Seeing the Gender Gap in Crisis Leadership

One of the most powerful reflections during the Gaborone session was how often women carry the crisis response but are left out of leadership decisions. While women are usually the ones cooking, serving, caring for children, and providing emotional support during difficult times, decision-making still rests largely with men.

Leaders in Gaborone admitted that when crisis meetings happen, it is often men around the table, even though the women are the ones already on the ground responding.

One participant shared, "Our women were organising feeding programmes, but when it came to deciding how the food was shared, only the men sat in the meeting. We never saw the problem until a young woman asked, ‘Why don’t we get to lead too?’"

Why Does Gender Equity Matter in Crisis Leadership?

When women’s voices are missing, the response often lacks full understanding of community needs. Women see different aspects of a crisis; they know who is hungry, who is afraid, and who is being left out. Excluding them weakens both the church’s response and its witness.

The Gaborone discussions raised important truths:

• Cultural norms still hold women back, even in church contexts.
• Some leaders unconsciously assume leadership is a man’s role, especially in times of crisis.
• Churches often assign women to ‘serve’ but forget they can lead too.

One female leader reflected, “We are trusted to clean the wounds of the crisis but not trusted to decide how to treat it.”

Biblical Perspective: Women Can Lead in Crisis

The story of Deborah in Judges 4–5 was highlighted: a woman leading Israel during war, giving strategy, and bringing peace. Her leadership was God-ordained, showing that gender should never be a reason to limit leadership, especially during difficult times.

This session challenges leaders to ask:

• What assumptions do I make about who leads during a crisis?
• What talents, gifts, and wisdom are lost when we silence women?
• How can churches create spaces for women to lead practically, not just spiritually?

Personal Reflection Section

Example to Consider:

"During a feeding project in Gaborone, the women prepared all the meals. But when the plan for distributing food was made, no woman was invited to speak. One young woman asked later, ‘If we are good enough to cook, why aren’t we good enough to lead?’”

Reflection Instructions:

Think of a time in your leadership or community where women were active in responding to a crisis but were not given leadership roles or decision-making power.

Write a short personal reflection (300–400 words) that covers:

• What was the situation?
• How did gender roles shape who led and who served?
• What was lost by not including women in leadership?
• What is one step you can take to ensure gender equity in leadership during future crises?

Writing Guidelines:

• Write simply and honestly, as if sharing this with another grassroots leader.
• Reflect not just on what happened, but on how you felt and what you learned.
• You don’t need formal language; this is your personal leadership reflection.
• Save this reflection; it will form part of your final Leadership Action Plan.

Closing Reminder:

Leadership is not about gender; it is about wisdom, courage, and compassion. Crisis response is stronger when everyone’s voice is heard, especially those who are usually left out.