Zimbabwe Women's Parliamentary Caucus DESCRIPTION The aim ...

Zimbabwe Women’s Parliamentary Caucus
DESCRIPTION
The aim of establishing a Women’s Parliamentary Caucus was for women parliamentarians to
rise above party politics and address issues of common concern as women.
1. Background
The Zimbabwe Women’s Parliamentary Caucus was launched in October 2001 in response to
the SADC Parliamentary Forum initiative with the assistance of AWEPA.
2. Structure of the Zimbabwe Women’s Parliamentary Caucus
The operations of the Caucus are guided by a Constitution which provides for, among other
things, membership and management of the Caucus
2.1 Membership
Membership to the Caucus is open to all Zimbabwean Women Members of Parliament and
Associate Members, upon payment of a prescribed fee.
An Associate Member is any former woman Member of the Parliament of Zimbabwe.
However, Associate Members are not entitled to take part in the management of the Caucus
and can not vote.
2.2 Management Committee
The current composition of the Management Committee is as follows:
a) Chairperson - Hon. B. Nyamupinga (ZANU PF}
b) Vice Chairperson - Hon. K. Chabuka (MDC-T)
c) Secretary - Hon. S. Ncube (MDC-T)
d) Vice Secretary - Hon. A. Ndhlovu (ZANU PF)
e) Treasurer - Hon. B. Chikava (ZANU PF)
f) Committee Members – Hon M. N. Mandaba (ZANU PF);
Hon. A. Muloyi Sibanda (MDC-T); and
g) Ex-Officio Members - Hon. O Muchena (ZANU PF), Hon. N.M. Khumalo (MDC), Hon. M.
Matienga (MDC-T), Hon. E. Chitsa (MDC-T) .

h) Patron of the Caucas – Hon. E. Madzongwe (ZANU PF) ( President of the Senate).
h) The Director Research, Mrs. Christine Mafoko, assisted by Ms. Farai Hondonga provides
the administrative secretariat of the Caucus.
3. Objectives
The objectives of the Caucus shall be:
a) to advocate for legislation on gender mainstreaming;
b) to facilitate the effective implementation of the national gender policy;
c) to provide a Forum for discussion on matters affecting women in the country, regionally and
Internationally across party lines;
d) to develop and establish norms and standards that promote the effective participation of
women in Parliament;
e) to promote and help sensitise all Parliamentarians to the principles of gender equality in the
country, regionally and internationally;
f) to facilitate networking with other organisations and institutions within and outside the
country, in activities aimed at promoting gender equality and participation.
4. Highlights of Achievements of the Caucus
Since its inception in 2001, the Caucus has achieved the following in line with its
objectives and Plan of Action
4.1 Legislative Business
(a)Sexual Offences Bill
One of the first major strides in participating in legislative business by the Women’s Caucus
was the passing of the Sexual Offences Act.
Women Parliamentarians successfully lobbied for the inclusion of a clause which
makes marital rape an offence which attracts a prison sentence in cases where
the offender commits the offence with full knowledge that he/she is infected with
the HIV virus.
b)Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment No. 17 Bill
The Constitution of Zimbabwe (No.17) Amendment Bill was passed by

Parliament in September 2005. Among other things, the provisions of the Bill
amended section 23 of the Constitution, with important and far-reaching
consequences on the status of women.
Section 23 of The Constitution
Section 23 of the Constitution is part of the Declaration of Rights and its provisions provide for
protection from discrimination Prior to the Amendment
(No.17) Bill, section 23 provided for several grounds upon which a person could
not be discriminated against namely race, tribe, place of origin, political opinion,
colour, creed and gender. The Bill added sex, marital status and physical
disability as additional grounds.
The inclusion of both sex and gender as grounds upon which a person may not
be discriminated against is welcome because it has been shown that the
discrimination that women encounter is often based on the social interpretation of
what it means to belong to the female sex, rather than on sex itself. Marital
status is also important for addressing women’s discrimination as some of the
disadvantages that women face particularly with regard to their access to
resources, are linked to their marital status.
Another important inroad made for women by the amendment of section 23 of
the Constitution are the provisions that permit positive discrimination or
affirmative action. This means that now government may legally pursue
programmes designed to uplift women from their previously disadvantaged
position, such as quota systems with regard to women’s access to education,
credit and other resources.
Section 23(a) introduced by the Bill is perhaps the biggest gain for women at this
point in our history in light of the ongoing initiative on land resettlement. It states
that in implementing any programme of land reform, the government shall treat
men and women or an equal basis with respect to the allocation or distribution of
land or by right or interest therein under that programme of significance is the
use of words “on an equal basis”. This implies a 50/50 approach.
c)Domestic Violence Bill

The Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs introduced the Domestic
Violence Bill in Parliament during the Second Session of the Sixth Parliament.
Women Parliamentarians held a workshop to strategise on the issues of
contention such as psychological abuse, stalking, and emotional trauma caused
by abuse, degrading cultural practices, female genital mutilation etc.
Targeted groups like the Political Party Caucuses, traditional leaders and male
parliamentarians were lobbied by the Women’s Caucus to support the Bill and
the proposed penalties.
d)Gender Mainstreaming in Legislation
In order to address the gender gaps in existing legislation, the Caucus engaged a
consultant to review existing gender insensitive laws and policies with a view to
make recommendations for legislative reforms.
4.2 Increase of Women in Decision - Making Positions
The main agenda on the Plan of Action of the Women’s Caucus for the year 2005 was to
achieve 30% women representation in Parliament. Women Parliamentarians lobbied their
respective Political Parties, Party Caucuses, Whips, Political Party Leaders and
Constituencies for a quota to be reserved for women during the March 2005 Parliamentary
elections. Through this exercise woman representation in Parliament rose from 10,6 % to
17% of the total composition of the House. The subsequent Senatorial Elections which were
held in November 2005 achieved 36% representation of women in the Senate.
However, the current 7 th Parliament which came into effect after the 2008 harmonized
election resulted with a total of 18.2%, representation of women in Parliament .
4.3 Capacity Building
Workshops aimed at Personal Empowerment and strengthening women
parliamentarians’ capacity to engender parliamentary business through understanding how
Parliament works and how rules can be used to impact on gender concerns are always being
organized for women parliamentarians.
4.4 Constitution Making Process
As from 2010, Zimbabwe embarked on a constitution making process whose objective is to

come up with a new home grown constitution that addresses the concerns and interests of its
people. The Zimbabwe Women’s Parliamentary Caucus is participating in this process to
ensure that the provisions of the new constitution are gender sensitive.
CONSTITUTION OF THE ZIMBABWEAN WOMEN PARLIAMENTARIANS CAUCUS
Preamble
We, the Women Parliamentarians of Zimbabwe, Cognisant of the historical, cultural and other
prejudices hindering our full participation in the political decision-making and other social
responsibilities, do hereby give to ourselves this Constitution which creates the Zimbabwean
Women Parliamentarians Caucus.
The vision of the Caucus shall be to achieve at least parity by the year 2015 and sustainability
for full participation in all decision making organs of Parliament.
Article 1
The Caucus shall be called the Zimbabwean Women Parliamentarians Caucus.
Article 2
Definitions
In this Constitution, unless the context otherwise requires:
"Management Committee" means a Committee established in pursuance of Article 6 of the
Constitution.
"Caucus" means the Zimbabwean Women Parliamentarians Caucus.
"SADC means the Southern African Development Community.
Article 3
Objectives
The objectives of the Caucus shall be:
a) to advocate for legislation on gender mainstreaming;
b) to facilitate the effective implementation of the national gender policy;
c) to provide a Forum for discussion on matters affecting women in the country, regionally and
Internationally across party lines;

d) to develop and establish norms and standards that promote the effective participation of
women in Parliament;
e) to promote and help sensitise all Parliamentarians to the principles of gender equality in the
country, regionally and internationally;
f) to facilitate networking with other organisations and institutions within and outside the
country, in activities aimed at promoting gender equality and participation.
Article 4
Membership and Subscription
Membership to the Caucus shall be open to the following:
i) All Zimbabwean Women Members of Parliament
ii) Associate Members
Members
Any sitting woman Member of the Zimbabwe Parliament shall be entitled to become a
Member of the Caucus upon payment of the prescribed fee.
Associate Member
Any woman Member of Parliament upon ceasing to be a Member of the Parliament of
Zimbabwe can be an Associate Member upon payment of the prescribed fee. An associate
member shall not be entitled to take part in the management of the Caucus and shall not vote.
Membership Fees and Subscriptions
Membership fees shall be as approved by the Caucus and these shall be as follows:
i) Membership Fee
ii) Associate Membership Fee
iii) Annual Subscription Fee
Article 5
Meetings
1. Notice of the Annual General Meeting shall be in writing at least thirty days in advance.
2. Decisions at the Caucus’ meetings shall be arrived at by consensus and in the event of
failure to reach a consensus, by voting provided that each member shall be entitled to one

