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ENCOURAGING WOMEN


Table One: The evolution of women in the Cameroonian Parliament from 1960 to the present Year


1960 - 1965 1965 – 1970 1970 – 1973 1973 – 1978 1978 – 1983 1983 – 1988 1988 – 1992 1992 – 1997 1997 - 2002 2002 – 2007 2007 - 2013 2013 - 2018


Members 100


100 100 100 120 120 180 180 180 180 180 180


Female 1


3 2 7


13 15 25 23 10 18 25 53


97 98 93


117 105 155 157 170 162 155 127


Male 99


day running of the National Assembly as they participate very actively in the respective committees, question and answer sessions with Members of Government, and also play a very important role in parliamentary democracy.


Quota system required The quota system does not yet apply in Cameroon. However, the existing electoral code, in section 153, provides the need for political


parties to respect gender balance in selecting candidates for election. With this today we can count 53 women in Parliament a percentage of 31 per cent. We thank the Head of State for this innovation of our Electoral law. Women are faced with the challenge of having to cope with their natural roles of childbearing and combining their responsibilities as mothers, wives, caregivers and being a successful politician. It is not an easy feat despite the level of support


obtained from your family and friends. Women with children below the age of 21 must work extremely hard to succeed particularly when they are still dependent on them. Women find it difficult to get


loans and are also afraid to take the risk of investing in politics as the results might not be favourable. Society frowns at a woman if she enters into certain social arenas where their male counterparts go to meet with the electorates. Women


tend to have their own personal inhibitions, which is also a setback to their involvement in politics. Despite all of the above, statistics show that women have been moving forward, as the number of women in Parliament has increased in the democratic era far more than during the days of the one-party system. Women need to be assisted by non-governmental organizations. They may, for example, organize more seminars long before elections and fund raising activities


Three women Speakers: Deputy Speaker Hon. Monjowa Emilia Lifaka (left); Hon. Anne Makinda, MP, Speaker of the National Assembly of Tanzania (centre); and Rt Hon. Rebecca Kadaga, MP, Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda (right)


The Parliamentarian | 2014: Issue Three - Cameroon | 5


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