Assessing the Contributions of Rwanda Gender Equality Policies to the Women Empowerment in Rwanda

Abstract

This study was conducted in Rwanda with the main purpose of examining the contributions of Rwanda’s gender equality policies to women’s empowerment. This research solely employed secondary data to analyse the effects of gender equality policies on the empowerment of women in Rwanda. To gather information, many books, journals, newspapers, and other research publications on gender and women’s empowerment were examined. This study discovered a significant link between gender equality and women’s empowerment in the study area. Gender equality policies, for example, increased the number of women who went to school, increased labour force participation, reduced maternal health risks, raised the national GDP, and promoted human rights. Furthermore, to attain gender equality and increase women’s empowerment, the government has adopted numerous policies that have played a significant role in achieving gender equality. Among these initiatives are the formation of the Gender Monitoring Office, the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion, the National Women’s Council, and a council for women who are in parliament. Furthermore, the government has implemented various legal instruments to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment. They are associated with inheritance, employment, human resources development, human rights, and other spheres of society. Yet, the women in Rwanda have some encounters for full participation in development as well as achieving gender equality, like society norms about gender equality and family violence. For those challenges, the authors would like to recommend that the government increase the mobilisation of citizens about the contribution of women’s empowerment and gender equality to sustainable growth, increase the budget for girls’ education, and enact new laws for gender-based violence and women’s empowerment promotion.