By REBECCA MUSHOTA –
ZAMBIA ranks 29 out of 52 African countries on the Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) Gender sub-category after the country scored 51 point out of 100.
This is according to the latest posting by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation which shows results of 2014 based on statistics collected in 2013.
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation was established in 2006 to focus on the importance of leadership and governance in Africa.
It established the IIAG in 2007 which collects quantitative governance in Africa from categories such as human development and sustainable economic opportunities.
Zambia has gained 4.4 points since 2009, coming number 22 out of 52 countries on the list of most improved. The African average score in Gender is 2.4 points.
Since its lowest ranking in 2008 when the country recorded 44.1 points, Zambia has been gaining steadily, reaching its highest score of 51 in 2013.
The 10 highest scoring countries in gender are Seychelles (88.7), Rwanda (87.6), South Africa (74.3), Botswana (72.3) and Namibia (71.6).
Others are Uganda (71.6), Senegal  (71.4), Capo Verde (70.2), Mozambique (67.9) and Tanzania (67.6).
The 10 lowest scoring African countries are Somalia (22.1), Niger (28.6), Libya (30.4), Côte d’Ivoire (33.7) and Egypt (35.8).
Others are Morocco (36.3), Chad (37.7), Comoros (38.1), Guinea-Bissau (38.5) and Mali (39.0).
Gender was one of 14 sub-categories of the IIAG and the indicators were legislation on violence against women, gender equality in appointments to Cabinet and the number of women in Parliament.
It also included gender balance in education, equal representation in rural areas and women’s participation in the labour force.