Sub Saharan Africa

Marlyse Aboui, a 40-year-old nurse, has still not gotten over the astonishment she felt when she heard that Cameroon’s President Paul Biya had nominated her to the senate.

Women’s participation in politics remains low due to several bottlenecks hindering efforts to ensure that men and women share 50% representation in the political arena by 2015 in line with the Sadc Protocol on Gender and Development.

President Uhuru Kenyatta's 26 nominations for principal secretary positions only include seven women, prompting criticism for failing to meet the constitutionally mandated one-third quota for female nominees, Kenya's Daily Nation reported Saturday (June

Marlyse Aboui, a 40-year-old nurse, has still not gotten over the astonishment she felt when she heard that Cameroon’s President Paul Biya had nominated her to the senate.

On June 5th, Governor Marcellin Chisambo announced a reshuffle of the government of the Congolese province of South Kivu. Three weeks ago, three ministers were thrown out following a motion of no confidence in the provincial Parliament. One of the new ministers is Adolphine Byayuwa Muley, 42 years old. She will lead the ministry of environment and agriculture.

As Nigeria looks ahead to the 2015 elections, leading political parties have been urged to encourage more women to run for elective positions by removing barriers impeding their effective participation in politics.