Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) on Friday sensitised its Central Region employees to ways of detecting, reporting and avoiding gender-based violence (GBV).
Describing the vice as a threat to productivity, Escom social and gender inclusion manager Elubie Chienda said GBV puts lives in danger.
“Gender-based violence is common in workplaces but in most cases, it goes unnoticed and unreported. This silence affects productivity, especially when the perpetrator is a senior,” she said.
Escom staff
In his remarks during the event held at the company’s Lilongwe power plant in Area 3, Escom acting customer service manager for the Centre MacDowel Kumatso said many employees know about GBV but they suffer in silence.
He said the company introduced the social and gender inclusion department to receive and act on GBV complaints and make its employees comfortable and productive.
“Having employees of diverse backgrounds, Escom does not rule out the possibility of abuses. That is why we have this department which is well-funded for these activities. We want productive staff at all times,” said Kumatso.
During the briefing, employees discussed the experiences they feel are GBV while managers were busy taking down notes.
Officials from Men for Gender Equality Now (Megen) and Police Victim Support Unit (VSU) were invited to make presentations, give guidance and answer questions from the employees. n
