NGOCC urges President-elect to appoint more women to senior government positions

-


The Non-Governmental Gender Organisations Coordinating Council (NGOCC) has called on President-Elect Hakainde Hichilema to increase the number of women appointed to senior decision-making positions, particularly at Permanent Secretary level.

NGOCC Executive Director Anne Mbewe-Anamela says greater representation of women in leadership is critical to ensuring that women's lived experiences are reflected in national policies, laws and government programmes.

Ms. Mbewe-Anamela said the organisation was concerned about the low number of women who contested the recent elections.

“We really do need women in the leadership positions for women to be able to articulate their lived experiences and to ensure that these get into policy, into legal frameworks and into the practice of everything that we do in this country,” she said.

Ms. Mbewe-Anamela said NGOCC was particularly disappointed by the decline in the number of women contesting for elected positions compared to the 2021 elections.

“In terms of the representation of women in these elections, I think we are still quite disappointed as NGOCC to see the lowest numbers,” she said.

She said women accounted for only 25 percent of parliamentary candidates, representing a 10 percentage-point decline from 2021.

At mayoral level, Ms. Mbewe-Anamela said women's representation had declined by four percentage points, while representation at ward level had fallen by one percentage point.

“That is actually very disappointing,” she said.

Ms. Mbewe-Anamela said the number of women expected to enter Parliament through proportional representation would not be sufficient to bridge the gender gap.

She said the 20 seats reserved under proportional representation would translate to only about eight percent representation, making it difficult to significantly improve the overall number of women in Parliament.

“We had hoped that we'd make up the numbers through the elected positions, but looking at the number of nominations, it's evident that we will still have very low women representation in Parliament,” she said.

Despite the disappointing figures, Ms. Mbewe-Anamela congratulated women who contested at various levels and those who succeeded in securing positions.

She encouraged women not to abandon their pursuit of political leadership, saying continued participation was essential to improving women's representation in decision-making institutions.

“I just want to really congratulate all the women that stood at every level and congratulations to those that are going through, those that have gone through,” she said.

Ms. Mbewe-Anamela urged women to remain determined and continue participating in elections, while assuring them that NGOCC would maintain its advocacy for greater representation.

“We should not relent, we should not give up, we should continue trying,” she said.

She added that NGOCC would continue working to increase the number of women occupying elected and appointed leadership positions in Zambia.

Ends

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

ABBC 2025 calls for evidence-based policies

-
Image
Senior policymakers and scientists at the Africa Biennial Biosciences Communication (ABBC) 2025 Symposium have urged governments to anchor science decisions in evidence-based policies and to communicate research findings in clear, simple language to prevent misinformation from undermining public trust. National Biosafety Authority Head of Standards and Technical Liaison Christopher Simuntala has emphasized that even in the face of misinformation and disinformation, governments must give firm direction on science policy. “Decision-making informs policy, and policy informs the law,” said Mr. Simuntala, a qualified medical scientist. “When decisions come from evidence-based science, they must have a strong foundation to support sound legislation. Even the mathematical models used to guide these decisions must be handled properly to ensure accuracy.” Speaking on the sidelines of the symposium, Mr. Simuntala has stated that high-level policymakers were targeted in discussions because they s...
Read more

PF no threat after 2021 million-vote defeat-Andeleki

-
Image
Ruling United Party for National Development  Katombola Member of Parliament Clement Andeleki has said that the Patriotic Front (PF) effectively ceased to exist following the death of its founder and later Fifth President Michael Sata, dismissing claims that the ruling United Party for National Development (UPND) is afraid of the opposition. “How can the UPND be afraid of a party that we defeated with over one million votes in the 2021 general elections?” Dr. Andeleki asked. “The PF was in government, it had all the state apparatus, and yet it was defeated decisively at the polls. The numbers don’t lie.” Dr. Andeleki  has  recalled that the 2021 elections were the first since independence in 1964 to be supervised by the military, a measure aimed at ensuring transparency and credibility. He has described the polls as fair and democratic despite attempts at violence by elements within the PF. “They were defeated democratically despite the violence that they attempted to per...
Read more

UNAIDS urges stronger political pact for HIV prevention in SADC

-
Image
The fight against HIV in Southern Africa has reached a defining moment. As experts and policymakers convene in Lusaka for the SADC Meeting of National AIDS Commission Directors and Sexual and Reproductive Health Programme Managers , the message ringing across the conference halls is clear “Act now, act together, and act sustainably.” The joint meeting, running under the theme “Accelerating HIV Prevention and Access to Integrated Sexual and Reproductive Health Services: Tackling Inequalities and Securing a Sustainable Response,”  seeks to evaluate progress toward the 2025 HIV/TB and SRHR integration targets while setting a new course for sustainable health financing across the region. Its outcomes will later be presented to the SADC Ministers of Health and Ministers Responsible for HIV and AIDS in November. Setting the tone for the meeting, UNAIDS Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, Dr. Anne Githuku-Shongwe ,  has  issued a rallying call for what she desc...
Read more