Maputo Council and UN Women cooperate against violence – Mozambique

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Maputo Council and UN Women cooperate against violence – Mozambique

7:58 CAT | 14 Dec 2016

Zimbabwe President and Zanu-PF ruling party leader Robert Mugabe delivers his key note address during the official opening of the 6th Peoples Congress of Zanu-PF in Harare on December 4, 2014. Mugabe sought to shut down a bubbling succession battle at a key party congress, warning that his embattled deputy and onetime heir apparent could face criminal charges.
AFP PHOTO/JEKESAI NIJIKIZAMA

Noticias / UN Women country representative Florença Rae and Maputo Mayor David Simango signed the MoU

UN Women (the United Nations body for gender equality) and Maputo City Municipal Council on Tuesday agreed to cooperate in activities intended to eradicate violence against women and girls in the public spaces of the city.

To this end, the Mayor of Maputo, David Simango, and the representative in Mozambique of UN Women, Florence Raes, signed a memorandum of understanding to implement the recommendations contained in a study, launched on Tuesday, on gender-based violence in the city.

The report urged the municipal authorities to improve the structural and organizational conditions in Maputo neighbourhoods, to guarantee police patrols in places prone to violence, and to train and raise the awareness of police, community leaderships and civil society so that they know how to deal with questions of violence against women and girls.

“The signing of this memorandum is a decisive step in our mission to promote gender equality and empowerment, as well as the safety of women and girls in Mozambique”, said Raes. “Partnership with the Municipal Council is a fundamental step from the point of view of a common undertaking, and it also launches an appeal to all those who want to join this struggle”.

For his part, Simango said that eradicating gender-based violence in public places will only be achieved with the commitment and efforts of everybody, and through greater collaboration and involvement of all the vital forces in society.

“We are committed to fighting against this evil, so as to provide peace, security, certainty and confidence for women”, he added, leading to their empowerment and consequently to their socio-economic and cultural development.

The results of the study showed an alarming level of violence against women in public places. 376 women and girls were questioned in the Maputo neighbourhoods of Chamanculo and Maxaquene, and 60.4 per cent of them said they had suffered some type of violence in the 12 months prior to the study.

Teenagers are more at risk than mature women. 65.7 per cent of the girls aged between 12 and 18 reported that they had suffered violence. The figure was 54.4 per cent among women aged over 18.

Source: AIM