WINDHOEK – The empowerment of women in southern Africa is one of the issues this year’s SADC summit in Windhoek will tackle.
While individual SADC member states have taken strides in empowering their women, a lot still needs to be done.
In September 1997, a Declaration on Gender and Development was signed by SADC Heads of State and Government in Blantyre, Malawi in which they committed their countries to the following, among others:
The achievement of at least 30 percent target of women in political and decision making structures by 2005;
Promoting women’s full access to, and control over productive resources to reduce the level of poverty among women;
Repealing and reforming all laws, amending constitutions and changing social practices which still subject women to discrimination;
By 2005, few of the countries had achieved the threshold.
And five years later, the challenge is still there.
But in individual member states more and more women are taking positions previously reserved for men.
In Namibia, there is one such woman who has defied all odds by venturing into a male dominated profession.
Meet Annastansia Kenaihe a haulage truck driver.
The 45-year old mother of nine from Windhoek says she loves her job with a passion.
For now she would not exchange her job for anything.
She is one of a few, probably the only one, who has chosen this profession in Namibia. Anna, as she is called by colleagues, works for Etosha Transport in Windhoek as a driver. She drives a Scania haulage truck.
She says she has always been attracted to jobs traditionally know to be man’s. ‘I just enjoy doing hard labour or a job that requires physical activity, its just where my talent lies,’ she says matter of factly.
Her career in driving dates back years back when she had a sedan vehicle which she used to transporting children in her neighbourhood to and from school and charged a monthly fee.
AS time went on she discovered that the business was not earning her enough to fend for her family, being a single mother.
‘I had to make a plan to generate more income from my car and I thought of registering it as a taxi.’ In 1999 she registered her taxi and became the first woman to drive a taxi in the city. She drove a taxi for nine years.
Needless to say she turned heads.
She said sometimes people were even afraid or had some sort of uncertainty to get into her taxi because of her gender. ‘But that did not discourage me at all. In fact, it encouraged me because I was able to prove to the nation that women too can drive taxis and not to just stay at home waiting for financial support from a man,’ she said.
After nine years Anna, got tired of driving a taxi and started looking for something more challenging.
She said that one day she got talking to a female passenger who asked her how long she intended to stay as a taxi driver.
‘I remember I just laughed and told her my dream was to drive haulage trucks.’ ‘I could see she was shocked, that a woman actually wanted to drive those ‘big trucks’. But that was my dream and I was willing to go to the ends of the world to make it a reality.’
Anna then started asking around for information where she could be trained as a truck driver. Her efforts landed her at the Unitrans Driving Academy were she learned how to drive a haulage truck and obtained a code CE driver’s license through the Academy.
‘When I first went to Unitrans the trainer couldn’t believe it when I walked into the academy for training, he was overwhelmed and eager to train me from day one,’ she said.
‘I only paid for one lesson at the Academy then my trainer offered to train me free of charge because he said he had never had of a woman at the academy and was very inspired by me and the great progress I made.’
Anna was amongst 10 male learners and she said everyone was helpful to her. She pays tribute to Unitrans Academy through which she obtained her truck driver’s license, for making her realize her dream
Anna says she enjoys working for her current employer because she has benefits such as medical aid and pension fund.
‘My life at home has improved so much and I thank God each day,’ enthuses about her employer.
She has been driving the haulage trucks for Etosha Trucks for two years now and describes them as full of new experiences. The job has made her a ‘extremely stronger and happier person’.
Anna used to drive to South Africa when she started but now only does local troops mostly to the north of the country at least 700 km away.
She admits that when she started she was scared, felt unsafe and lacked confidence especially when driving at night.
Now she’s confident and driving her truck has become second nature to her.
‘I was also very worried about my children in the beginning as I had to spend days and nights away from them but my faith in the Lord grew bigger and I am at peace when I’m away knowing that the Lord is taking care of them.’
She has now employed a nanny who takes care of her children when she is away.
There is a man in her life who takes over looking after the children after 5 when the nanny knocks off.
Anna says the toughest challenge she is faced with as a truck driver is the fact that she has very limited time on her hands but has learnt to accept it.
This has made her love her job intensely and she speaks fondly of the Scania engine. ‘The sound of the engine gives me joy, it gets me so excited and I could listen to it all day.’
‘My children are inspired and my daughters say they want to drive trucks like mommy too one day,’ she adds.
She spends two nights on average on the road, driving to and from the northern part of the country.
She cooks and bathes and sleeps in her truck. It’s part of her job.
‘My truck has become a home away from home as I spend a lot of time in it.’ When she gets tired along the way she drives to the nearest town rather than on a side road along the highway.
She said some passersby are fascinated by her and she ends up getting tips.
‘I get tips for driving a truck because I’m a woman,’ she chuckles.
How does she cope with breakdowns? Will she be able to change a tyre if she has a puncture?
‘Fortunately I have not experienced major breakdowns. I have only had minor ones and I cope.
If I have problems I phone my employer and they are quick respond.’ Anna says she doesn’t see herself changing her job or a career any time soon.
She might not know much about the SADC summit going on in her own city discussing the empowerment of women like her, but Anna is, in her own small way, making SADC’s women empowerment goal, closer to reality.
