Women to Watch International Panel
By Gwamaka Lucas Mwakalinga
The CityLAB Dar es Salaam launched the Women to Watch Program (W2W) in November 2019. W2W is a shadowing program for young female professionals and practitioners in Tanzania. Through W2W young women have the opportunity to shadow senior women in prominent positions in the communities where they live and work. The CityLAB launched the program as a way to bring attention to the lack of gender-based data in the areas of urban transformation and the construction sector. Another goal of W2W is to learn about the specific challenges that women face when negotiating the city space and the work environment, and how they tackle and find solutions to overcome these challenges.
Figure 1. Dr. Elionarata Mbyua opening the Women to Watch panel
To open up the W2W Program, the CityLAB organized a panel involving key international scholars and practitioners. Through different disciplines and activities, from art and literature to research and architectural practice, the panelists work to mentor young women who are new in their work fields. For example, one of the panelists, Dr. Victoria Hellman is the Director of the Tanzania Association for Women Architecture for Humanity, TAWAH, which runs a shadowing program where young female professionals follow mid and senior career professionals in the construction sector.
Figure 2: Wide range of panelist at Women to Watch International panel
The CityLAB Head, Dr. Nathalie Jean-Baptiste and Dr. Elinorata Mbyua, CityLab Research Fellow, introduced the panel. Ardhi Research Professor Huba Nguluma was the panel’s Chair. Dr Mshai Mwangola, Adjunct Professor at the African Leadership Center in Kenya, Dr. Victoria Heilman, Founding Director of TAWAH in Tanzania, and Architect Karuni Naidoo, Founding Director of CNN Architects in South Africa and founder of Women in Architecture South Africa Initiative, offered advice and answered questions on different issues affecting women in the work environment related to work and education condition of such as leadership, teamwork, independence, adaptability, and resilience, among others. Dr. Priscila Izar, CityLAB Postdoctoral Research Fellow was the panel’s discussant.
The specific topic of the panel was how women live, work and transform their environment in African cities. Participants started by presenting their views on the gender imbalances in the job market and different professional fields, on ethnic bias, and on the struggles that women often have in male dominated work environments. For example, Dr. Heilman spoke about the importance of recognizing the knowledge of Masai women in Arusha reproducing their vernacular architecture as a first step towards supporting them to build not just homes but also their communities. Dr. Mwangola spoke of the role of art, performance and storytelling in producing knowledge about gender inequality, as well as in addressing it. Architect Naidoo spoke about the differences in being mentored by men and women, a topic that generated much discussion with the audience.
Figure 3: The Women to watch audience at the Little Theater in Dar es Salaam
Some key comments that the panelists offered during the event included
“The key to being a successful teammate is communication—making sure you’re able to delegate and identify the roles that certain people play on your team. The biggest obstacle can be someone who isn’t pulling their weight. Working with that person requires an ability to coach them and pull them aside to have a conversation. Maybe they’re having a rough day or there’s something going on in their personal life. Being a part of a team means getting to know the people on your team and enhancing their skills and personalities.” - MSHAI MWANGOLA.
“Adaptability is critical in order to be successful in the workplace. Things are constantly changing in my profession, whether it is accounting guidelines that I have to be up to speed on, building methodology that has changed, or new software that we’re implementing. The most important thing is to have an open mind when your environment is changing. If you don’t go with the flow, you might sink.” - KARUNI NAIDOO
A special highlight of the W2W international panel was the live performance by Tanzanian musical Grace Matata. She is an inspiring woman who supports and helps bring awareness about the need for gender equality through her art in music. Her music and performance created the perfect ambiance for the night.
Figure 4: Grace Matata’s live performance
The discussion continued by looking specifically at women’s involvement in development and in the transformation of cities, and questioning the possible reasons why women do or do not have the same opportunities as men. The panelists continued to provide unique opinions on the topic, based on their own practical experience. Architect Karuni Naidoo provided an amazing example of how hard and racially biased it was when she was studying architecture in South Africa, just before the end of the Apartheid. With the end of that regime, when she was already able to practice Architecture, she had to overcome the stereotype that for being a woman, her work was somehow inferior to that of a man. She navigated these challenges by taking more managerial roles at her practice, which she shared with two male colleagues earlier in her career. Today, at the Women in Architecture South Africa initiative, Architect Naidoo “continues to highlight the under-representation of black women in a traditionally white male dominated architectural profession,” she explained.
The panelists spoke about their own experiences in order to show possible solutions to problems that women often face, so they may continue to fight stereotypes. One of the contributors advised the audience that “only through persistence, believing, respect and hardworking it can be done”. Other topics discussed included resilience, socialization, skill development, teamwork, and leadership.
Figure 5: Prof. Carolyne Nombo, the Deputy Vice Chancellor-Planning, Finance and Administration at Ardhi University challenged the panelists to think about the role of male mentorship in the professional development of young women
The panelists brought inspiration and determination to all the attendees in the room. They encouraged greater inter-connections between the members of the audience and brought a true sense of empowerment to women supporting other women through their discussion.
Here is what some members of the audience had to say:
“I loved the topic and honest answers. We need more solutions but that is for everyone to work on. Conversations are the starting place.”
“I most enjoyed the diverse background of the speakers, who provided different perspectives. Great amount of time for the audience’s questions!”
“I most enjoyed the selection of panelists and their ability to articulate different, practical perspectives.”
It was inspiring to see so many people from different backgrounds coming together to listen and ask questions. The collaboration between CityLAB and a number of Tanzanian organizations has been a real milestone this year. The CityLAB would like to thank everyone involved with the panel and those who came along to this engaging and inspiring.