From driving trucks and fixing cars to encouraging girls living with disabilities to find their place in society, women in Zimbabwe refuse to be defined by their gender or circumstances, even though the global COVID-19 pandemic hits them hardest and imposes extra burdens. .
There are very few female truck drivers in Zimbabwe, but Molly Manatse does not like being singled out for her gender. “It has always been known as a male job, but do not say I am a female driver. We are just drivers, we do the same job,” insists 31-year-old Manatse, a Zimbabwean truck driver whose income helps take care of relatives. who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19.
As International Women’s Day is celebrated around the world on Monday, Zimbabwean women are celebrating the progress they have made in tackling discrimination in the workplace and recognize that more efforts are needed. In many cases, Zimbabwean women have become leaders in helping this troubled South African country to cope with the double trauma of COVID-19 and the ongoing economic downturn.
However, many women say that equality or professional recognition is not easy to achieve and they are often reminded of the traditionally entertaining role of women in Zimbabwe.
“Once you get home, they expect you to cook, they expect you to wash clothes … all the housework, you have to do it. It’s a challenge,” Manatse told the Associated Press as she prepared for a 1700-kilometer trip to the nearby South African port city of Durban, she is the only female driver at a trucking company that employs 80 drivers, she said.
Molly Manatse, a female truck driver, seen on the road in Harare, Zimbabwe, March 6, 2021. (AP Photo)
Memory Mukabeta, 37, runs a car repair shop, a cold that is traditionally seen as a male domain. Like Manatse, she now helps support members of her extended family whose livelihoods have been affected by the virus’ limitations.
“Some of them are male relatives, they no longer have jobs so I take care of them,” says Mukabeta, who sometimes said that she has been forced to close her business by locking.
Following a devastating re-emergence that increased the number of COVID-19 infections and deaths in December and January, the Zimbabwean government is beginning to ease restrictions and companies are trying to recover.
However, it may be a longer road to recovery for women-owned companies, especially in male-dominated sectors due to inherent prejudices, Mukabeta says. From the moment she answers the phone, many customers doubt her abilities, she said. “They expect a man to respond,” she said.
“You have to convince them. They will ask me so many questions that they will doubt me,” she said as she removed an accidentally damaged truck that needed repairing.
Memory Mukabeta carries a car door at his workshop in Harare, Zimbabwe, March 5, 2021. (AP Photo)
On paper, Zimbabwe has progressive laws that guarantee women’s rights in the workplace and at home. The country has signed international treaties in support of gender equality.
However, lack of implementation, as well as trained cultural practices that exacerbate inequality, mean that women, who make up 52% of the population of 15 million, are still lagging behind in education, health and work, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund. UN Women plans that “8 million more women than men will be forced into extreme poverty” in sub-Saharan Africa in 2021 due to the pandemic.
Although the pandemic has hit women the hardest, “instead of whining, women are showing their gravel,” said Florence Mudzingwa, whose organization, the Hope Resurrect Trust, equips girls with disabilities with the skills, equipment and confidence to move around the world. despite their gender and disability.
A digital marketer and life coach, Mudzingwa works from her wheelchair during the pandemic and says all she needs is her computer tablet, reliable internet and her brains. She has used Whatsapp to encourage girls living with disabilities to sell things like face masks to put food on the table for their families during the pandemic.
Florence Mudzingwa, a digital marketer and life coach, works from her wheelchair in her family home in Harare, Zimbabwe, March 6, 2021. (AP Photo)
“They can relate to me. They say ‘if she works, we can work too. “This is not a time for self-pity, being a woman and living with a disability should not make us charitable causes,” she said.
Manatse, the truck driver, said that recognition, respect and equality for women are unlikely to come on a silver platter in a very patriarchal society like Zimbabwe’s, although women continue to prove their style during the pandemic.
“We have to fight,” Manatse said. “When we fight, we will surely come up with something and one day they will recognize us … that we are no different.”
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