This goal is based on human rights instruments such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention for the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women.

In party politics women are almost nowhere in the national executive committees. Women’s rights activists are now offering alternative ways through which the number of women in the national executive committees can be increased. Through such an action there will be more women in parliament or civic bodies.  

Among the measures that could be effected immediately is to automatically exclude women from competing with their fellow male counterparts in political parties.

According to Ms Sarah Longwe, the immediate past chairperson of The African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), the process and criteria of selecting members to the political parties’ executive bench should be made public.

“Take the case of Zambia for instance,” Longwe said. “Party politics such as the selection process of candidates in the Zambian political parties system is not open. We do not know the criteria. The people on the selection committee are mostly men and that is why women in the executive committees are few.”  

Political parties should include feminists who will interact not only with members of the parties but also with other women.  

These views emerged during the session “Struggle Of Women; The Central Dimension Of Gender Issues In The Struggle For Democratisation Of Societies And Social Programme”.

Longwe says the strategy was used in Zambia during last year’s General Election and it helped in equipping women candidates with various skills that are important during the electioneering process.

“However, we had to ask the women to sign a social contract to make sure that once elected they will continue with the agenda of bringing change to their constituencies,” Longwe said.  

She refuted claims that the electorate is not in favour of women candidates, citing the recent elections in Zambia as a case in point.

“The progressive rate of men and women elected in Zambia during the last General Election was at 20 per cent each, meaning that if we had more women it could be 50 per cent each,” reiterated Longwe

However, to make all this actions visible, women must be given financial assistance. Ms Angeline Mabula, a Gender and Development Coordinator with Caritas, Tanzania said women vying for political seats must be given financial support.

“As political aspirants they will need to hire public announcement system and they also need to acquire communication skills. This cannot be achieved if they do not have the money,” said Mabula, who is also a former civic leaders in Mwanza, Tanzania’.

When aspiring political leaders see their colleagues who already hold political positions doing well and receiving support from the electorate they get encouraged to join the political platform.

But Grace Nambuusi from Uganda Young Democrats reiterated the need for women’s organisation to support income generating activities run poor women.

“Democracy as it is now is not practical,” said Nambuusi. “African countries can not attain real democracy if the majority of the society is deprived their basic democratic rights,” she says, adding, “Women’s  organisations should mobilise funds and support women at grassroots level so that we can have better representation in decision making.”   

Nambuusi was critical of what she termed as “pull down syndrome” by the media against women political leaders.

“The media picks up on small issues that more often than not are just rumours and use them to suppress women in politics,” Nambuusi said.

She lamented that such a tactic deprives African women of their right to taking part in politics because they do not have the skills, ability and forum to refute such claims.

Women’s organisations in Africa have an obligation to lobby their governments so that they stand to their promises of ensuring the number of women in decision-making position is at least 30 per cent of the total, said Ms Fatou Sow from Senegal.

Sow reiterated: “We need to mobilise a social movement for women to remove gender imbalances in decision-making positions.”

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