Somalia fights gender equality during polls

Mogadishu. Somalia is struggling to meet the 30 per cent quota for women in the ongoing elections as local and security agencies remain vigilant to ward off threats by the Al-Shabaab to disrupt the polls.

So far, both the elections of the Upper House or the Senate, and of the National Assembly have produced only only 18 per cent women MPs.

This comes as some clans and sub-clans that are required to submit lists of nominees that meet the 30 per cent requirement continue to resist the new rule that was proposed by the National Leadership Forum (NLF) to promote gender equity in a deeply patriarchal society.

The deputy chairperson of the the Federal Indirect Electoral Implementation Team (FIEIT), Ms Deqa Haji Yusuf, told The EastAfrican that the trend was worrying, but that the agency was optimistic about achieving the gender threshold because the elections were still ongoing.

“It is challenging because in Somalia, just like in most African countries, women are very active in every aspect of society, but when it comes to political participation, it is proving difficult because it involves clan elders who are culturally opposed to women leadership,” said Ms Yusuf.

She explained that even though some clan elders might be opposed to the women quota, FIEIT had received a lot support from the majority of stakeholders, including the religious leaders, and that the leadership forum had provided mechanism to meet the threshold in case those charged with its implementation failed to do so. (AFP)