Women candidates must be determined, focused: Contestant

JEAN Eparo, from Northern, who has expressed interest to contest the General Election 2022, says women contestants must muster strength and determination to achieve success.
“They must focus on planning, budgeting time and money,” she said at the National Forum On Women’s Political Participation in Milne Bay.
United Nations Development Programme resident representative Dirk Wagener said women entering Parliament in Papua New Guinea was a critical challenge.
“This forum is designed to be a practical interactive session to meet, network, reflect and identify strategies,” he said.
“What we want is that you get the skills, capabilities to increase women’s participation. Hopefully we have many of you elected to Parliament.
“Women have shown remarkable resilience. In the face of the global pandemic, women leaders show how capable they are in bringing transformational change.
“Leadership is about doing what’s right.”
Australian High Commissioner Jon Philp said men also had to be part of the solution.
“When you have your discussion, you have to learn from each other, network and mentor,” he said.
“Beyond that, we need to include men in this discussion.
“It is crucial that women be elected into Parliament because if you have diversity in representation, you get better results.”
Also present at the forum were general secretaries of 12 political parties in PNG.
60 aspiring candidates have participated in Alotau from Tuesday to Thursday.