Women still shunning politics
Malawian women have been challenged to participate in active politics if the country is to increase female representation.
Malawi has only 16 female parliamentarians in the 193-member august House.
Head of Political and Administrative Studies at Chancellor College, Happy Kayuni, said this is a result of women’s reluctance to take part in politics.
Kayuni said Afrobarometer studies conducted recently have shown that despite the campaign to promote women’s participation in politics, women are still reluctant to participate in elections.
“Women should take it upon themselves to ensure that they are participating in politics because currently, studies have shown that women are not willing to take part in politics. What it means is that if we have a larger pool of women participating in politics, we can have more of them in elected positions,” he said.
Pan African Civic Education Network, Execultive Director, Stevie Duwa, urged the media to help encourage women to take up leading roles in politics.
He said women’s participation in active politics is part of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; as such, Malawi needs to be vigilant in making sure that this is being enjoyed by all women that aspire to be part of the country’s political system.
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