NCCE, with UNDP Support, Holds Day-Long Sensitization for Grassroots Women on Political Participation
The Governor of WCR & Representative of the NCCE and the participating Women
By Fatou Sillah
The National Council for Civic Education (NCCE), in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), on Friday convened a day-long sensitization and capacity-building session in Brikama aimed at strengthening grassroots women’s networks to support and promote female political participation.
Held at the Governor’s Office in the West Coast Region, the event was conducted under the theme “Strength in Solidarity: Mobilizing for Women’s Representation.” It forms part of a broader week-long initiative designed to empower women’s organizations to take a more active role in leadership and governance.
The program is part of a concerted national effort to redress the underrepresentation of women in decision-making roles, despite their crucial contributions to community development, peacebuilding, and civic engagement.
Addressing participants, Momodou Bah, Programme Officer at the NCCE, highlighted the importance of empowering grassroots structures to ensure that aspiring female leaders receive the support they need.
“Our common goal is to empower and rally support for female candidates, who are prepared to assume leadership positions in our communities, we now see how important it is for women organizations to help these future leaders, not only is it a question of equality, but the advancement of our societies depends on the presence of women in leadership roles,” Bah stated.
Governor of the West Coast Region, Ousman Bojang, also spoke at the forum, acknowledging the persistent socio-cultural and psychological barriers that hinder women’s political participation—particularly in the digital era where public scrutiny can be relentless.
“We have some cultural barriers, we also have a lot of barriers that comes up when women want to run for office, especially in this modern social media ages where a lot of people will be worried what will be said about them, what history may come up behind them, so these are all things that build barriers especially for women to run for office,” Governor Bojang said.
Representing the participating women, Jainaba Bah lauded the initiative, noting its potential to reshape political dynamics by equipping women with the confidence and knowledge to seek public office.
“This is very important because, as we all know, women are left behind a lot, in the political space and leadership positions in this country. If you go through the data we have a limited number of women in the National Assembly, the Local Government Councils and even the executive. So this capacity building will make many women know that they should be part of it,” she said.
The sensitization forms part of a broader week-long campaign running from April 26 to May 3, 2025, covering both the West Coast and North Bank Regions. Eight training sessions will be held—four in each region—targeting women’s groups and community-based organizations. The sessions focus on leadership development, political literacy, and fostering grassroots-level advocacy in support of female candidates.