The 50:50 Campaign Management Agency is dismayed that no female candidate has contested in the recent parliamentary and local government by-elections.

On January 30 this year, Malawi Electoral Commission conducted a parliamentary by-election in Lilongwe South Constituency where there was no female contestant out of the 5 candidates.

This is also the case with Thursday`s local government by-election that is being conducted in Balaka`s Liwawadzi Ward.

50:50 Campaign Team Leader Viwemi Chavula has told YFM Online that absence of women in the by-elections is retrogressive towards the attainment of the 50:50 representation of women in top leadership positions.

“There is need for some sort of a research to understand why is that there is no interest on part of women and if this trend continues to go so we are going to go deeper on why there is no interest from women,” said Chavula.

Chavula has however singled out that their Agency is after the women`s 25% and that the 75% is for the female candidates to work on for themselves.

“It’s a concern but I think it goes back to the candidates themselves because as a programme, we are just complimentary, we are an auxiliary arm, 75% is for the candidate and we only compliment the 25%,” highlighted Chavula.