Some female Members of Parliament (MPs) are calling for financial assistance from various civil society organizations and stakeholders to effectively fulfill their constituency duties.

They believe that the support would contribute to retaining the majority of female MPs and promote gender parity in politics.

According to the 2021 Population and Housing Census, Ghana has a higher female population, accounting for 50.7 percent of the total population, while males constitute 49.3 percent.

However, within the 8th Parliament, both the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have 20 female members each, totaling 40 out of 275 MPs.

During recent NDC primaries, three female MPs lost their bids to contest in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

Expressing their concerns during a breakfast meeting organized by the Parliamentary Network Africa, Members of Parliament, Patricia Appiagyei, Betty Krosbi Mensah, and Sheila Bartels called for financial support to retain their seats.

“It is very important that if we are working with the CSOs, wherever you are getting your funding from, it is critical that you appreciate the challenges we have in ensuring that we are servicing our constituencies and support us especially even during our primaries. What do you do to support and ensure that we retain our numbers and be able to even appreciate the numbers that we have in Parliament?”

Patricia Appiagyei stressed the importance of recognizing the challenges MPs face while serving their constituencies, especially during primaries, and urged the civil society organizations (CSOs) to offer necessary support.

Betty Krosbi Mensah, representing Afram Plains North, highlighted the limited resources available to MPs, making it difficult to effectively represent their constituencies.

Sheila Bartels, MP for Ablekuma North, emphasized that empowering women in Parliament would encourage more women to seek these positions.

She expressed concerns about women in politics not getting the same support as their male counterparts and called for equitable financing opportunities.

The financial support sought by these female MPs aims to ensure they can continue their parliamentary roles effectively and pave the way for greater gender representation in Ghanaian politics.