WPP Africa Barometer (2nd Edition, 2024)

The WPP barometer is a resource that demonstrates the status of Women's Political Participation in Africa. It aims to provide evidence, especially to legislators and policy makers to advocate and strengthen women's political participation and leadership. The webinar will take place on 10 July, 2024 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm (CEST).

Register here.

Speakers

¨Dr. Roba Sharamo

Director for Africa West Asia (AWA), International IDEA - International IDEA

Dr Roba D. Sharamo is the Regional Director for Africa and West Asia.

Dr Sharamo, has over 23 years of experience in international peace and security, conflict resolution, mediation, negotiation and diplomacy where he worked in senior management positions with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Kenya, Government of Kenya, non-governmental organizations and a leading think-tank, Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in Addis Ababa and Nairobi, among other international institutions.

In August 2018, he joined ISS as the Office Director and Regional Representative to African Union, Horn and East Africa. Most recently, he worked as a Commissioner of the National Cohesion and Integration Commission of the Republic of Kenya. He has also worked as Team Leader, Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention Unit of UNDP-Kenya and as acting Office Director and the Programme Head of the Conflict Analysis and Prevention Programmes in ISS Addis Ababa and Nairobi Offices respectively. He also served as a Political Office in Kenya Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

Roba received his Doctorate in Conflict Analysis and Resolution fand his doctoral dissertation is entitled, 'Predatory Politics and Struggles of Peacemaking in Somalia', at George Mason University, Arlington, Virginia, USA. 

He has lectured and made presentations at numerous regional and international conferences and published key monographs and scholarly articles on peace and security in Africa. Notably, he also co-edited three monographs: with Wafula Okumu and Andrews Atta-Samoah, Silencing the Gun in Africa by 2020 (September 2020); with Berouk Mesfin entitled Regional Security in Post-Cold War Horn of Africa (April 2011); and The State of Human Security in Africa (co-edited with C. Ayangafac) in April 2012, respectively.

¨Massimo Tommasoli

Director of Global Programmes - International IDEA

Massimo Tommasoli is the Director of Global Programmes. Tommasoli is a policy specialist with extensive experience in democracy building, democratic governance, social analysis and evaluation in aid agencies. He leads and manages a portfolio of programmes that supports democracy world-wide through the development and application of global comparative knowledge resources and tools, enhancing democratic reforms, as well as actively contributing to shaping global and regional policy agendas by bringing the democracy lens and perspective to debates at that level. This portfolio includes workstreams on Electoral Processes, Constitution-Building Processes, Political Participation and Representation (with focus on parliamentary strengthening and money in politics), Democracy Assessment, Gender and Inclusion, Climate Change, and Digitalization. As Permanent Observer for International IDEA to the United Nations (2007-2023) he has led policy advocacy initiatives at the UN General Assembly and in other multilateral policy fora. He had previously been International IDEA’s Director of Operation in Stockholm (2004-2007); Head of the Good Governance and Conflict Prevention Unit in the Development Cooperation Directorate at the OECD in Paris (1999-2003); Social Development and Evaluation Specialist at the Directorate General for Development Cooperation of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rome (1989-1999). He held positions at UNESCO in Addis Ababa and the Istituto Italo-Africano in Rome. He is a distinguished scholar at the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership at the City College of New York. He has been visiting scholar at the LUISS University in Rome, and has lectured at the Universities of Bergamo, Chieti, Milan, and Pisa, and at the UN System Staff College in Turin. He has field experience in sub-Saharan Africa (Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania), Latin America (Colombia) and the Russian Federation.

¨Dr. Phumzile-Mlambo-Ngcuka

Deputy President of South Africa from 2004 to 2008, Former Executive Director of UN Women

