Zimbabwe’s 2013 Constitution provides a strong legal framework for the promotion and attainment of gender equality and women’s empowerment. Further, Zimbabwe is a state party to key regional and international human rights instruments.
Despite the legal commitment to gender equality at the international, regional and national levels, women and girls in Zimbabwe continue to face a myriad of challenges in the political, social and economic spheres as a consequence of gender inequalities and imbalances.
As noted in the 2014 Zimbabwe Country Analysis Report, the exercise of women’s rights is negatively impacted by harmful cultural and religious practices, subordination in the public and private spheres, patriarchal attitudes, lack of skills, and power imbalances in all spheres of life.
The 2016-2020 ZUNDAF provides an entry point for the Government of Zimbabwe, the UN, development partners and stakeholders to address gender inequalities in line with the Constitution and Zim Asset through specific programming on key issues such as violence against women, women’s participation in politics and decision making, and women’s economic empowerment, while at the same time mainstreaming gender in all other priority areas.
ZUNDAF interventions will focus on achieving these gender equality outcomes:
Key institutions strengthened to formulate, review, implement and monitor laws and policies to ensure gender equality and women’s rights
Women and girls are empowered to effectively participate in social, economic and political spheres and to utilise gender-based violence services
Through integrating the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 5 to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls, ZUNDAF interventions will focus on: strengthening the capacity of institutions to promote gender equality; strengthening the legal and policy frameworks; empowering women and girls to exercise their rights; and creating an enabling and supportive community environment.
The modality of the Joint Programme for Gender Equality that was initiated during the 2012-1015 ZUNDAF will continue to be utilised as a key mechanism to bring multiple stakeholders together to work collaboratively towards achieving gender equality outcomes.
Resources required to achieve this result area are USD 45 million.