Hello Readers, today am going to share my thought with you about Empowerment specifically on men. In simple definition to empower is actually to promote one in achieving Economic sustainability and self-reliance in Life. We have heard and read of Women and youth Empowerment on Head lines promoted by Humanitarian Agencies and Governments all over the world but have we ever seen and read anything about Empowering Men? This is the biggest Question. My answer is “No”, if any, then in exceptional cases.The Government and Humanitarian agencies have assumed that, Men are not vulnerable just unlike Women and youth.
I would like to highlight these vulnerabilities with approach to men which have been buried underneath and assumed not to be in existence. Men have been deprived of their Rights of being Empowerment .I would go by especially the Pastoralists communities whose economy fully depends on Livestock keeping that are more prone to diseases, Famine and cattle rustling who in many cases end up losing their Livestock in a short time left totally with nothing to depend on. Their chances of survival becomes hard to bear. These victims depending solely on Livestock end up in settlement centers seeking blue-collar jobs due to lack of Academic and Professional Documents/experience. All they get is “Kazi ya Mkono” which in most cases are paid roughly 1US dollar in a day or less or even in exchange for food. Sometimes, they even go back home empty handed. Consequently, they end up destroying mother nature through deforestation for building materials and firewood or charcoal just to earn a living. At the end we are hit by adverse climatic conditions. Some end up in Criminal activities like cattle rustling and begging just to see another day. Being in the African set up where the man is the sole bread winner they end up failing to carter for their families both medically and also in educating their children. These children end up engaging into immorality and other related crimes in the centers and their localities. To both Governments and Humanitarian Organizations, the assumption is that the men past the employment age had jobs in their Youth, and saved for Retirement and are thought to be running their own Businesses and those within the employment bracket have source of living. This is not the case with the Nomadic/pastoral communities. In many cases after losing their Livestock they end up being beggars in the streets or dependent to the youths.
In the pastoral community, most Women and Youth are working classes or have Businesses supported with grants and Loans until their Retirement Age. So my appeal to the Governments both the local and the National including the Humanitarian agencies to see into it that, these men from the pastoral community have to be reconsidered and be Empowered just like other vulnerable groups. It is not fair that, they are left alone to suffer without support considering that most of them have families and for God’s sake they are human and have needs.
In my opinion, men need Assistance. To support them is not a matter of spoon feeding but rather open up profit making Business or projects in their Groups that would enhance economical sustainability in the community. Remember there is a huge Gap [Vacuum] between 36-60 years of Age among the Nomadic pastoralists who are vulnerable and not getting any Assistance from the Governments and Humanitarian Organizations.
