Where have all the women gone? Long time passing. This year alone, there will be over 30 presidential elections held around the world. Over half of these will be in Africa. On 20 September 2011, Zambia goes to the polls to elect a president, members of parliament and local councilors. Another chapter in the country’s democratic history will be written as people exercise their right to vote and to choose their leaders at all levels. So where are the women representatives in this process?
The intention of this article is to focus on why in Zambia, where over half of the registered voters, and in the past elections over half of the voting population have been women, the actual numbers of female candidates standing for local and national representation is on the decline? Why this negative trend and what can be done to increase women’s political representation in the country?
Read more on UNDP Zambias website, published 05 Sept
Where have all the women gone? Long time passing. This year alone, there will be over 30 presidential elections held around the world. Over half of these will be in Africa. On 20 September 2011, Zambia goes to the polls to elect a president, members of parliament and local councilors. Another chapter in the country’s democratic history will be written as people exercise their right to vote and to choose their leaders at all levels. So where are the women representatives in this process?
The intention of this article is to focus on why in Zambia, where over half of the registered voters, and in the past elections over half of the voting population have been women, the actual numbers of female candidates standing for local and national representation is on the decline? Why this negative trend and what can be done to increase women’s political representation in the country?
Read more on UNDP Zambias website, published 05 Sept