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INTERVIEW WITH DR. SUMA KAARE; AN INTERNATIONAL WOMEN EMANCIPATION ACTIVITIST
- Of the 19 positions only 3 are women is this how TAMONGSCO meets the national standard of ensuring 30% representation of women? Not at all. Much as we wished and encouraged women to contest, we managed to get only one at National leadership. It so happens because there are few women who contest not only in Tanzania but the World over. There are very few women in leadership positions that need one to contest and be elected (parliamentarians, Presidents, Councillors etc)
- Am happy the deputy secretary general is a woman, is it possible to demand that in future its important to ensure if the Secretary is a man then the deputy is a woman. Yes we can but women do not want to be leaders. They want men to make fair decisions for them. Pity that this does not happen always
- Are these positions elective or appointive? All are elective
- Is school ownership the basis for contesting leadership positions? Yes if so don’t you think there is a development challenge in education sector in Tanzania, in that women participation in school ownership like many other economic activities is very low? Yes. This is a big challenge but there is little we can do apart from echoing “we need more women entrepreneurs”. Women do not want to engage themselves in risky investment not only in education but also in all sectors of the economy. This might be attributed to too much security that men and the legal system endow women. If so, what is TAMONGSCO's strategy to increase or change the status quo? i) Establish more girl’s boarding schools. Hint: Day schools are bad to girls due to traditions that require them to be in the kitchen with their mothers while their brothers are busy doing academic home works. Also, especially in big cities, girls cannot struggle for daladala transport. So boys arrive at school earlier than girls. Day schools encourage early pregnancies ii) Encourage our wives to be managers of our schools/colleges iii) Are you encouraging women with capital to venture into the sector? Very much. In fact women are better school managers than men but, surely, they need strong men behind them as owners to take care of all risks involved in education investments. All men school/college owners have performed better when they made their wives managers than where men managed schools without involving their wives. We can’t empower women without men participation. In the same manner, no man can succeed without his wife alongside with him It is interesting to note that in a country where 80% of employees (teachers) in the education sector are women only 3 could qualify to be in the leadership of a body that influences policies in the sector! So these women teachers are just good to teach/heading schools but not in leadership or sector ownership! If os this Must Change! Basing on the above responses, I call upon you and any other realistic thinker to join hand for women emancipation and advocacy for women leadership in education
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