Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio on Thursday signed into law the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Bill 2022 that grants Sierra Leonean women more rights in an effort to address gender inequality in the country. In a society that is structured to favor men more than women, it is now a requirement that public or private organizations to reserve 30% of their jobs for women, including in leadership roles.
Speaking when he signed the bill into effect, President Bio apologized for the unfair treatment women have been facing. “When I became President, I proclaimed that gender is firmly on my New Direction Agenda. The future of Sierra Leone is female; we must do all it takes to facilitate the timely, full, and unconditional inclusion of women in our national life, governance, and development,” he said.
President Bio said that the protection and empowerment of women should not be political talk but something that was essential to the health and progress of families hence the need for them to have safer and progressive lives in order to get to their full potentials
The key facets of this new gender law seek to have more to inclusion, representation, participation of women especially in the political scene. They include at least 30% representation in the Cabinet, 30% representation in Parliament and at least 30% of all appointments as Ambassadors/High Commissioners. Speaking on the above law, President Bio said that he hoped giving more parliamentary and political appointments to women will increase the voicing of issues that pertain to them and create more diversity. He went on to ask that political parties ensure that they recommend more than the minimum 30% seats to women in the upcoming elections this year.
Additionally, the law recommends that women have at least 30% of jobs in local councils, in the civil service and in the private sector with more than 25 employees. The law also extended maternity leave from 12 to 14 weeks and sought to have women get more access to finance services and more training that would create jobs for the women.
A consequence of not adhering to the new law will see employers fined 50,000 Leones ($2,600) and a possible prison charges for financial institutions that unfairly treat women who seek financial credit . The harsh possible prison charges are aimed at increasing money lend to women so they can start businesses.
Commenting on the new law, Setcheme Jeronime Mongbo who is the Manager and Head of Office for United Nations Women in Sierra Leone, said that the Gender Equality and Women Empowerment bill is a progress made towards securing women’s rights and equality in the region.