“Political Party Funding Act can encourage more women participation”

The Political Party Funding Act should be used as an instrument to encourage more women to participate in South Africa’s electoral system.

This is the view of the Head of the Institute of Election Management Services in Africa, Terry Tselane.

In recent months, political party funding has been under the spotlight due to the court case launched by NGO, My Vote Counts.

The organisation succeeded in having the donation limit of R15 million and disclosure threshold of R100 000 reinstated after they were removed by President Cyril Ramaphosa on the eve of the May elections.

While this victory for accountability has been lauded, Tselane says the Act can also be used to transform the gender landscape of the country’s electoral system.

While South Africa is praised for its high number of women in parliament, second only to Rwanda on the continent, this has fallen to 43.5% in the seventh administration, from 46% following the 2019 elections.

The ANC’s voluntary 50/50 gender policy has been key to the gains made.

IEC Commissioner Janet Love says that the idea of using political funding as a tool for gender transformation is not new.

A recommendation by the Gender Commission in a report compiled in 2013 showed that the government needs to make the 50/50 quota system mandatory for all political parties – with a range of punitive measures, such as public funding allocation cuts implemented for non-compliance.

Masinga says with the law being silent on gender parity, voters can have a powerful influence on political parties and their approach to gender.

With the establishment of a Government of National Unity – it may just be time to look at political parties through a gender prism, or else see a regression in the number of women stepping up to represent the people.

Political Party Funding Act | More female participation in SA’s electoral system: