Papua New Guinea goes to the polls from 2 to 22 July – with 142 female candidates nominated to run for office.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said in the country’s prior election of 2017, a total candidacy of 3,340 saw just five percent of women listed.
According to the PNG Electoral Commission, of the 179 female candidates that contested in 2017, 117 ran as independents while 62 were party endorsed.
This new election period has seen a surge of political parties (as at 30 May) endorsing more women candidates than in previous years.
“The United Nations promotes gender equality and, with the principal of leaving no one behind, encourages collective action to create conducive environments towards substantive equality for all women and girls,” said UNDP.
“Women’s political participation is a fundamental prerequisite for promoting gender equality and strengthening democracy, this includes building women’s agency particularly with respect to promoting equal participation in leadership and decision-making positions - from village to national level.
“It is fundamental to address the key areas of gender inequality, such as negative social norms, gender-based discrimination in law and in practice, violence against women and girls and women’s unequal participation and representation in private and public decision-making.
“Through the Women Make the Change Project, UNDP in Papua New Guinea is helping to build the capacity and vision of 120 women leaders in a series of regional mentoring workshops and trainings delivered in partnership with the Integrity for Political Parties and Candidates Commission, PNG Electoral Commission, Department for Community Development and Religion.
“UNDP continues to work with key stakeholders to support efforts to achieve this vision by mentoring, introducing women leaders to political party values and building capacity for women interested in participating in national level politics.”