African C’wealth Female MPs Want to Bridge Gap with Men.

Members of the Commonwealth Association of Women Parliamentarians (CWP), Africa Region, have expressed worry over the arithmetical progression of women in the political lives of African countries in this 21st century.
Available statistics reveal that in Nigeria and Cameroon for instance, with an estimated population of 150 million people and 20 million people respectively, there are only 25 female MPs in each of these countries. Meeting in Yaounde during their third annual conference to brainstorm on what they can do in order to transform the arithmetical progression into a geographic one, they demanded the ratification of various conventions that help the development of women, the eradication of harmful cultural and traditional practices against women and the putting in place of policies that improve the lives of the people.

The theme of the confab was, "Pursuing the Gender Agenda". Sub-themes included women and the burden of care giving, best practices on constitutional reforms and other strategies to entrench the gender agenda, and a study on harmful, traditional, cultural and religious practices with focus on problems facing the CWP branches.

Presiding over the opening ceremony and speaking exclusively in English, the Speaker of Cameroon's National Assembly, Hon. Cavaye Yeguie Djibril, said the holding of the CWP conference in Yaounde was an honour to Cameroon, stating that the main theme on gender equality was topical as women play a key role in the developing world. He went forward to say parliament was working together with government and the civil society to ensure gender equality, and encouraged women parliamentarians and other women in key positions to work hard in promoting the progress of women.

Hon. Tonye Harry, President of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Africa Region who is the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Nigeria, in his address recommended that women who have been proven to be best managers of resources be given a chance to replace men in ‘certain African countries where corruption is deeply rooted.’ He said the gender agenda must be understood in all its ramifications in order to be handled properly. Stating that the "progress for women was the progress for all", he said women should form partnerships with men in the pursuit of the gender equality struggle.

The Vice chair of CWP Africa Region, Hon. Gifty E.Kusi, on behalf of the chairperson, reiterated that women parliamentarians must work to better the lot of their people and said, "we want to promise that as we have worked together for the past three years with progress and success as our banner, we will continue to see each other as sisters and tap each others experience to train and enrich ourselves to bring the needed change in our individual societies".

In an exclusive interview with The SUN Newspaper in Yaounde shortly after the opening ceremony at the Ngoa Ekelle Glass House, Nigerian High Commissioner to Cameroon, H.E Philip Dauda said “first and famous, the fact that the female parliamentary members decided to form an association is in itself an achievement. And naturally when you have an association it should have objectives. One of the objectives we know is part of the theme of this Yaounde conference and if this meeting will bring lasting solutions to the cry of the African woman as most of the speakers made it clear, they will bring on board the men forward, they will bring on board the various governments of their respective countries where they come from. So, it is an act agenda for the meeting because the world will have to be a better place and to be a better place for all of us, we need contributions from everybody and gender contribution will go a long way to solving most of the global problems.”

DOH JAMES SONKEY IN YAOUNDE