Norwegian Church Aid has warned church organizations in Malawi that they risk having support frozen if they ignore gender and human rights issues in their programs.
“Why should all committee meetings and workshops be dominated by men?” asked Irene Holte, the Norwegian church agency’s representative in Malawi. “It is high time women talked and men listened.”
Ms. Holte made her comments at the recent opening of a three-day forum on HIV/AIDS, food security and diversification. She said she was disappointed it was mostly men who took part in and organized such gatherings. The aid agency argues that a country such as Malawi will not be able to achieve its development goals if women are sidelined and discriminated against, and said that in the future, financial assistance would be linked to gender-sensitivity.