Blog

women Want Power

By Jumoke Ilevbabor

• More women facing hardship and poor quality of life

• Rising incidents of women being fatally assaulted by partners

• Some communities are still bound by repressive cultures

• Where do we go from here?

When I met Fafa, (name has been changed) I noticed that her eyes were sunken and she had tired looking skin. She seemed like a woman that had seen the other side of life. However, given her natural features, I could not help thinking what a beauty she would have been given different circumstances. Fafa has four children; she was unemployed and was not eligible for benefits due to immigration control. When I asked for her husband, she looked away. It turned out her husband had become too overwhelmed with the financial strain of providing for his family on his low wages and simply ‘took a walk’. She now has the sole responsibility of providing for her family, albeit without any source of income. Fafa lives in the northern part of the UK. Her story is not a unique one; it is the reality for some women, especially those from BAME communities. Some of their lives are further complicated by intersectional factors, such as disability and age.

I acknowledge that the struggle for gender equality has reaped some rewards for women. However, we are still facing many challenges.

Domestic violence continues to be the menace threatening the lives of women. About 1.6 million women experienced domestic abuse-related crimes and incidents in England and Wales in the year ending March 2024 – Office for National Statistics. The statistics for the current year will be more shocking when released, as we have seen an alarming increase in cases, some of which led to fatalities. Unfortunately, some of the perpetrators of these crimes against women did not get the maximum penalties for their heinous crimes.

BAME women are worst hit by domestic violence, due to cultures that are oppressive and repressive towards women. Unfortunately, most of the cases are undocumented, because of misinformed values that prevent women from reporting. The perpetrators continue to reign unhinged, leaving a trail of fatalities, or women that are both physically and emotionally wounded.

Furthermore, women in the UK are still being affected by unequal pay. Despite advocacy efforts in this regard, the pay gap between women and men is yet to be bridged. On the average, a woman earns lower than her male counterpart with similar experience on the same job role. Reports indicate that older women are even more likely to suffer discrimination at work.

Those who have recently relocated to the UK for work opportunities, education or asylum face a myriad of problems. These include hardship, loneliness and poor mental health. AFRICAB provides food, clothing and basic supplies to women in need. We provide them with opportunities for social interaction through our weekly Women Together programme. We offer information and advice to enable clients to integrate well into life in the UK. We use a collaborative approach to enable the best outcome for our clients. AFRICAB will continue to advocate equal opportunities for women.

There is need for government and local authorities to prioritise funding for women and children’s services, with a special focus on communities. They should also harness the insight and knowledge that lived experience leaders can bring to the table in designing and managing services.