Tayebwa highlights Uganda’s progress in women’s representation

13 October 2026, 10:29 am

By Ronald Ssemagonja

Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa has highlighted Uganda’s progress in promoting women’s representation in leadership, citing their growing presence in Parliament and Cabinet.

Tayebwa made the remarks yesterday while addressing the World Women Parliamentarians Forum in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, where he led Uganda’s delegation.

He said Uganda had taken deliberate steps to increase women’s participation in governance since 1986, including affirmative action enshrined in the Constitution.

According to Tayebwa, women account for 35 per cent of Uganda’s Parliament, with 187 women among the 529 members. He added that women make up 49 per cent of Cabinet.

He also cited the positions held by women, including Vice President, Prime Minister and two Deputy Prime Ministers, as examples of their participation in senior government leadership.

The two-day forum is being held under the theme, “From Representation to Influence in the Decision-Making Process.”

Tayebwa also highlighted gender equality assessments in the budgeting process, supported by the Equal Opportunities Commission, as measures intended to ensure that women and other disadvantaged groups are considered in government programmes.

However, he called for further measures to give women greater influence in decision-making.

“Representation is only the beginning. Having women in Parliament is important, but the most important measure of progress is whether women are able to influence the laws, the policies, the budgets and decisions that shape the lives of our people,” Tayebwa said.

He described the forum as an important platform for countries to share experiences and identify practical ways of strengthening women’s influence at national, regional and international levels.

“As parliamentarians, we have a responsibility to ensure that women’s voices are reflected not only in our chambers, but also in the decisions that determine the future of our societies,” he said.

Uganda’s delegation included Lira District Woman Member of Parliament Auma Linda Agnes, National Female Member of Parliament for Persons with Disabilities Laura Kanushu, Wakiso District Woman Member of Parliament Betty Ethel Naluyima, Soroti District Woman Member of Parliament Anna Ebaju Adeke and National Female Youth Member of Parliament Mercy Kanyesigye.

Meanwhile, Leah Sopiato Sankaire, the Kajiado County Woman Representative who led Kenya’s delegation, said that despite progress made in Kenya, the country had yet to implement the constitutional requirement that no more than two-thirds of the members of any elective or appointive public body should be of the same gender.

Sankaire said Kenya’s Parliament was 31 women representatives short of meeting the required threshold. She added that efforts were underway to address the shortfall, including through a constitutional amendment bill.

Mongolia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Battsetseg Batmunkh, said the achievements celebrated at the forum resulted from women’s efforts to secure the implementation of the declaration adopted at the 1995 World Conference on Women in Beijing.

“Since the conference, the representation of women in parliament has more than doubled. Many of these achievements we are celebrating today are because of those women who refused to accept limitations imposed on them,” she said.