When women feel valued, their wellbeing grows and they pass that strength on to everyone around them. International Women’s Day arrives each year with good intentions. Social media fills with messages celebrating mothers, wives, daughters and sisters. Companies publish statements recognising the strength and resilience of women. Families post photographs accompanied by kind words of appreciation. The sentiment is sincere, but it quietly raises an uncomfortable question. Why should appreciation for women be something we remember once a year rather than something that shapes everyday life? In many households across Zambia and throughout the diaspora, the emotional rhythm of family life often runs through the woman at the centre of it. She is usually the one who notices when someone...