Economic costs of gender violence
Women were born weak and they cannot hold big positions in society such as the presidency or chief executive officer’ or ‘women are weak-minded and cannot make bold decisions pertaining to matters of national importance or good governance’.
These are some of the naive and stereotype statements that are common in patriarchal societies like Malawi, where cultural or religious believes are strong and fuel gender disparities.
To make matters worse, some families, especially in rural areas, prefer to encourage the education of their male children than female counterparts. To them, a girl will get married and be looked after by her husband. Whereas, the boy will shoulder the responsibility of looking after a family, hence the need to prepare him for such a huge task in life.
Malawi is one of the developing countries which register astounding cases of violence against women and girls. However, most of the activism work in Malawi has bordered around the social consequences of gender- based violence. Yet, apart from the significant health impacts, which include psychological consequences, physical injuries, and sexual and reproductive health issues and death. Gender-based violence is rearing an ugly face on Malawi’s economy because it is reducing women’s and girls’ ability to access education, earn a living and participate in public life, and live a life free of fear.
According to The Open Debate: Feminist and Women’s Movement Building in Southern Africa by Shamillar Wilson, women continue to be impacted in ways that persistently compromise their dignity and human rights due to, among other factors, inequalities based on gender.
She argues that while there is almost universal recognition of women’s rights, for most women their rights only exist on paper.
Statistically, women still make up nearly two-thirds of the world’s illiterate people, comprise two-thirds of the world’s poor (living $1 [K480] a day or less), perform two-thirds of the world’s work and produce 50 percent of the food, while earning only 10 percent of the income and owning just one percent of the property.
In a 2004 World Bank report, Olufunmilayo I Fawole argues that ‘economic violence’, where an abuser has complete control over a victim’s money and other resources, is a form of gender-based violence in itself. She argues it is too often ignored. Fawole asserts that economic violence leads to a deepening of poverty and that investing in the primary prevention of economic abuse is a cost-effective measure for governments to take.
If the above statistics and assertions are anything to go by, women contribute significantly to the economic development of a country. However, gender-based violence poses a major threat to this cause.
In Malawi, the dwindling productivity of women and girls is largely blamed on gender-based violence. For example, women that have been injured by their jealous husbands can no longer be productive in order to produce food for the family or sale. Their active participation in economic activities in the public spaces is also hampered since they cannot go to a market with a bruised face, broken arm or heart.
Worse still, the economic status of many families is crippled because of the huge health costs that are incurred by violence in the home. Think of the maintenance of that broken neck or leg at a private hospital.
Sex abuse in workplaces is another brutal act haunting some young women and girls in Malawi as they prefer to remain jobless to avoid the wrath of educated fools who demand sexual favours in exchange for employment. In Malawi, this tendency is commonly referred to as ‘carpet interview’.
Malawi’s soaring unemployment levels are factors that are pushing innocent young women into the dungeon of death.
Government and other stakeholders must relentlessly fight gender-based violence in order to save the economic costs that it loses through victims’ unproductive and health maintenance. As we mark every year’s 16 Days of Activism against Gender- Based Violence, awareness should border around the need for Malawi to protect women and girls in order to protect the country’s economy from further collapse.
Further, poor promotion of girls’ education and empowerment in Malawi is facilitating inter-generational poverty. This is the case because today’s poor investment in their issues turns out to be a breeding ground for their tomorrow’s economic independence.
