Construction seen through women’s eyes

Basis of Comparison

3 April 2021

    My country code is +256 and I believe many wouldn’t easily fail to notice it’s Uganda as always referred to as the Pearl of Africa, so rich in culture and tradition, of course not forgetting the ever green vegetation and the dazzling mountains with beautiful waterfalls.

   Referring way back in the African traditional society where everyone strongly believed in a set of behavioral patterns related to thoughts, manners, and actions, and where members of society had to share and pass onto succeeding generations, it is much different now as the communities have changed and embraced modernization where a lot has been overlooked. 
  Taking constructions as our basis of comparison in gender roles, in Uganda, we have to keep in mind how hard it is to wipe away traditions. Like I hinted before on cultural beliefs and traditions in African society, women and men had distinguished roles where we had feminine roles and masculine roles, economically, socially, and also materially. The duty and roles of women in society were specific to kitchen duty, house chores, and bearing children while the duty of men was specific to economic, by bringing food mostly through work in the construction industry.
 However in the early 90’s my country engaged in campaigns and advocacy of gender equality and women empowerment that supported the underrepresentation of women in a number of entities ranging from profit entities, economic, social, and many more. These women’s emancipation campaigns have changed the negative perception of women and this has paved the way for the active involvement of women in such ventures, which were then referred to as masculine roles such as construction and building. Believe me or not, Uganda has fought to erase gender biases and has lifted women empowerment where we have seen women run for big political positions, truck driver positions, and construction tasks. However, today construction is a male-dominated industry but the conception of employers and entrepreneurs has changed positively by not underrating the potential of women in construction businesses. The fact being, the women have been encouraged and protected and have acquired self-belief and perception that they can do it. Sincerely, it has been noticed that women can really execute better than men if given the same necessary professional training, as women have a plus in hospitality and interpersonal relationship. In this current era, I should be comfortable to say that the rise of women in construction has been refreshed, their perception has been triggered and their love to go and get it has been activated. Asked well as potential employers in await to get them on board is a new normal. I personally notice of late that almost on every job advertisement, construction companies add a statement reading “female applicants are highly encouraged”.
  I mean, which construction company would not want to be recognised as an equal opportunity employer with women on board? Anyway, the game has changed and it has been evidently noticed that women now occupy quite a number of different positions in construction companies ranging from supervisory roles, managerial roles, technical roles, and physical roles as well. Gone are the days when women’s work started in the kitchen, to the garden, and ended in the bedroom. It’s no longer a surprise to find women in any kind of involvement such as building and construction. Hawking businesses, bus and truck drivers, boda boda riders(motorbike transporters), and many more.
  I conclude with my common country slogan “Uganda Zaabu” meaning Uganda is Gold. Which reflects that it’s a country where everything is possible.

Author – Werire Janet

Click HERE for other Stories that might interest you…

SHARE

We like to know more about what people name comfort and how they enjoy living their lives. So why not share your story with us? Click here to share your comments or ideas!

Follow us for news and updates

Copyright © 2020 Civcons Design Ltd

All rights reserved