Pacenet launches 50:50 Campaign in Mulanje

Pacenet on Friday launched the 50:50 Campaign project in Mulanje that will see the organisation, together with Oxfam, work with the district council’s gender technical team up to June 2019.

Speaking during the workshop, Pacenet 50:50 Campaign project coordinator Pearson Malinda said his organisation and Oxfam will also offer support to female aspirants’ campaign teams to enable them compete favourably.

“In addition, we will offer guidance to the aspirants on parties they can align themselves with depending on the dominance or popularity of a particular party in an area,” he said.

Mulanje district gender officer Mafunga Moses Jamu said the district has programmes to help female aspirants win elections.

“The response is positive as we have already registered 17 women who have expressed interest to contest for local government positions and six are eyeing parliamentary positions,” he said.

The project seeks to deconstruct negative cultural norms that stereotype women, thereby reducing their chances of competing against men in various elected political positions.

During the 2014 Tripartite Elections, three women were elected as members of Parliament out of nine constituencies and three out of 18 wards in the district were elected as councillors in the district. n