Give women chance to lead – Gender Minister

SUN REPORTER WRITES MINISTER of Gender Elizabeth Phiri has called for increased participation of women in politics to enable them explore their leadership potential and effectively contribute to national governance. Ms. Phiri says women have for a long time been left behind and not considered when it came to political participation. She says it is high time society started supporting them to aspire for political office. And Ms. Phiri challenged political parties to adopt 50 percent of women ahead of the 2021 general elections. “Give women an opportunity to lead.  They can do much better, given an opportunity in the political arena.  I challenge all political parties in the country to ensure that as the 2021 election comes, they appoint 50 percent as a way of empowering the females. Rwanda has done it, we can also do it,” she says. She was speaking during the launch of a Manual on Women Leadership and Political Violence Management by Zambia Centre for Interparty Dialogue (ZCID) yesterday. The manual, which has been developed by the ZCID in conjunction with Hivos and Zambia National Women’s Lobby, is aimed at strengthening public influence and increase the role of women leaders in shaping the Country’s development and addressing political violence especially during elections. She says women’s track record in shaping developmental decisions needs to be effectively profiled though it can only be done in a violence free society. And ZCID board chairperson Jackson Silavwe says the launch of the manual will contribute positively to achieving more numbers of women in politics. Mr. Silavwe says Zambians should support women in politics if development is to take shape in the country. Meanwhile, Hivos representative William Chilufya says the project will greatly help in empowering a number of women in politics. He said women have immense potential to make significant contribution to national governance and the well-being of their respective communities if given the necessary support. The Sun