National Launch of the 50 Million African Women Platform in Rwanda

The 50 Million platform is an online platform that is intended to support women empowerment by providing African Women Entrepreneurs with access to critical information on financial and non-financial services as well as provide opportunities for business networks among African Women Entrepreneurs. The launch was officiated by Professor Jeanette Bayisenge, Rwandan Minister in Charge of the Ministry responsible for Gender and family promotion, together with Christophe Bazivamo, the EAC Deputy Secretary-General responsible for Productive and Social Sectors. Hon. Christophe Bazivamo explained that at a period when the World is making a quick change towards leveraging technology to address problems that affect humanity, launching the platform is one way of ensuring that our development interventions are more transformative. “Making sure that women in general and rural women, in particular, are not left behind becomes an obligation” Hon. Bazivamo said. Technology comes as a tool to solve the issues of unequal intra-household relations and labour distribution while tackling the issue of time poverty that women face. 50 Million African Women Platform has been initiated to reinforce women’s development and to create stronger, more resilient, and sustainable societies, because who empowers a woman empowers a whole society; the EAC Deputy Secretary-General concluded. Professor Jeannette Bayisenge, on her side, appreciated the initiative of empowering women using technology. According to her, Rwanda as a country has done a lot to empower women in general and rural women in particular. She however finds it necessary to continue working to support rural women because challenges affecting them are still many when it comes to using new technologies. Those challenges include ICT savviness, lack of electricity, access to smartphones, and others. Despite those challenges the Hon. Minister is confident that the 50 Million Platform will reinforce women’s self-confidence, knowledge, and skills as it also provides room for capacity building. “This project will promote equitable balance in the sharing of economic and social benefits between women and men and will in consequence reinforce communities,” she said. Responding to questions of the audience, the EAC Deputy Secretary-General recognized that there are challenges that can prevent the Project from achieving intended, and the EAC Secretariat has started working to address those challenges. On the issue of knowing how to use the platform by targeted women, Hon. Bazivamo said that the EAC has planned training of trainers on the use of the platform in all Partner States to train trainers. The training sessions equip women champions from different Women networks in each country who go back to their respective Organisations and train other members of the networks. On the issue of smartphones access, the Deputy Secretary-General said that the EAC has started engaging telecom companies and other stakeholders that can help and has confidence that the engagements started will yield good fruit. The launch event was attended by Government high officials, Women Networks representatives, UN Women, Care International, Oxfam, and other National & International Organisations.