Dr Mlambo is the former United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women. She was inducted as a Hauser Leader at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Center for Public Leadership and awarded the Vanguard award by Howard University for Leadership and Activism in promoting human rights, equality and justice for women and girls across the globe. She's directed her energy towards human rights, equality and social justice, with emphasis on gender and youth development. She has informed programs and policies to reduce inequality throughout her political career. Her political journey began as a member of the first democratically elected South African Parliament (1994 – 1996), then as Deputy Minister in the Department of Trade and Industry (1996 – 1999), as Minister of Minerals and Energy (1999 – 2005), and finally as Deputy President of South Africa (2005 – 2008). An example of her commitments during her political career are the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (ASGISA), which afforded young unemployed graduates international working experience. Having dedicated her life to bringing an end to Apartheid, she became the first woman to hold the position of Deputy President, the highest-ranking female political leader in the history of South Africa. As the head of the United Nations entity that is dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women, she is a global advocate for women and girls. She leads the organization’s innovative work on transforming social inequalities and discriminatory norms, with initiatives such as the HeforShe movement (driving men and boys’ engagement in gender equality) and helped countries to change hundreds of laws that discriminate against women and girls. She mobilized a historic 40 billion USD in financial commitments from Member States, private sector, philanthropies and civil society which have formed Generational Equality to drive transformative change for women and girls around the world. 

¨Colleen Lowe Morna

Special Advisor, Gender Links - Gender Links

Colleen Lowe Morna: is founder and first CEO of Gender Links. She stepped down from this post in 2021 to focus on building GL’s Sustainability Hub – advisory services; training; grant making; fund raising; GL Cottages and Conferencing. A multi-talented women's rights activist, Colleen brings to the assignment nearly four decades of experience on gender programming, including GL’s gender justice programme.  Colleen began her career as a journalist specialising in gender and development with Inter Press Service Development News Agency in Harare; correspondent for South Magazine and Africa Editor of the New Delhi-based Women’s Feature Service. She joined the Commonwealth Secretariat as a senior researcher on the Africa desk in 1991, and later served as Chief Programme Officer of the Commonwealth Observer Mission to South Africa. Following South Africa’s first democratic elections in 1994, Colleen became an advisor on gender and institutional development to the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Assistance special programme of assistance to South Africa, where she helped to design the country’s National Gender Machinery. She subsequently served as founding CEO of the South African Commission on Gender Equality, before founding Gender Links.

¨Pamela Dube

Researcher - Gender Links

Pamela Sethunya Dube is a distinguished journalist, media manager, coach, mentor, and advocate for freedom of expression and gender justice, with over 30 years of experience in the print media industry across Botswana and South Africa. Ausi Pam's career encompasses a broad spectrum of media roles, including reporting, editorship, and editorial management. She has held editorial leadership positions at Mokgosi Media Holdings, The Voice Newspaper), The Gazette Newspaper and Dikgang Publishing Company, which publishes Mmegi and The Monitor. She has contributed to notable publications such as The Weekly Mail (Mail & Guardian), The Sowetan, and The Sunday Independent in South Africa. A committed activist, Pamela has actively served in numerous organizations advocating for media freedom and gender equality. Her roles have included chairing the self-regulatory Press Council of Botswana, vice-chairing the Media Advisory Council, and participating in the Media Workers Association of South Africa and the Forum of Black Journalists. Pamela is among the founding activists of Gender and Media in Southern Africa (GEMSA) and has contributed to adjudication panels for awards in journalism and human rights, as well as conducting fact-finding missions on press freedom and human rights in countries like Angola and Zimbabwe. She is currently the Managing Director of KGOLA MEDIA (Pty) Ltd, where she provides services across various media aspects including news agency, writing, editing, and rapporteuring.

¨Tshireletso Mogogi Botlogile

Botswana councilor for 25 years & member of parliament for 15 years.

Botlogile Tshireletso is a Botswana politician, mother and legislator who has served as assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development in the Cabinet of Botswana, since 2004. She has served as the elected member of parliament, representing Mahalapye East constituency, in the Parliament of Botswana. Before being a member of parliament, Mmantshire, as she is affectionately known in Mahalapye her home village, served as a council member for Xhosa 1 ward. She was a counselor for 25 years and a member of parliament for 15 years. 

¨Kevin Chiramba

Gender Justice Associate - Gender Links

Kevin Chiramba: a Zimbabwean who has worked in Botswana and South Africa, is Gender Justice Associate with Gender Links Advisory Services. Since 2012 he has facilitated complex research projects including coordinating GL’s pioneering national Gender Based Violence (GBV) indicators surveys in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Seychelles, South Africa, Lesotho, and Botswana.

