Source: The Herald
While March 8 is the International Women's Day - an annual day dedicated to women globally, Rwanda will dedicate the whole month of March to women and girls.

Ahead of the day to be celebrated under the theme 'Empower Women and Girls to Sustain Families', a range of activities aimed at empowering the woman and the girl child have been organised at the village level where the day will be celebrated.

According to Judith Kazaire from the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion, activities will include family nutrition, economic empowerment of women as well as girl-child education.

"International Women's Day will be celebrated at the village level on March 8 but on the same day the Women and Girls' Month will be inaugurated," she said.

"During the four weeks, every woman will be having something special to show for their families and children".

Among other things, she said that during the first week which is dedicated to the fight against malnutrition at the family level, a campaign where women will be demonstrating healthy nutritional practices for their families will be launched.

"Activities will include women showcasing their skills in preparing nutritious meals and the types of food items needed to raise a healthy child. Usually the problem is not the lack of food but rather how to prepare it," Kazaire noted.

Rwanda has started an aggressive six month campaign to reduce cases of malnutrition countrywide, mainly among children, with the country's top leadership championing the cause.

During the month of March, the government together with various civil society organisations and United Nations agencies, will embark on a campaign aimed at placing kitchen gardens for families across the country and distribute seeds.

Also to benefit from the initiative will be 12,000 vulnerable families affected by malnutrition. They will receive cows, goats, hens and rabbits as well as modern cooking stoves.

The Women's Health week will also see awareness campaigns on antenatal care, health feeding, health education for adolescent girls, pregnancy and the role of women in promoting a healthy society.

Several conferences, debates, trainings and vaccination campaigns targeting girls and women will also be conducted.

The Women Economic Empowerment Week will include the launching of the gender mainstreaming strategy indicators in agriculture as well as sensitisation campaigns for women to join cooperatives.

The third week of March will be dedicated to the education of the girl-child while the last week will focus on the role of women in promoting good governance and decision making.

• Rwanda