empowering Women”, the Sharefair provided a platform for sharing and learning, availed an opportunity to further explore the role of women in building and strengthening resilience and promoted dialogue and sharing of experiences on gender responsive resilience related programmes and policies in Africa. This is expected to accelerate development and humanitarian response and the overall achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Sharefair also endeavor to facilitate long term collaboration amongst regional stakeholders with the aim of identifying problems, using data and predictive methods and mobilizing support and resources to incubate, accelerate and scale effective solutions. The outcome of the two-day event was the creation of a strong regional network to amplify resilience solutions, sustaining change in policy and practice within relevant macroeconomic frameworks. Hundreds of participants gathered at the Sharefair to discuss interventions, innovations, good practices, evidence from research and documented data, legal frameworks and policies.

Assessing the Gender Gap in Agricultural Productivity in Rwanda

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