{"id":38478,"date":"2023-07-07T16:01:52","date_gmt":"2023-07-07T16:01:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/?p=38478"},"modified":"2023-07-07T16:38:03","modified_gmt":"2023-07-07T16:38:03","slug":"mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality","title":{"rendered":"Mayor Lowe decries lack of political will to address gender inequality"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. <\/strong><\/span>The mayor of Banjul has told women councillors that there is a lack of political will to address gender inequality in The Gambia.<\/b><\/p>\n

She gave an example that only 3 out of 53 elected National Assembly Members are women and only 17 out of 121 elected councillors are women.<\/p>\n

Addressing an advocacy training workshop on gender for women councillors organised by the West Minister Foundation for Democracy (WFD) yesterday, Mayor Rohey Malick Lowe further said: \u201cThis statistics is not good enough. Women face numerous challenges when seeking political positions, and sadly, the civil society pays little focus on these issues.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rohey said there is a need to adopt a quota system to address the issue, citing Senegal as an example where there is 47 percent female representation at the local level. \u201cWe can achieve this by adopting the right policies,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Mayor Lowe said democracy cannot thrive in a society where more than half of the population is not adequately represented in decision-making positions at all levels of governance as well as in other sectors of leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is therefore imperative for women, who constitute over 50 percent of the population to be well represented in political leadership positions at all levels of governance. Women should be supported and encouraged to participate in politics because scholars have it that when women are in political leadership positions, society stands to gain,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Mayor Lowe disclosed that The Gambia has many laws, policies, and numerous conventions and protocols signed to advance gender equality and women\u2019s rights, but they have not yielded results as women remain marginalised.<\/p>\n

She blamed the lack of implementation of laws and protocols relating to women\u2019s issues on the inefficiency of state institutions in mainstreaming gender issues in national and local government budgets and the limited capacity of women to demand their rights.<\/p>\n

The British High Commissioner to The Gambia, David Belgrove, said women\u2019s participation advances gender equality and affects range of policy issues that get considered and the type of solutions that are proposed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe positive impact of women in politics is undeniable,\u201d he said, adding that women bring different views, talents, and perspectives to politics, which help shape the political agenda.<\/p>\n

\u201cWomen in positions of authority tend to allocate more budget to health and education; they champion social issues more; and they resolve national crises without resorting to violence. In fact, when women are at the negotiation table, peace lasts longer,\u201d he said. \u201cWe need to empower women to become active participants at the policy-making table by promoting equal rights and opportunities for women in political parties and social change movements. This includes empowering female candidates during elections, mentoring, coaching, training, and providing political skills and communication,\u201d he said. Belgrove added that women\u2019s voices must not only be present but heard in the political process that affects them.<\/p>\n

\u201cA country can only succeed and develop to its full potential when the skills, knowledge, and talent of all its population are given the opportunity to flourish. A country that doesn\u2019t give equal opportunity to half of its population will never reach its full potential,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The permanent secretary at the ministry of lands Saffie Sankareh-Farage informed the women councillors that they have a unique opportunity to contribute to strengthening democracy and good governance at the grassroots level. She said inclusive politics are the cornerstone of every vibrant democracy.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt recognises the importance of a diverse perspective and ensures that all members of society, regardless of gender, disability, or social status, have a voice in the decision-making process. By actively engaging in inclusive politics, you can advocate for policies that reflect the needs and aspirations of all constituents,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She said the government remains committed to realising in full the principles and aspirations enshrined in its decentralisation programme.<\/p>\n

The WFD country representative, Madi Jobarteh, said the two-days advocacy seminar is aimed at introducing the concept of gender as a decision-making, governance, and development tool and practise that women councillors could utilise to address the issues, concerns, and needs of women in their respective regions and the country as a whole.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Gambia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. The mayor of Banjul has told women councillors that there is a lack of political will to address gender inequality in The Gambia. She gave an example that only 3 out of 53 elected National Assembly Members are women and only 17 out of 121 elected councillors are women. Addressing an advocacy […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":38477,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,7,12],"tags":[2355,2361,260],"class_list":["post-38478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-head-lines","category-policy","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-gambia","tag-gambia"],"yoast_head":"\nMayor Lowe decries lack of political will to address gender inequality - Gambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The mayor of Banjul has told women councillors that there is a lack of political will to address gender inequality in ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Mayor Lowe decries lack of political will to address gender inequality\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The mayor of Banjul has told women councillors that there is a lack of political will to address gender inequality in ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gambia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-07-07T16:01:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-07-07T16:38:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2023\/07\/sm_1688727134.411453.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Mayor Lowe decries lack of political will to address gender inequality\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-07T16:01:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-07-07T16:38:03+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality\"},\"wordCount\":707,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2023\/07\/sm_1688727134.411453.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Gambia\",\"Gambia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"head lines\",\"policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-lowe-decries-lack-of-political-will-to-address-gender-inequality\",\"name\":\"Mayor Lowe decries lack of political will to address gender inequality - 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