NGOs asked to help aspiring women assembly members

Bolgatanga, Sept 27, GNA - Non-governmental organizations and other interested groups who have expressed interest in supporting women to contest the forthcoming district assembly election have been called upon to focus on providing capacity building training on election for the aspiring assembly women and to support them with financial and logistics to achieving their goals.

Mrs Florence Kuribila, a former assemblywoman for the Zaliba Tindongo Electoral Area, made the call in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Bolgatanga on Monday during a capacity building workshop organized by the International Federation of Women Lawyers. The workshop which attracted both present, past and aspiring assemblywomen was sponsored by the EU and International Development FUND (DFID).

Mrs. Kuribila said whilst the candidates appreciated the support given to the women in the area of capacity building, it was not enough and that another essential thing was for the aspirants to have access to financial and logistical support to aid them in their campaign. She said one of the major constraints confronting aspiring assemblywomen was the lack of financial resources.

Mrs Kuribila said majority of aspiring assemblywomen could win assembly elections if they were supported in their campaigns and appealed to organizations and individuals interested in supporting women to consider the support in those areas. She commended FIDA Ghana for organizing the capacity building programme for the women and said it would help them in their campaign periods especially in public speaking, lobbying skills, community mobilizations and community entry skills.

Mrs Kuribila identified one of the major factors affecting women aspirants as the partisan base of the assembly where District Chief Executives or Parliamentarians seek to marginalize women who contest and do not belong to political parties. The Programme Coordinator of FIDA in charge of the Upper East Region, Mr. David Atinga, said there could not be good governance if the country neglected its women who are majority in terms of population.