Zim commemorates world family day
By Dumisani Ndlovu
Zimbabwe has joined the rest of the world in commemorating the International Families Day.
The International theme for this year’s commemoration of the International Day of Families is “Demographic Trends and Families”.
In commemorating the day, Ministery Of Women Affairs Community, Small and Medium Enterprise Development says has adopted this theme as the national theme.
May 15 is the International Day of Families, proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in 1993 with resolution A/RES/47/237. The day reflects the importance the international community attaches to families.
In a press statement Honourable Minister Of Women Affairs Community, Small and Medium Enterprise Development, DR S.G.G. Nyoni said families are strongest and healthiest when all people are empowered to access health care, acquire an education, contribute to their homes and communities, and realize their full potential. UNFPA supports the rights of all people to live healthy, empowered and fulfilled lives.
“The importance of the day for Zimbabwe, and the rest of the world cannot be under-scored, given the fact that the family unit is the key building block upon which our communities, societies and nations are built upon.
“Families are the first entry point that everyone passes through as they enter into the journey of life. It is through the family unit that we are all socialized to become valuable members of society and are prepared to participate in the positive development of our communities and nations at large,”she said.
The day has been celebrated every year since 1994.
“This Resolution reaffirms that the family unit is a natural and fundamental entity in society as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)”
“The United Nations states that the annual observance of the International Day of Families reflects the importance placed on the family as the basic unit of society by the international community,” said Minister Nyoni.
Hon. Nyoni added that the Government of Zimbabwe is committed to the protection and development of the family unit as indicated in Chapter 2, Section 25 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe which calls on the State and all Government institutions and agencies to protect and foster the family institution, provide support to family members with charge of children, and to work to prevent domestic violence.
“Families across the rural and urban divide in the country are facing a number of social and economic challenges that can be traced back to family fabric disintegration and poverty”
“Child prostitution, early marriages, drug abuse and domestic violence are now rampant. This results in challenges that needs to be tackled head on by all stakeholders who need to make their interventions adaptive to the demographic realities on the ground” she said.
Hon. Nyoni also said the key constituencies that her Ministry is mandated to look over which include women, communities, SMES and Cooperatives are not spared the reality of the impact of ever-changing demographic trends on their daily existence and economic activities.
“My Ministry therefore stands committed to ensuring that the implementation of programmes developed for our key clients take into consideration the welfare, promotion and protection of the family unit in line with real demographic influences.
“This will be critical in sustaining the family unit through positive development interventions, thereby ensuring that the core of the nation remains strong over time,”she said.
Kwedu Classics
Your story our story