Tuvalu is reviving plans to add two dedicated seats for women in its parliament, as part of wider constitutional reform.
Dr Puakena Boreham Photo: Supplied/ MFAT
Dedicated seats for women were first suggested for Tuvalu eight years ago after government consultations.
There's only one woman in the 15 seat parliament and only three vied for a seat in the last election in 2015.
Fokotia Kulene from the Gender Affairs Department said the dedicated seats will be introduced as part of a review of Tuvalu's constitution due to finish in July next year.
"We were trying to introduce this option in the next election. However, we are still finding a way to address, and especially to encourage, women to know their right of having two seats."
Dr Puakena Boreham, the Minister for Natural Resources and Lands, is only one of three women to be elected to parliament since Tuvalu gained independence in 1978.
The other woman MPs were Naamal Maheu Latasi and Pelenike Tekinene Isaia.
"We are the economists of our families, we are lawyers, we are doctors, we are everything to our families. If we have all these characteristics at home, we certainly can contribute at the national level," said Dr Boreham.
The Tuvalu Constitutional Review Project is being funded by the governments of Australia and Tuvalu for $US800,000.
Dedicated seats for women were revived after a workshop last week conducted by the Gender Affairs Department and the United Nations Development Programme.
