Source: All Africa
Montserrado County District #1 Representative Josephine Francis has challenged women to see the 2017 general elections as "the perfect chance" to capture 50 percent of the 73 seats in the Lower House of the National Legislature.

She said this achievement will increase women's representation in the first branch of government.

Currently, there are eight women in the House of Representatives, which constitutes about five percent of the total number of seats in the House.

Francis proffered the challenge Friday in her welcome remarks at the start of a two-day training session for women held at a local hotel in the ELWA community in Paynesville, outside Monrovia.

"The men have already started working; so you need to start working in your communities, clubs and associations and churches," Francis told the women.

She said women, wishing to contest the 2017 General and Presidential Elections, need to immediately begin working or they could fail in the process.

Francis said while the Women Legislative Caucus will support the election of women, it will not support mute lawmakers as such persons will not serve and support the agenda of women.

In remarks at the program, Montserrado District #9 lawmaker Munah Youngblood said she wants women to incorporate the active participation of young people in playing leadership roles, rather than being mere participants.

Youngblood also called for a critical assessment of the characters and capacities of female candidates before featuring them in the 2017 elections or many of them might not get elected, leaving the same vacuum of low number of elected women.

Topics covered at the workshop included Strategies for Constructive Engagements with Stakeholder to Obtain and Ensure Spaces in Decision-making; Leadership Positions, Leadership and Teamwork, and Advocacy and Lobbying Strategies, among others.

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