Miria Matembe

Miria Rukoza Koburunga Matembe, LL.D (honoris causa) (born 28 August 1953) is a former member of the Pan-African Parliament from Uganda.[1] While serving there, she was chairperson of the Committee on Rules, Privileges and Discipline a permanent committee of the parliament.

In June 2006, she became a Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow with the National Endowment for Democracy.

Women's rights advocacy

She has been a strong proponent for and an advocate of women's rights in Uganda. For over two decades beginning in 1989, she was a member of Uganda’s parliament. She worked in the Ugandan government as minister for ethics and integrity from 1998 to 2003, after which time she became a member of the Pan-African Parliament representing Uganda.

In 1995, she was a member of the Constitutional Court that created the Ugandan Constitution. She was the former chairperson of Action for Development, Uganda's leading women's advocacy organization, an organization she co-founded.

In 1990, she was the deputy general of the Pan-African Congress held in Kampala. She has been a lecturer on law and English at the Chartered Institute of Bankers, also in Kampala. A lawyer by profession, Matembe is also the author of several articles and a book, Miria Matembe: Gender, Politics, and Constitution Making in Uganda, on women in politics.

In October 2006, Matembe gave a lecture entitled "Women, War, Peace: Politics in Peacebuilding" at the University of San Diego's Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice Distinguished Lecture Series.

In 2011, she delivered the keynote address at The 11th Sarah Ntiro Lecture and Award held at Grand Imperial Hotel, Kampala -Uganda to those women who are either inspiring models or have worked to facilitate girl-child education at the Forum for African Women Educationalists (Fawe) organised-event and, for the disadvantaged girl-child. The main awards came in two categories; the "Woman of Distinction" award that recognised women whose activities promoted girl child education, and the Model of Excellence award that awarded women achievers who set a good example for young girls.

Matembe who was one of those honoured for her valiant efforts to promote girl child education gave thanks to God when accepting the award. She said ignorance and lack of resources were some of the issues hampering the advancement of girl child education.

She is married to Nekemia Matembe and they have four sons.

Awards

References

  1. ↑ Pan-African Parliament members as of 15 March 2004

External links

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