Analyzing Laws and Policies on Strengthening Women’s Economic Empowerment in Cameroon
WERC PROJECT
OPERATIONAL WORKING GROUP-SESSION 3
“Analyzing Laws and Policies on Strengthening Women’s Economic Empowerment in Cameroon”
Time: 10:00 – 14:00 (GMT+1)
Venue: Muna Foundation, Yaoundé-Cameroon
1. Background
According to the UN-Women, “investment in women’s economic empowerment is the surest path to gender equality, poverty reduction and inclusive economic growth”. Recognizing this, Cameroon has defined some laws and policies to reduce gender inequalities in the economic sector. This includes the Constitution of January 18, 1996, whose preamble recognizes “the right and duty to work” for all citizens. Recently, the National Development Strategy (NDS 2020-2030), was also put in place by the government in view, among others, of reducing gender inequality, promoting women’s economic rights, in particular by pursuing its policy of equitable access to education for girls and boys, training and information strengthening programs designed to encourage female and youth entrepreneurship and interacting with banks to open up credit to women. Moreover, the National Gender Policy adopted in 2014 was exclusively dedicated to respecting gender in all areas, including the economy. Despite these measures put in place by the Cameroon government, gender disparities still persist in the economic sector. Of the 39% of the national population living below the poverty line, 51.5% are women. Among these, 79.2% remain underemployed. Furthermore, women are confined to the informal agricultural sector, where they represent 71.6% of the workers. It is within this framework that the Nkafu Policy Institute, a Think Tank at the Denis and Lenora Foretia Foundation is organizing the second session of the Operational Working Group (OWG) in the framework of its WERC project on the theme: “Analyzing Laws and Policies on Strengthening Women’s Economic Empowerment in Cameroon”.
2. Objectives of the working group
The overall objective of this OWG is to analyze and assess laws and policies defined by the Cameroonian government to promote women’s economic empowerment. Specifically, it will be matter of:
Ø Mapping the laws, programs and government projects promoting women’s economic empowerment;
Ø Assessing the degree of implementation and effectiveness of all these legal and strategic instruments that promote women’s economic empowerment;
Ø Identifying the adequacy of these laws and policies with the economic realities of women in Cameroon.
Ø Proposing some economic policy recommendations to improve the implementation of laws and policies defined to strengthen women’s economic empowerment in Cameroon.
3. Participants
This event will bring together the members of the Operational Working Group put in place by the Foretia Foundation within the framework of the WERC project.
4. Outcome of the event
Increased awareness of OWG members on the laws and policies put in place by the Cameroonian government to enhance women’s economic empowerment.
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