Kevin is GL’s Gender and GBV specialist. He conducts rapid GBV and Gender audits, assessments and mapping exercises, and country gender profiles aimed at strengthening the prevention of GBV, promoting gender mainstreaming including the impact of WASH on SRHR in the SADC region. Kevin contributed to creating a searchable online SRHR database of laws and policies in southern Africa. His GBV research work has seen him engaging with multiple stakeholders including civil society organisations, donors, gender ministries, national statistical offices, the police, courts, and government health departments across the Southern African Development Community (SADC). He has attended various workshops on GBV including the SADC Regional workshops on GBV Indicators and Coordination in 2020, and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) on Harmonisation of GBV Statistics in southern Africa where GL sits in the Core Regional Technical Working Group (CRTWG) on GBV and Violence Against Children (VAC) data and harmonization processes.

¨Susan Tolmay

Gender and Governance Associate - Gender Links

Susan Tolmay: is a South African feminist and human rights activist committed to social, economic and environmental justice with over 17 years-experience working on women and human rights in an NGO environment (regional and international) managing, diverse and multicultural teams, across multiple countries virtually. Formerly she worked as the Gender and Governance Manager at Gender Links, Women’s Rights and Information Manager at AWID and Women and Marginalised Groups Rights Officer at Amnesty International and is currently the Gender and Governance Associate at Gender Links. 

Susan has over ten years’ experience conducting research and analysis, developing gender policies and guidelines and mainstreaming gender in local government policy and programming. Working in eight Southern African countries she conducted baseline research on gender in local government, which informed project design in these countries. Through developing locally adapted materials, the programme included building the capacity of local government officials and politicians to mainstream gender throughout the institution. Gender action plans included targets and indicators for organisational transformation and gender mainstreaming in service delivery as well as gender specific programmes, including gender-based violence and women’s economic empowerment.

¨Thenjiwe Mtintso

Thenjiwe Mtintso is a South African anti-apartheid activist, politician and ambassador.

Thenjiwe is a South African antiapartheid activist and journalist who occupied various leadership positions within the African National Congress

In 1991 Mtintso was elected to the SACP Central Committee and Political Bureau. Following the country’s transition to a multiracial democracy in 1994, she was elected as a member of the South African Parliament. However, she turned down an offer of a ministry and chose not to contest her seat again. She was elected to the ANC National Executive Committee in 1994, 1997, and 2002. In March 1997 Mtintso was appointed the first chair of South Africa’s Commission on Gender Equality but resigned after being elected in December as the first woman ANC deputy secretary-general. In 2004 she resigned from that position, partly because of continuing health problems caused by her torture. She served as South Africa’s ambassador to Cuba (2003–08), Italy (2009–12), Romania (2014–16), and Spain (2019–2024). In addition, Mtintso was South Africa’s high commissioner to Malawi from 2016 to 2019.

¨Hon. Fatuma Ndagiza

Secretary General for EALA Women Caucus - East African Legislative Assembly (EALA)

Hon. Ndangiza is a transformational leader & advocate for women’s rights, gender equality, reconciliation & good governance. She's dedicated 30+ years in public leadership career advancing peaceful, just & inclusive societies. Currently, a Rwandan Law maker at the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) & Secretary General for EALA Women Caucus, she continues to champion regional integration, gender equality and women’s full participation in the East African Community (EAC) Agenda, focused on regional policy & legislation oversight, and harmonization to advance the EAC mission of widening and deepening economic, political, social and cultural integration. She led the National Unity and Reconciliation Commission spearheading healing and reconciliation initiatives to help Rwandans come to terms with their past and forge a path towards a peaceful and sustainable development. Rwanda’s Ambassador to the United Republic of Tanzania accredited to Seychelles, Zambia, Malawi and Madagascar as well as overseeing her country’s interests in COMESA and EAC reflect her diplomatic assignments. She fostered bilateral and multilateral relations with special emphasis on trade, tourism, peace and security.   She served as Deputy CEO for Rwanda Governance Board & on African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) Panel of Eminent Persons and was its Chairperson for two years. At the nomination of Her Excellency Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, she headed the African Union Election Observer Missions to observe Presidential elections in Namibia in 2014 and the first ever All- Women-AU Observer mission to observe Parliamentary Elections in Seychelles in 2016. She was also the Deputy Head of EAC Observer Mission during Presidential, Parliamentary and Local Council elections in Kenya in 2022. In early March 2024, she was feted for her leadership & achievement at the 5th Transformational Leadership Summit: “Bridging the gap between traditional & political leadership of sustainable development in Africa”.

¨Lynette Mudekunye

Researcher - Gender Links