In Madagascar, where decision-making has long been reserved for men, only a fraction of candidates in upcoming local elections are women. One NGO hopes that training women on how to run a campaign and what holding office involves will encourage more of them to go into politics.
“What was useful for me was learning how duties are divided between local councillors and mayors,” says Marie Rosalie Rahelisoa, who is seeking a seat on the city council in Morondava, on Madagascar’s west coast, when the country votes on 11 December.
She is one of 60 women who completed a recent training course in the capital, Antananarivo, organised by the National Women’s Council of Madagascar (CNFM).
Held over two days last week, it aimed to give participants – all candidates in the approaching elections – a grounding in electoral regulations, the roles of different public officials, campaign management, political communication and leadership.
“It gave me extra skills,” Rahelisoa told RFI.
Like many of the trainees, Lala Rasanjison – standing for mayor in the central city of Antsirabe – is a relative newcomer to politics.
“It’s my first time running for mayor,” she said. “You have to know what you’re getting into.”
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Gender gap
Like many countries, Madagascar has a long-standing gender gap when it comes to politics.
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Just 26 of the country’s 163 members of parliament are women – the equivalent of 16 percent – down from an all-time high of 64 in 2011.
No seats are reserved for female MPs, nor is there a quota obliging parties to field a minimum percentage of women candidates – measures that several other countries in Africa have introduced in a bid to boost participation.
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In Madagascar’s local elections, women make up 6 percent of candidates topping municipal lists, around 320 out of a total of nearly 5,400.
“In Malagasy society, women’s place has always been considered inferior to men’s,” according to Estelle Andriamasy, president of women’s council CNFM.
“There isn’t really this culture of equality in the community. Decisions belong to men.”
While society continues to pressure women to stay out of public life, Andriamasy says, the belief that their place is at home ends up “somehow ingrained in women’s mentalities”.
The ultimate purpose of the CNFM’s politics training is to counteract such ideas and give female candidates the confidence to seek office, she explains.
Trainee Rahelisoa has taken the lesson on board. “The country’s future depends on us,” she told RFI.
“We women have to feel responsible and take an active part in public life if we’re to make a difference.”
This story is adapted from the original reported in French by RFI correspondent Guilhem Fabry.
