The Deputy Secretary General of the National Resistance Movement (NRM), Rt Hon Namayanja Rose Nsereko, has called on women leaders across the political divide to engage in dialogue on cross-cutting issues affecting women in the country.
Namayanja made the call yesterday while delivering a keynote address at the three-day National Dialogue on Women in Politics, which was organized by the Netherlands Institute of Multiparty Democracy, (NIMD).
"We can seat as women leaders irrespective of our political parties to discuss issues concerning us. We can still make a contribution as women from the different women leagues," the Deputy Secretary General said.
Namayanja noted that as a party, the NRM is ready to engage women leaders in dialogue to find solutions to the challenges affecting women.
"On behalf of NRM, I can authoritatively speak that we're ready to engage the women leaders to handle the cross-cutting issues and the issues concerning the women regardless of our political parties," she noted.
She spoke about how women need to take their place as leaders in order to address issues concerning them.
On a positive note, Namayanja noted that strides had been taken toward the empowerment of women in the country. She cited the example of how women have become empowered through affirmative action policies.
She said that young girls are competing favorably with boys at school, which means that the foundation for women is visible. She also cited statistics from Makerere University showing that 53% of students are female, 54% at UCU, and 55% at MUBS.
"We are not where we want to be, but we are also not where we used to be, this is because of the affirmative action policies that start from home, for a parent to appreciate that a girl child must go to school," she added.
The National dialogue that took place at the Golf Course Hotel in Entebbe comprised women representatives from the different political parties namely NUP, DP, ANT, DP, JEEMA, NUP, PPP, UPC, and NRM. It was aimed at bringing together women across the political divide to engage in non-partisan conversation on women and what they feel, to have a unified voice, and how to utilize their space profitably.