Nigeria has the lowest female participation in politics in Africa, with just 4.1% representation in parliament.
The Executive Director of the International Press Centre, IPC Lagos, Dr. Lanre Arogundade, gave the briefing in Osogbo, during a two-day workshop for female candidates in the southwestern states and Kwara state, organized by the IPC and the Support of the European Union for Democratic Governance.
Dr. Arogundade, who lamented the low participation of women in politics, pointed out that much remains to be done to stimulate the interest of the female gender in politics.
He said that journalists remain an indispensable stakeholder in ensuring that Nigeria’s democracy is deepened with an emphasis on inclusiveness, in particular balanced gender participation, therefore bringing journalists into the workshop to brief women candidates.
“The female candidates have a better understanding of media engagement and strategic communication; y Women politicians have a better understanding of using social media platforms to create effective campaigns and gain greater media visibility through special reports, interviews, and media profiles.”
The experts at the event urged women politicians to work on their relations with the media to obtain better visibility that would influence the decisions of the voting population in their favor.
In her presentation, the President of the National Association of Women Journalists, NAWOJ, Oyo State Chapter, Ms. Jadesola Ajibola, walked the participants through the process of engaging with the media, advising them to develop their individual capacity and being available anytime they are. she called for interviews.
IPC Program Officer Miss Melody Akinjiyan explained that the center had been embarking on advocacy since 2018 to increase women’s participation in politics.
She said the 2018 result, where ten women emerged victorious in their political careers, encouraged them to relaunch the program, hoping more women will take advantage of the opportunity as the 2023 general election approaches.
“We believe there is room for improvement, which is why we are conducting this training. We are not satisfied with the number of women in politics and so we are building their capacity to be able to work with the media because we believe that it is the media that can help push these women into a lifeline to give them chances. and visibility.
“We want to encourage women to be fully involved in politics, so we are doing this training to be able to work together with the media because we know that people in the media are stakeholders in politics,” she added.
Some of the participants, including Ms. Bose Oyebode from Osun State, Ms. Favor Tomomewo from Ondo State and Ms. Fakunle from Ekiti State, explained that their participation in the 2018 training raised their morale and added a lot. value to your electoral campaign.
Adenitan Akinola
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