OSCE-co-organized forum of women candidates for local council elections concludes in Osh
OSH, Kyrgyzstan, 5 November 2016 – A forum of women candidates for local council elections was organized today in Osh city with the aim of encouraging some 125 graduates of Women’s Leadership Schools from the Bishkek, Issyk-Kul, Osh and Batken regions to participate in the 11 December local council elections.
The event was organized by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, in co-operation with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), UNICEF, UN Women and the NGO Women’s Support Centre.
The forum served as a platform for dialogue between female candidates, members of the national Parliament, prominent public figures, and representatives of the Central Election Commission, civil society and international organizations.
“Women constitute more than half of the population, and more than half of the voters in the world, however, in many cases they remain severely under-represented in elected offices, at the national regional and local levels, ,” said Diana Digol, Institution Building Officer at the OSCE Centre. “Promoting women in elected offices in local councils will positively contribute to state stability, nation-building and inter-ethnic peace in Kyrgyzstan.”
Kumushai Abdullaeva, a private entrepreneur from Kadamjai district in Batken region, said: “Today at the forum women were encouraged and inspired to implement our political programmes. We were convinced that we can and should participate in the election and become members of the local councils.”
This event is a follow-up to a series of training courses for female candidates conducted in Bishkek, Issyk-Kul, Osh and Batken regions in 2016 to increase their capacity building and raise awareness in the election system and legislation. The forum is organized as part of the OSCE Centre’s project on strengthening democratic governance in Kyrgyzstan.