SHARE:
The City of Gweru, also known as the City of Progress, is situated at the heart of Zimbabwe with a road and rail network that links it with all other major towns in the country. More or so this also links it with the neighbouring countries of Botswana, South Africa, Zambia and Mozambique.
City of Gweru has a Gender Focal Person who leads a seven member Interdepartmental Gender Committee that is responsible for gender championing in Council. This council has 18 councillors, with only two female councillors and the rest are men.
The council has four committees and all of them are chaired by men. There is a Junior Council and the council has more boys than girls.
During budget consultation meetings Council engage its various stakeholders so as to determine what services it either must provide, or can still afford to provide, in straitened financial circumstances. The majority who attend these consultation meetings are women. About 51 to 75 percentage women participate in the public consultations. For example, they partake in the budget consultation meetings, Waste Management Meeting with Vendors, Zone Committee Meeting with Vendors.
This council has a policy against sexual harassment. Sexual harassment cases are dealt with using the City of Gweru Code of Conduct. The cases can be reported through Council Gender Desk, where an aggrieved part can approach any one of the seven committee members. The Gender Focal Person will then produce a report to the Human Resources Manager who will then preside over the case.
City of Gweru has allocated budget for promoting gender related projects, from 2015 and 2016.
Category | Budget 2015 | Budget 2016 |
Resources allocated to promoting gender equality in decision-making and public participation | $1 000 | $1 000 |
Resources allocated to promoting gender equality/family friendly/ youth and disability friendly policies and practices | $71 380 | $71 380 |
Resources allocated to gender-responsive local economic development | $250 000 | $250 000 |
Resources allocated to promoting gender/youth/PWD responsive projects on climate change | $2 023 832 | $2 023 832 |
There are flea markets and fruit and vegetable markets of which 75% of them are owned by women and 25% owned by men. Council Policy on flea market and Vegetable markets is that 75% of these facilities should benefit women and 25% is reserved for men. Council has designed 1095 fruit and vegetable stalls near Swift Deport, of these 1095 stalls 821 will benefit women while 274 will benefit men.
Council does not have a deliberate on climate change instead it is conforms to the requirements of the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) and it is also guided by its Safety, Health and Environment Policy.
Comment on Summit 2016 – Gweru City Council COE