ECONOMIC INTRINSIC VALUE OF MARRIAGE PARTNERS

Well this is a principle that women in Uganda have mastered more than men perhaps because it has been embedded deep in our cultures. Uganda has been a predominantly a patriarchal society however this is changing and however much hostile Ugandan men are towards this fact, they will have to change and adapt. In the words of John F. Kennedy (1917-1963) Thirty-fifth President of the USA, Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.  Uganda is heading towards equality. This means that Uganda will be a society with both Patriarchal and Matriarchal tendencies.

A matriarchal society is a society in which females especially mothers have the central roles of political leadership, moral authority and control of property.

It is no doubt that Uganda is heading towards being a society of both male and female dominance. The Marriage and Divorce bill may have been successfully shelved again but make no mistake it will one time and soon pass in to law and total equality of women sought in that bill will be achieved.

So then since it’s passing in to law can only be delayed but not prevented what is the way forward for the Ugandan men?  

 Charles Darwin (1809-1882) English Naturalist said,” it is not the strongest of the species that survive, or the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.”

Economic Intrinsic Value of Marriage Partners is a theory I have developed that I think is the solution.

This essentially means that before you enter a relationship with any woman; make sure that they have a certain economic value in themselves that they are willing to bring to the table in that relationship. This is because partners with an economic intrinsic value can be regarded as an end in itself.

As a previously male dominated society, what mattered most for guys in marriage was the pretty face and some basic kitchen skills since at that time her sole purpose was reproduction and house work. However with the current change of the tide women are taking on similar roles as men. This means that it is no longer prudent to just marry a pretty face but rather a face that has economic intrinsic value.

There are people with a dangerous stereotype that women with pretty faces and economic intrinsic value do not exist, this is false. Consider the current Commissioner General of URA, Allen Kagina, she is a pretty face with economic intrinsic value, am sure her husband is a happy man because even though the marriage and divorce bill is enacted in to law, he will never be affected.

If you are a young man or a rich man in Uganda at this point thinking of marriage this is some good advice for you. The deal maker for marriage should not be simply love or a pretty face but the rather the economic intrinsic value of your woman. Is she going to also among other things contribute economically to you marriage or relationship or she is going to be the type who relocates you to the village after the hefty and costly divorce of 50-50% property division.

If you are cohabiting (not that I Condon cohabitation) is your cohabittee also actively contributing to the wealth of the household? Passive contribution is no longer important, she has to actively contribute.

Women have been employing this principle when choosing a marriage partner; its time men did the same.     

In summary you can’t expect to meet the challenges of today with yesterday’s tools and expect to be in business tomorrow. When change comes, you up your game so as to survive. In the words of Winston Churchill (1874-1965) British politician, “To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.”