Wolrec project to empower women in political leadership

The Women’s Legal Resource Centre (Wolrec) has launched a Women Empowered for Leadership programme that seeks to ensure that aspiring female councillors are elected and those holding positions retain their posts.

Speaking in Blantyre yesterday during the launch of the five-year programme (2016-2021), Wolrec programmes manager Gift Mauluka said under the project, aspiring female councillors will be empowered in terms of public speaking and campaign strategies.

Said Mauluka: “At a certain point, after discussions with our donors [Hivos], we might provide tangible needs for the women aspiring to be councillors so that they can be helped in their campaign.

“The second thing that we want to do in the project is to lobby for the political parties to change some of the strategies that they have, their manifesto should have a gender lens attached to it.”

Speaking at the launch, Ethridge Chikhosi, Blantyre District Council human resource manager, representing district commissioner Bennet Nkasala, said the council has welcomed the project because it also encourages women to hold political leadership positions.

Akima Chipwatali, councillor for Linjidzi Ward in Blantyre North Constituency, said the programme has come at a good time when elections are just two years away.

One of the activities during the launch of the project was a group dialogue on why few women are elected into leadership positions in Blantyre. n