Women's Forum: Russian Women Understand Africa's Struggles, Says South African Diplomat

African women find it easy to communicate with women from Russia as they understand the struggles faced by women in the African continent and can collaborate on various areas of mutual interest, Tandiwe Mgxwati, Minister-Plenipotentiary of the South African Embassy in Moscow, told Sputnik Africa on the sidelines of the Russian-African Women's Forum, which took place in the Russian capital on Monday.

"When we are women, we have a lot of common things that we can talk about. We always have issues of development. How do we empower ourselves economically? How do we empower ourselves in terms of coping with a whole lot of societal issues? So it is very easy to communicate with women from Russia because they understand the struggles in the African continent as well, dealing with so many issues," Mgxwati said.

As the Second Russia–Africa Summit approaches, women leaders from both continents gathered in Moscow for the first-ever Russian-African Women's Forum on Monday. The forum aims to foster dialogue, cooperation and empowerment of women on various issues, from economic development to social challenges.

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"I was invited to come to the forum and I gladly accepted the invitation because I believe it's an important forum to participate in and also to interact with other people from the Russian Federation, especially women," Mgxwati said, highlighting the critical role women play in society as builders and nurturers of future leaders.

The South African diplomat, who has been in Russia for some time, emphasized the need to pay more attention to women's issues and to work together to overcome challenges such as war, famine and disease.

She said that women are powerful people who should be given a critical and important role in the agenda of any programs, including political ones, and that civil society cooperation is essential for bringing people closer to each other.

"We, as women, [...] are the ones that nurture the leaders of tomorrow, basically. We are the ones that also bear the brunt of any issues, if there are humanity issues that are coming out because of wars, because of famine, because of diseases, women are always in the forefront of the struggle in societies," she said.

Turning to future expectations for the Russia–Africa Summit, Mgxwati expressed optimism that the summit would result in tangible programs and actions for cooperation between Russia and the African continent.

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She highlighted the significance of critical development issues, such as the implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area, and expressed hope for fruitful discussions and opportunities for collaboration.

"I'm sure our leaders will be deliberating on very critical issues of development in the country," Tandiwe Mgxwati told Sputnik Africa. "We are looking for opportunities and that we can cooperate with the Russian Federation within that space. So there's quite a lot that the two sides can discuss. And so we are very optimistic that that summit will come up with some tangible programs of action, and we move from there."

As the summit approaches, anticipation grows for the outcomes and actions that will emerge from the deliberations, with expectations set for productive cooperation and mutually beneficial programs between Russia and Africa.

The Second Russia–Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum will be held in St. Petersburg on July 27-28. The event will be attended by African leaders and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The First Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum took place in the Russian resort city of Sochi in October 2019.