NAIROBI JUNE 7, 2016(CISA)-John Cardinal Njue on Saturday June 4 signed up for the HeForShe Campaign that seeks to build a global solidarity movement for gender equality.
“Today I commit to support the HeforShe campaign as a strategy to strengthen the call gender of equality which will go a long way in supporting the boy child initiative in our archdiocese of Nairobi,” the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Nairobi said.
The cardinal signed up for the campaign during the Annual General Meeting of the Catholic Men Association of the Archdiocese of Nairobi.
“The Catholic Church has never shied away from the issues of gender inequalities that face our society today. This inequality exists even in the church because men and women sometime forget they cannot be fully human without one another yet we are all equal in the eyes of God,” Cardinal Njue said.
In his speech addressed to the Catholic Men Association, Cardinal Njue urged the men to mentor the boy child.
“I am happy to note that today we are launching a boy child support program in partnership with the UN Women. We are called to be good examples and positive models in order to foster mentorship to the boy child in the society. I wish to remind you our dear fathers that you have a responsibility to head your homes, lead and guide your families. This is a role that cannot be fulfilled effectively without mentoring the future generations,” the cardinal said.
“This is a responsibility that you cannot kind of give to someone else; it is your primary responsibility,” he said adding that “the life of the boy child in our society today is affected by many issues including drug abuse alcoholism, radicalism and other criminal activities.”
While introducing the HeForShe campaign, the UN Women Country director Ms. Zebib Kavuma noted that, “The purpose of this campaign is to build a global solidarity movement for gender equality that engages men and boys as advocates and stakeholders to break the silence, to raise their voices and take action for the achievement of gender equality and the elimination of all forms of discrimination.”
HeForShe unlike other campaigns is born out of the recognition that gender equality is not only about women and girls but rather about inclusivity meaning men and women boys and girls.
The HeForShe global campaign was launched on September 20, 2014 by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in New York.
Subsequently in Africa, Kenya was the second country to launch the campaign after Rwanda on November 26 2014 which was spearheaded by resident Uhuru Kenyatta.
The campaign seeks to engage men and boys as advocates and agents for change for the achievement of gender equality and women rights.
