JUBA, SUDAN, 26 August 2009: The general elections coming up in Sudan in April 2010 offer new opportunities of political empowerment for Sudanese women, as the National Electoral Act provides that 25 per cent of seats in the National Assembly are to be elected from women’s lists.
However, Sudanese women also face various challenges to their political participation. At a three-day workshop organized by UNIFEM and other partners in Juba in Southern Sudan, participants discussed some of the social, economic and cultural barriers standing in the way of women in politics, including lack of education and funds, and prejudices against women candidates.
The aim of the workshop, attended by Southern Sudanese women in political parties, was to develop a common agenda for the upcoming elections. The result was a declaration calling for the effective participation of women in political parties and the adoption of gender-sensitive party manifestos.
The declaration underlines the necessity of capacity-building for women candidates, and calls on the media to promote their visibility. It also calls on the National Electoral Commission to adopt gender-sensitive guidelines for electoral processes, and stresses that adequate security measures must be in place to prevent election violence.
Kilde: www.unifem.com
