Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM) points to Gender-Based Violence (GBV) as an evil with a high potential for compromising the implementation of some of the public company’s projects, including the cancellation of funding.
In many cases it is practised by employees working on EDM projects and is gaining ground because of the vulnerability of some families.
According to the director for Electrification and Projects at EDM, Joaquim Ou-Chim, the company faces numerous difficulties in implementing various electrification projects in Mozambique, among which Gender-Based Violence involving employees working on the various projects stands out.
The occurrence of these cases has a number of negative impacts on the company, including the cost of the project, which can extend the time it takes to complete the project and, consequently, delay completion.
‘It also affects the physical and mental health of the victims or survivors, tarnishes the reputation of the project and the company as a whole,’ said the director, adding that ‘it can also lead to the cancellation of project funding’.
Therefore, as a way of promoting reflection and finding mechanisms to prevent and repress cases of Gender-Based Violence, EDM held a workshop this morning (28) entitled ‘Impacts of Gender-Based Violence on Project Implementation’.
The workshop aims to promote gender equality, in addition to preventing cases of Gender-Based Violence in communities crossed or covered by the company’s projects.
For this reason, EDM urges the adoption of appropriate strategies for the sustainable implementation of projects, which contribute to the country’s development and the achievement of strategic objectives at national level.
The one-day workshop will be attended by EDM staff and representatives of the World Bank (WB).
AIM
