Beyond Voters’ List: UN Women, ELECAM Mobilize Stakeholders For 2027

Elections Assistance Project

Supported by the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund, PBF under the multi-agency Elections Assistance Project, the workshop brings together representatives from six UN entities. Viz UN Women, UNDP, UNESCO, UNFPA, IOM, and OHCHR - alongside six key Cameroonian ministries: MINPROFF, MINDDEVEL, MINJEC, MINAS, FEICOM, and ELECAM. The operational objective is clear: shift vulnerable demographics from passive spectators on voter rolls to active candidates, campaign leaders, and community decision-makers. Ahead of upcoming municipal, legislative, and regional races.

Despite national and international commitments regarding human rights and gender parity, Cameroon continues to experience significant underrepresentation of marginalized groups in public administration and elected office. Structural hurdles, socio-economic inequalities, security challenges causing internal displacement, and limited access to verified electoral information, continue to suppress political participation.

Voters, Candidates, Elected Officials

Opening the proceedings on behalf of the President of the Electoral Council, Mrs. Amugu née Abena Ekobena Appoline Marie, Vice Chairperson of the Electoral Board of ELECAM, delivered an impassioned address. Calling for an end to mere tokenism in political parties.

"Our objective today is to equip every actor and political player with the technical, strategic, and legal tools necessary not only to be a voter, but above all to be a candidate, an elected official, and a decision-maker," Mrs. Amugu declared. "We must make this step concrete and practical. In sports, we say 'practical-practical' - leave theory behind! We no longer want theory in these matters."

Reposition Women, Please!

Addressing political party leaders seated in the hall, Mrs. Amugu highlighted the absence of female executive leadership in major urban centers like the capital’s Mfoundi Division. Issuing a direct challenge to party nominating committees to re-evaluate how women are placed on candidate slates:

"To political parties, we issue a vibrant call for a bolder and more proactive repositioning of women, youth, and minorities on your candidate lists. Women are no longer just there to fill arenas - they must be part of the decision-making spheres," Mrs. Amugu appealed.

The workshop aligns directly with President Paul Biya’s declaration framing the current Presidential mandate as the "seven-year term dedicated to women and youth." Civil society leaders emphasized that this political window must be actively seized. Rather than passively celebrated.

Prof. Justine Diffo Tchunkam, President of the NGO More Women in Politics, noted that through initiatives like the Electoral Assistance Clinic - supported jointly by UN Women, MINPROFF, and MINDDEVEL - women across Cameroon's 10 regions are becoming tactically prepared for political competition.

No Platter Of Silver!

"Nothing will ever be handed to women on a silver platter," Prof. Diffo stated. "Women must be more offensive and more assertive than in the past to achieve this. Because the political environment itself has become more competitive and contested than before. Women are equipped, engaged, and ready to snatch those positions."

Don’t Ignore Women!

Grassroots leaders echoed this momentum. Mrs. Noah Marie Angèle, Mayor of Afanloum in Mefou and Afamba Division of the Centre Region, shared field reports. Which show that female political mobilization is already yielding structured candidate slates in major urban and regional hubs:

"If women turn their backs on you, you will not win - whether as men or as youth," Mayor Noah emphasized. "Women have the enthusiasm to go into elections. In cities like Douala and Garoua, we already have pools of at least 30 prepared candidates ready to run. We are determined to turn the tables," she promised.