Venkaiah advocates need for entry of more women into politics
Former Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu addressing the gathering at the NCW workshop in Visakhapatnam on Monday
Visakhapatnam: Former Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday stressed on the need for more women entering into politics.
He participated as the chief guest at the valedictory function of the three-day workshop on gender responsive governance for elected women representatives under 'She is change maker' project organised by the National Commission for Women (NCW).
Venkaiah said while more women leaders were present in politics now compared to earlier times, however their number is not sufficient.
He pointed out that women were making rapid strides in various fields. "They should be given more and more importance in the legislative bodies. We need to increase the percentage of women participation by giving them increased opportunities. Women should have equal representation and access to political positions in local bodies, State Assemblies and Parliament," he said.
Women MLAs and MLCs from various States including Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Maharashtra attended the workshop.
Delivering her address, chairperson of NCW Rekha Sharma said the Commission has been carrying out a capacity building programme for empowering women MLAs across the country and it was the third workshop held in Vizag.
The workshop was organised with the support of National Gender and Child Centre and Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration.
Speaking on the occasion, Jonnalagadda Padmavathy, MLA from Anantapur, said the workshop was beneficial. "Sessions like effective leadership and inclusive governance, among others, were presented at the event," she said.
Sharing her views, MLC Varudhu Kalyani said many issues related to women were discussed during the workshop. "The platform will help in improving the performance of people's representatives. Women-friendly initiatives of AP such as Disha App and Act were well appreciated by people's representatives who came from other States. Such workshops help in providing a new learning experience, " the MLC pointed out.
Participating in the workshop, Pathapatnam MLA Reddy Shanthi appreciated the National Commission for Women for coming up with the event for women legislators.