vote. Voting shall be by secret ballot.
3. A quorum of the General Meeting shall be one third of sitting members of the caucus.
4. A quorum of the Management Committee shall be made up of not less than four members
of the Committee.
5. Ordinary meetings shall be held regularly provided that a period of sixty days shall not
elapse without a meeting having been held.
6. The Chairperson of the Caucus may call for an extra ordinary general meeting within
twenty four hours of such need having arisen at the request of not more than one third of the
membership.
Article 6
The Management Committee
1. Officers of the Caucus shall be known as the Management Committee and shall consist of
the following:
a) Chairperson
b) Vice Chairperson
c) Secretary
d) Vice Secretary
e) Treasurer
g) Two Committee Members
h) Ex-officio members co-opted by the Management Committee with the approval of the
caucus.
2. Other sub Committees of the Zimbabwean Women Parliamentarians Caucus may be
established as approved of the Caucus.
Article 7
Individual Offices
1. Election of Officers of Caucus
a) All office bearers shall be elected by secret ballot by the Caucus at an
annual general meeting every three years.
b) Any member of the Caucus may be elected including current office holders.
2. The Chairperson

i) The Chairperson shall be the official spokesperson of the caucus on all matters
affecting policy
ii) Preside over meetings of the caucus
iii) Provide Policy guidance to the Secretariat
iv) Be responsible for the activities of the management committee as laid out
in Article 8.
3. The Vice Chairperson
i) The Vice Chairperson shall perform the functions of the
chairperson in the absence of the chairperson or if there is a casual vacancy in the office of
the chairperson.
In the latter event, the vice chairperson shall perform the functions of the
Chairperson until the next general meeting at which a new Chairperson
shall be elected.
ii) where there is a casual vacancy in the office of Chairperson and of vice chairperson, the
management committee may elect one of its members to
perform the duties of vice-chairperson until a chairperson or vice-chairperson is
elected.
4. The Secretary
i) The Secretary shall work under the general guidance of the
chairperson to promote the aims and objectives of the caucus.
ii) Liaise with other women’s organisations
iii) Prepare draft programmes of the caucus
iv) Prepare annual reports
5. The Treasurer
i) The treasurer shall be responsible for management of the finances of the caucus
ii) Prepare annual budgets of the caucus
iii) Table audited accounts of the caucus
iv) In the event of a casual vacancy in the of the Treasurer the Management
Committee may appoint an Acting Treasurer between the two committee
members and the same to the caucus within seven working days.

v) An acting treasurer shall hold office until the next general meeting.
6. The Vice Secretary
i) The vice Secretary shall perform the functions of the secretary in
the absence of the secretary or if there is a casual vacancy in the office of the
secretary, in the latter event the vice secretary shall perform the functions of
secretary until the next general meeting at which a new secretary shall be
elected.
ii) where there is a casual vacancy in the office of secretary and the
vice secretary the management committee may elect one of its members to
perform the duties of vice secretary until a secretary or vice secretary is elected.
7. Committee Members
Committee members shall form part of the management committee and assist in
its activities as defined in Article 8.
Article 8
Functions of the Management Committee
1. Collectively the Management Committee shall be responsible for:
a) Management of the affairs of the Caucus by;
i) Preparation of draft programmes of the Caucus activities
ii) Preparation of annual reports and budget
iii) Giving strategic directions to the Caucus and ensuring that the decisions of the same are
implemented
iv) Tabling of the annual audited accounts before the Caucus
v) Mobilising resources within and outside parliament for carrying out
caucus activities.
2. The Management Committee shall be answerable to the Caucus.
Article 9
Financial Provisions
1. Sources of Finance
The Finances of the Zimbabwe Women Parliamentarians Caucus shall accrue from the

following sources:
i) Annual subscriptions and membership fees from members;
ii) Contributions from members and other well wishers;
iii) Grants or donations;
iv) Fund raising activities approved by the Caucus and the Speaker of the
Parliament of Zimbabwe.
2. Financial Year
The Financial Year of the Zimbabwe Women Parliamentarians Caucus shall commence on 1
January and end on 31 December each calendar year.
Article 10
Amendments
An amendment to this Constitution shall be adopted by a decision of two-thirds (2/3) of all
members of the Caucus. A proposal to amend the Constitution shall be submitted in writing to
the Secretary of the management committee fourteen days before the annual or extra
ordinary general meeting.