Support women â€" Cherie Blair
Feb 28, 2007
VISITING wife of the British premier, Cherie Blair, stressed that investing in girl-child education and supporting women in business are the best ways to advance Uganda’s economy.
By Sylvia Juuko
VISITING wife of the British premier, Cherie Blair, stressed that investing in girl-child education and supporting women in business are the best ways to advance Uganda’s economy.
“Being a woman, people may think I am biased. But there is plenty of evidence to show that investment in education of girls and women, or in their businesses, is actually the best any society can make,†the successful human rights lawyer stressed.
Talking at the launch of the women business programme of dfcu Bank, supported by the World Bank, Mrs. Blair praised Uganda for introducing universal primary and secondary education.
She also commended the Government for its efforts to provide separate school bath rooms for girls, reducing their drop out rate.
While noting that women are playing a greater role in Uganda today than in the past, she believed access to credit was still a major hindrance to make them successful in business.
She applauded the World Bank for providing $2m to lend to women entrepreneurs and to provide technical support.
“It is common sense really, isn’t it? If you don’t use the potential of all your population, you are not going to develop. But it’s more important to involve women because they bring special qualities and characteristics to business which makes them successful entrepreneurs,†she stated.
On a more personal note, she stressed that fighting for equality of women in society had been a life-long crusade.
“I may look calm and perfectly organised but I’m just like so many parents and working mothers. I’m like those jugglers who bounce the plates up and there are times some of the plates crush. But the plate I wish to keep up all the time is the push for equality.â€
She said with the support of her husband, Tony Blair, she had been able to juggle her duties as a wife, a career woman and a mother of four.
“I have been lucky. With the support of my husband, I have combined my career as a Queen’s Counsel and raising four kids. I’m the first wife of a British prime minister to go to university and pursue a career.â€
She disclosed that her mother, who left school at the age of 14, was her role model, because she raised her children single-handedly.
Quoting a World Economic Forum report launched in London recently, she said no country in the world had achieved true gender equality.
She explained that the “Global gender gap report 2006†outlined progress on gender equality in four critical areas: education, health, economic participation and political empowerment.
At number 47 out of 115 countries surveyed, she noted that Uganda was not doing badly. As far as economic participation is concerned, it even ranked 28th and on political participation 22nd.
According to Rachel Kyte of the International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank, 40% of registered businesses in Uganda belong to women but only 10% receive credit.
“Benefits of extending banking services to women entrepreneurs are significant. Banks can grow their business by serving the under-banked and the un-banked,†she said.
VISITING wife of the British premier, Cherie Blair, stressed that investing in girl-child education and supporting women in business are the best ways to advance Uganda’s economy.
“Being a woman, people may think I am biased. But there is plenty of evidence to show that investment in education of girls and women, or in their businesses, is actually the best any society can make,†the successful human rights lawyer stressed.
Talking at the launch of the women business programme of dfcu Bank, supported by the World Bank, Mrs. Blair praised Uganda for introducing universal primary and secondary education.
She also commended the Government for its efforts to provide separate school bath rooms for girls, reducing their drop out rate.
While noting that women are playing a greater role in Uganda today than in the past, she believed access to credit was still a major hindrance to make them successful in business.
She applauded the World Bank for providing $2m to lend to women entrepreneurs and to provide technical support.
“It is common sense really, isn’t it? If you don’t use the potential of all your population, you are not going to develop. But it’s more important to involve women because they bring special qualities and characteristics to business which makes them successful entrepreneurs,†she stated.
On a more personal note, she stressed that fighting for equality of women in society had been a life-long crusade.
“I may look calm and perfectly organised but I’m just like so many parents and working mothers. I’m like those jugglers who bounce the plates up and there are times some of the plates crush. But the plate I wish to keep up all the time is the push for equality.â€
She said with the support of her husband, Tony Blair, she had been able to juggle her duties as a wife, a career woman and a mother of four.
“I have been lucky. With the support of my husband, I have combined my career as a Queen’s Counsel and raising four kids. I’m the first wife of a British prime minister to go to university and pursue a career.â€
She disclosed that her mother, who left school at the age of 14, was her role model, because she raised her children single-handedly.
Quoting a World Economic Forum report launched in London recently, she said no country in the world had achieved true gender equality.
She explained that the “Global gender gap report 2006†outlined progress on gender equality in four critical areas: education, health, economic participation and political empowerment.
At number 47 out of 115 countries surveyed, she noted that Uganda was not doing badly. As far as economic participation is concerned, it even ranked 28th and on political participation 22nd.
According to Rachel Kyte of the International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank, 40% of registered businesses in Uganda belong to women but only 10% receive credit.
“Benefits of extending banking services to women entrepreneurs are significant. Banks can grow their business by serving the under-banked and the un-banked,†she said.