DILI, 19 march 2024 (TATOLI) – To motivate the participation of Timorese women in the upcoming municipal elections, the Alola Foundation organized a round table on the theme “Learning from the 2023 Suco Elections for Victory in upcoming 2024 Municipal Elections.”
Director of Alola Foundation, Maria Guterres, said that the round table discussion aimed to bring together women from different areas to look into the reasons for the lack of participation by women in last year’s local elections, since only 18 women were elected as suco chiefs, equivalent to 4 percent of the total number of suco chiefs, with 6 winning in the first round and 12 in the second.
“We are trying to understand the factors that lead women not to get involved in political life. This experience also allows us to define strategies to motivate female participation in the upcoming municipal elections,” she said in Dili.
Guterres said that she wants to see more women participating in municipal elections, saying therefore, it would require a collective effort.
Speaking during the discussion, Prisca Mizela a university student said that nowadays more and more women are capable of being “good leaders not only in the family, but also in political life.”
Meanwhile, the representative of the Secretary of State for Equality, José de Carvalho, said that the government is committed to promoting women’s participation in political, economic, and social activities, for example by awarding a public subsidy worth US$300,000 to around 50 women’s associations.
Journalist: Jose Belarmino de Sa
Editor: Filomeno Martins
