The outgoing Chair of the Executive Bureau, Hon. Mebande Brigitte, was elected for a 12-month mandate during an elective general assembly on June 27, 2015.

Hon. Mebande Brigitte has been re-elected as Chair of the Executive Bureau of the Female Parliamentarians’ Caucus; an association that brings together all female parliamentarians.

This was during an elective general assembly meeting that started on June 27, 2015 in Yaounde under the chairmanship of Vice Speaker of the National Assembly, Hon. Théophile Baoro, representing the Speaker of the National Assembly, Hon. Cavaye Yeguie Djibril. Other members of the Executive Bureau will be elected today, Monday June 29, 2015.

According to one of the association’s members, Hon. Ngala Esther, encouraging more women to join politics so that they can participate in decision making, will be a key feature of the new Executive’s plan of action.

“We will be vocal against traditional practices that prevent women from taking part in important issues in society,” disclosed Hon. Ngala Esther. Such practices, she said, include female genital mutilation, obnoxious widowhood rites and early marriages.

The meeting on Saturday also provided an opportunity for Hon. Mebande Brigitte and the female parliamentarians to showcase achievements since the association started activities in 2010 to promote women’s empowerment and respect of their rights.

Through lobbying in political, social and cultural circles, the number of women has not only increased in parliament from 26 in 1998 to 56 during the 2013-2018 legislative mandate but has also increased in councils and government.