Over 35 of Samoa’s most influential women including Deputy Prime Minister, Fiame Naomi Mata’afa met in Apia yesterday to discuss ways to break-down barriers to women’s political participation.
The discussions were hosted by UN Women and UNDP.
In partnership with the Government of Samoa, the Australian Government and local organisations, UN Women and UNDP joined forces to implement the Increasing Political Participation of Women in Samoa (IPPWS) project from 2015 to 2016.
With Phase 1 of IPPWS completed, yesterday’s consultations pursued to ensure Samoa’s women leaders guide the future direction of the programme.
The Recommendations from participants included developing specific pathways to women’s leadership in the Fa’a Samoa context, targeted trainings for women candidates, civic awareness and education on women’s political participation, youth engagement, and mentorship for those with political aspirations.
Samoa is the only country in the region which has adopted temporary special measures to guarantee minimum representation of women in parliament.
The Pacific region has the lowest levels of women in parliament in the world.
Photo by: UN Women/Suisala Mele Maualaivao