The rapid spread of COVID-19 and the subsequent lockdown in many countries has highlighted the often undervalued but critical leadership role that women play in managing both their professional lives and home care work, particularly in times of crisis. While various conversations unfold and measures are put in place to contain the pandemic, the Graça Machel Trust, through its Women Economic and Social Advancement (WESA) programme convened a webinar on 20 May 2020 which brought onboard voices of women that are experiencing the impacts of COVID19 first-hand.
The speakers shared their experiences, coping mechanisms and sources of inspiration to keep going as they juggle work and home care. More importantly to demonstrate that it is not all doom and gloom, women, in various ways, continue to take charge to sustain their professional lives and businesses while also maintaining homes and taking care of families.
The speakers shared below tips for business women to cope in times COVID 19 and recommendations for states and private sector to note while shaping their response initiatives.
Tips:
- Be conscious: Be aware, read, watch the news and participate in information sharing platforms, know what is happening around you
- Invest:In yourself, acquire new knowledge, learn the technology, sharpen your skills to broaden your expertise
- Catch Up:Review the backlog of work and relationships you have been too busy to work on
- Think:Keep your eyes open for new business ideas presented by COVID 19
- Collaborate: Develop strategic partnerships to leverage on each other’s expertise
- Innovate: Challenge yourself to innovate, think outside the box, test new ideas and do not give up.
- Diversify: Your business, don’t put your eggs in one basket, have at least 2 or more sources of income
- Belong: Make sure you belong to an association so you can easily benefit from the governments’ economic recovery initiatives
- Be ready: Keep your make-up on so you don’t get caught off guard while working from home 😊
Recommendations:
- Government must involve grassroots women in conversations and decision about Corona right from planning to implementation
- Government do not pay lip service, boost small businesses by ensuring that they have access to government opportunities
- Financial institutions should bring innovative products that accommodate women and have leniency on women during and post Covid19
- Business development services must be stronger to provide new ideas, strategies and support for businesses because this is the time when skills are required by women to revamp their businesses
- Support local manufacturers so the country does not rely on foreign manufacturers
- Do not ignore businesses and livelihoods of people, South Africa should not have all the leadership focusing on COVID19
- Apply strategies that are relevant to the country’s context, for example why did all countries go on lockdown as strategy to contain the spread of corona virus?
- Food for thought: Will we die from the Corona Virus, or the lockdown?
The Trust supports and mobilises civil society networks on issues of ending child marriage, ending violence against children, ending female genital mutilation and promoting children’s rights, to carry out advocacy and action across Africa. Special focus is placed on Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia where child marriage continues to be a problem largely driven by poverty, gender inequality, harmful traditional practices, conflict, low levels of literacy, limited opportunities for girls and weak or non-existent protective and preventive legal frameworks.
Education is a fundamental right for all children, which is also a vehicle for social, economic and political transformation in communities, countries and the African continent at large. Recent studies indicate a lack of progress in some of the critical commitments aimed at improving education quality, access, retention and achievement, particularly for girls. In most African countries, girls may face barriers to learning, especially when they reach post-primary levels of education. By implementing multi-dimensional approaches to education which includes core education, personal development, life skills and economic competencies, the Trust partners with funding partners, governments, civil societies and the private sector to improve education access.
The Nutrition and Reproductive, Maternal, New-born, Child and Adolescent Health and Nutrition, (RMNCAH+N) of the Children’s Rights and Development Programme aims at promoting the Global Strategy for women, children and adolescents’ health within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agenda. The strategy emphasises on the importance of effective country leadership as a common factor across countries making progress in improving the health of women, children and adolescents.
Through its Early Childhood Development (ECD) plan, The Trust will seek to put into action the new science and evidence Report that was presented by Lancet Series on Good and early development – the right of every child. This will be achieved by mobilising like-minded partners to contribute in the new science and evidence to reach all young children with ECD. The Trust’s goal is to be a catalyst for doing things differently, in particular, to rid fragmentation and lack of coordination across ECD sectors. In response to evidence showing the importance of political will in turning the tide against the current poor access and quality of ECD. Even before conception, starting with a mother’s health and social economic conditions, the early years of a child’s life form a fundamental foundation that determines whether a child will survive and thrive optimally.