Local Government

A record number of women candidates are expected to run in June's local elections.

So far, 649 women have been selected or declared for the contests.

Although nominations do not close until midday on Saturday, this would mean around a third of candidates would be women.

The figures were provided by Women for Election based on analysis by the NUI Maynooth lecturer, Adrian Kavanagh.

Nearly half (47 percent) of women in local politics face threats and hate online, compared to 35 percent of their male colleagues. Female politicians from progressive parties are particularly often targeted, according to new research commissioned by the Cabinet.

History was made on Monday, 29th April 2024 when Two Women were sworn-in as democratically elected Executive Chairpersons of local government councils in Gombe for the first time.

The Two Women who were declared winners of their various LGAs during the Council elections held last Saturday, 27th April 2024, are, Hon Fatima Binta Bello, Shongom LGC, and Egla Idris, Billiri LGC, all of them members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

President Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo has appointed Judith Suminwa Tuluka as the country’s next prime minister. Judith, a former planning minister, makes history as the first woman to hold the position. She takes over from Jean–Michel Sama Lukonde Kyenge, who served as prime minister from 2021 to 2024.

In our pursuit of gender equality, the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) is committed to exposing the hurdles faced by women in local and regional politics. Our recently released report, “Women in Politics,” provides a visual snapshot of women’s representation in elected roles across subnational levels.

On 15 February 2024, an article titled “Why Cambodia needs to incorporate more women into its foreign policy process” was published on the Diplomat and has caught attention from various readers including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Cambodia, which is also now requesting for clarifications from the author.