With about a year and half to go for the next general elections, women activists are making a pitch for their own. They are asking political parties to field more female candidates in the parliamentary polls. The women also want more female participation in local governance. One of the proposals under consideration at the third biennial conference of women in local governance in Accra, attended by about 150 elected assembly women from across the country is the equal distribution of government appointees at district, municipal and metropolitan assemblies between the sexes. According to Joy News’ Alex Kobina Mensah who covered the meeting, the number of elected Assembly women over the past 13 years has grown from three to five percent, while women representation in parliament has also risen from 16 to 25 after the 2004 general elections, with the current government cabinet including four women as against two in the past. The participants generally agreed there were improvements, however the figures still fell short of the UN recommended minimum of 30 percent representation in politics and decision-making for women. The Ghana Country Director of ACTIONAID, Adjoa Kwarteng Kluvitse, told Joy News, the issue was far from settled, and asked that government enact and implement legislation to give women equal share of government appointments in the district assemblies. The two-day conference sponsored by ACTIONAID and ABANTU for Development, hopes to present a resolution from the meeting for the consideration of all political parties and parliament.