Rt Hon. Rose Namayanja Nsereko, Founder and Director of the Rose Namayanja Foundation, has called for a united front among women leaders in Uganda.
During a three-day National Dialogue on Women in Politics organized by the Netherlands Institute of Multiparty Democracy, Rt Hon Namayanja spoke at the Imperial Royale Hotel in Entebbe about how societal expectations and cultural norms value women for their beauty and fertility rather than their intelligence and ability to lead.
“The forces that seek to divide women are stronger than those that unite them. Your value system as a woman is very important, and that is something we have to continue working on,” Rt. Hon. Namayanja said.
She went on to say that as senior women leaders, it is important that they examine themselves and determine what role they played in helping or hindering other female candidates who ran for office. She noted that while more women are standing up and running for office than ever before, many still face challenges when they do so—including outright discrimination from men who don’t think they should be involved in leadership roles at all!
She emphasized the need for self-leadership among women: “Before you lead others, have you led yourself? What do you want to achieve as a leader? Self-leadership is about your philosophy,”
Namayanja said that even when people fail, they must look at what they can learn from the experience rather than giving up or blaming someone else for their failure. She also noted that leadership is not always about the position; it’s about owning one’s story.
“I am not responsible for my past, but I am responsible for my current position,” she said.
