By Sulaiman Jalloh
Sierra Leone Female Parliamentary Caucus (SLeFPaC) led by Hon. Bernadette Wuyata Songa has recently ended a two-day retreat held at the Place Hotel, Tokeh on the outskirt of Freetown.
In her welcome address, the Deputy Director of Department for Programs, Research and Partnership (DepReP), Mary Koroma said the purpose of the retreat was to build the capacity of female parliamentarians in order to be effective and efficient in parliamentary functions and leadership while recalling the efforts made under the 5th Parliament and its Leadership and other stakeholders for enacting the 30% female representation laws. “The importance of female parliamentarians cannot be overemphasized,” she asserted, citing references to other countries.
Making her statement, the Chairperson for Parliamentary Female Caucus, Hon. Bernadette Wuyata Songa said they were desperate to identify their common goals and emphasized their unity to achieving what they are aiming to conquer. She stated that the retreat was intended to achieve capacity building of female MPs while reflecting on their struggles to participate in parliamentary debates and other activities.
Hon. Songa stressed the importance of the workshop which was to build the capacities of female parliamentarians in order to become efficient and effective in participating in their parliamentary activities. “We are going to outshine the male MPs,” she boasted, whilst advising her colleague to be attentive and focus during the course of the retreat.
Hon. Abdul Suleiman Marray-Conteh, who spoke on behalf of the Leader of Government, reaffirmed the commitment of the leadership towards women’s participation and representation. He emphasized the support and enduring effort of the last Parliament on the passage of good laws, especially the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) Act and related laws. He advised members of the Caucus to be role models among the women populace in the country.
On his part, the leader of opposition, All Peoples Congress (APC) in Parliament, Hon. Abdul Kargbo described the retreat as critical and important in Sierra Leone. He acknowledged the invaluable efforts of all important personalities, including donor partners and leadership of the Female Caucus, for organizing the retreat. Hon. Kargbo reiterated that the retreat would build the capacity of the female participants and encouraged them to unite irrespective of their political ideologies. The Caucus, he said, is essential for the political landscape, noting it would unite women’s political agenda and participation while reminding the Caucus to think about women suffering from various human rights abuses. He suggested for the Caucus to use the retreat as a platform to capacitate themselves and be able to provide freedom for vulnerable women out there. The lawmaker however condemned all forms of violence and abuse against women and called the attention of the Caucus to liberate them. He also spoke about women participation in politics and their independence in achieving equal opportunities. “This retreat is a call to action,” Hon. Kargbo stated, adding that, “Don’t underestimate your relevance and importance.”
The Deputy Minister of Gender and Children’s Affairs, Boaki Bindi Hindowa, on behalf of the minister, described the retreat as a strategic event, saying it is for the ministry and the caucus to work in synergy while reaffirming their continuous commitment towards promoting the Caucus. He used the occasion to acknowledge the efforts of the Leadership of Parliament in that direction and appealed for the passage of Child Rights Bill.
The Country Director of World Vision International Sierra Leone, Sagane Thiaw, acknowledged the efforts for promoting women’s empowerment and participation. He stressed his organisations mission, vision, and objective, in promoting women and children in the country. He reflected on their support to humanity in Sierra Leone, especially when it comes to women and children. He used the opportunity to invite the Caucus to an in-house campaign to end child malnutrition and hunger slated to be launched soon. He also spoke about the consequences of hunger and malnutrition and asked the Caucus to partner with them in the campaign.
The World Vision National Director underscored their support in Sierra Leone over the years and went on to reveal that they were promoting women peace and security as well as gender related matters. He informed participants that their project implementation aimed at ensuring that more women participate in decision making. He reiterated that the Caucus is very important in promoting women’s peace, security, and gender amongst others. He also made a relevant commitment towards promoting the Caucus in the implementation of the GEWE Act.
Program Officer, Sierra Leone Parliamentary Network Africa, Florence Dzigbordi Yaa Gbolu predicated her statement on accountability and transparency. She acknowledged the effort made by Sierra Leone in supporting and promoting women’s participation and representation in politics and went on to reassure their support to the Parliamentary Female Caucus.
Officially launching the retreat on behalf of the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Acting Clerk and Deputy Clerk of Parliament, Gilbert Bosco Nhabay comparatively analysized the positive achievement of Parliament to many other in terms of female representation. He assured the female parliamentarians of the leadership’s continuous support and promotion. He encouraged the Caucus to maintain their unity and common goals. He expressed hope of shaping the future of female Caucus and women in politics.
The Acting Clerk made a commitment for a very strong advocacy that the Caucus would be supported by the Leadership and Parliament and also assured his alignment and capacity building and strengthening of the Caucus.
Copyright –Published in print in Expo Times Newspaper on Friday, June 21th , 2024 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
