“Because women’s liberation is a movement of the powerless for the powerless, its attraction is not immediately clear to the powerless, who feel they need alliance with the powerful to survive” – Rosemary O’Grady, lawyer and book reviewer

equal distribution and satisfaction by women and men of socially valued goods, opportunities, resources and rewards. They should enjoy similar opportunities and life chances which affect them all at the same rate. The emphasis on gender equity and women’s empowerment does not presume a particular model of gender equality for all societies and cultures but reflects on the fact that women and men should have equal opportunities to make choices about what gender equity means, and work in partnership to reach their set goal. Gender equity for women in

Network (POPIN) defines women empowerment as a concept that has five components

• women’s sense of self-worth • their right to have choices and determine choices

• their right to have access to opportunities and resources

• their right to have power to control their lives

• and their ability to influence the direction of social change to create a more just social and economic order, nationally and internationally

a Eurocentric environment may have a different meaning to that which is understood and maybe expected by the African women and their observation of leadership. Sandela Memela warns of the danger of African women idolising a westernised concept of leadership and equating this with success; a kind of ’Americanisation’ of the African soul and personality. He is concerned that most African women view Oprah Winfrey as the ideal woman and role model to aspire towards. He further suggests that African women need to be defined and celebrated as leaders on their own terms, not what popular culture determines for them.

Women empowerment Empowerment means equipping people with the right skills and ensuring that they are best suited for a certain job. The United Nations Population Information

These requirements should be recognised both within and outside the home. Women’s empowerment and gender equality are key objectives for the United Nations and other humanitarian organisations. Other key events in the international dialogue concerning women’s empowerment and gender equality are the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and the United Nations’ Millennium Declaration. The latter subsequently formulated the Millennium Development goals which targets a specific level of improvement in women empowerment by 2015. Similarly, the United Nations Development Programme of 2008 views the promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment as a key contributory factor towards achieving a range of high priority humanitarian targets including the establishment of sustainable developments and

“In industrialised countries, women working full-time earn, on average, 82 cents to every dollar earned by men working full-time. In turn, paying women less reduces GDP in the United States by 9%, in the Euro-zone by 13%, and in Japan by 16%” – Ilene H. Lang, Catalyst.org

securing conflict reduction and peace. The South African Women

Entrepreneurs Network (SAWEN) is one of the key support organisation and a Department of Trade and Industry initiative which serves as a networking forum for individuals and organisations committed to the promotion and advancement of women entrepreneurs. This was done in reaction to the fact that

August 2011 | Management Today 47