Factors affecting Women's Political Participation in Lusaka

Gender is an important part of personal identity and family life, and it is deeply woven into the moral fabric of the society. The roles assigned to the woman are linked to the home - she is to take the responsibility of managing the household and bearing and raising the children. Women are thought of as a sub-group in a man¿s world. Political participation and the poor participation of women in politics has been a major concern worldwide. Traditional values speak more when it comes to women¿s participation in politics and everyone sees politics as man¿s game. Women are considered to be subjective to men and cannot rule over men because of the pervasive influence of gender divisions on social life. Women¿s meaningful participation in politics affects both the range of policy issues that are considered and the types of solutions that are proposed. Within politics women can play a variety of roles: as voters, political party members, candidates and office holders, and members of civil society.