Women only occupy 16.3%of the worlds parliamentary seats. Focus the spotlight on the Pacific region and women fare even worse at just 13.9%.

FYI: How do companies peddle influence?

Directly:
face-to-face meeting with policymakers
serving on government advisory committees
making presentations to policymakers
sending letters, memos, and emails to policymakers
making formal submissions to government consultations

Indirectly:
securing media coverage
making financial donations and giving gifts to political parties and candidates
funding think-tanks and research projects
funding “grassroots” and public relations campaigns
bringing policymakers to corporate hospitality events

Source: “Under the Influence,” ActionAid, page 10

Women from Samoa and the Solomon Islands are therefore hoping to improve the situation, as the two island states gear up for elections in March 31 and April 5, respectively.

In Samoa, female candidates are at a record high, as for the first time, women have formed a political party to contest the election. Called the Samoa Christian Party, it is led by political veteran Tuala Tiresa Malietoa, Samoas first female political party leader, while all of its chief executive officers are women. Meanwhile, in the Solomons, 15 women have confirmed their candidacy for the April pollsthe highest number of women to contest a national election since the country became independent 27 years ago.

Laisa Taga, editor-in-chief of the on-line magazine Islands Business, said Tuala and the other candidates running in the elections is part of Pacific womens bigger push to become equal partners in development and in the decision-making process of their various countries.

Women are crucial in decision-making because they bring in a new perspective, and a new and a fresh attitude to national governance and national development, asserted Tuala. Indeed, [e]qual access to political participation is considered to be essential to democracy and by extension to political and social stability and economic development, said Pamela Thomas of Australian National University's Development Studies Network.

Increasing the level of representation and participation of women in politics is no simple task, however. The Pacifics record at involving women in politics is dismalits 13.9% is only saved by the Arab regions 6.8%. Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) data further reveal that there is not a single woman in the parliament of five independent Pacific Islands
countries namely Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu, thus making them rank the lowest in IPUs January figures. Fiji, the highest-ranking Pacific independent state (aside from Australia and New Zealand) ranks 107 out of 138 spots.

According to Thomas, while women are recognisedas making an important contribution to peacemaking and reconciliation, there is a widespread cultural prejudice against womens political involvement in the region. [P]olitics is still considered mens business just as religious leadership is also considered mens business. As a result, women face political invisibility and even physical intimidation of violence when they want to cast their vote, let alone stand for election.

Women likewise find it difficult to gain political party nomination and to bear the cost of mounting an election campaign. The number of women candidates in Solomon would have been higher, for example, had they not been forced to withdraw and run in the provincial elections instead. Ella Kauhue, general secretary of Solomons National Council of Women, told the newspaper Solomon Star that candidates withdrew because of their supporters increasing demand for moneya request they could not afford. She said it was disappointing because such attitude breeds corruption and bribery among voters.

Added to these difficulties is the Pacific communities general lack of understanding of political and electoral processes and participation, including the rights of the individual to vote. Likewise, deep-seated social and political divisions in Pacific island societies caused by identity, racism and religious differences complicate matters, added Thomas.

To address these issues, Thomas cited some recommendations of a workshop on political participation in the Pacific held in July 2002 in Australia, which remain relevant today. These are: providing greater national and international support for on-going formal and nonformal education in good governance, political and electoral processes, and gender equality in electoral rights; undertaking further research into the role that gender, ethnicity and religion play in political processes and to find ways to ensure fair and equal access; provision of gender sensitisation courses to government officials at all levels, to provincial planners, and to religious and community leaders; and development of policy recommendations for national governments and donors that would support more equal access to political participation at community, provincial and national levels.

Womens access to decision-making is critical for the Pacific. Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon noted, If you dont allow half the world to play their part in solving these problems, youre only getting half the solutions.

Sources:

Lomas, P. (2004, July 20). Equality in the corridors of power. Retrieved February 22, 2006, from <http://www.samoaobserver.ws/news/opinions/op0704/2007op001.htm>.

Taga, L. Letter from Suva: Women's push into politics. Retrieved February 22, 2006, from Islands Business
http://www.islandsbusiness.com/islands_business/index_dynamic/containerNameToReplace=MiddleMiddle/focusModuleID=5565/ overideSkinName=issueArticle-full.tpl>.

Thomas, P. (October 2002). Political participation in the Pacific: Issues of gender, race and religion. /Development Bulletin:/ /Political participation in the Pacific, Issues of gender, race and religion, /59. Retrieved February 22, 2006 from <http://devnet.anu.edu.au/db59pdfs.php>.

Women in national parliaments. (2006, January 31). Retrieved February 22, 2006, from Inter-Parliamentary Union <http://www.ipu.org/wmn-e/classif.htm>.

Rank (out of 138 spots)	Country	Legislative Chamber	Date of Latest Election	Extent of Women's Representation	% of Women
15	New Zealand	House of Representatives	09 2005	39 out of 121	32.2
30	Australia	House of Representatives Senate	10 2004 10 2004	37 out of 150 27 out of 76	24.7 35.5
107 (with Congo & Cote d’Ivoire)	Fiji	House of Representatives Senate	08 2001 08 2001	6 out of 71 4 out of 32	8.5 12.5
120	Samoa	Fono - Legislative Assembly	03 2001	3 out of 49	6.1
125	Kiribati	Maneaba Ni Maungatabu	05 2003	2 out of 42	4.8
129	Vanuatu	Parliament	07 2004	2 out of 52	3.8
131	Tonga	Fale Alea	03 2005	1 out of 29	3.4
132 (with Comoros)	Marshall Islands	Nitijela	11 2003	1 out of 33	3.0
136	Papua New Guinea	National Parliament	06 2002	1 out of 109	0.9
138 (with 9 other countries)	Fed. States of Micronesia	Congress	03 2005	0 out of 14	0.0
“	Nauru	Parliament	10 2004	0 out of 18	0.0
“	Palau	House of Delegates Senate	11 2004 11 2004	0 out of 16 0 out of 9	0.0 0.0
“	Solomon Islands	National Parliament	12 2001	0 out of 50	0.0
“	Tuvalu	Palamene o Tuvalu	07 2002	0 out of 15	0.0

Sources:

Inter-Parliamentary Union <http://www.ipu.org/wmn-e/classif.htm>.
CAPWIP <http://www.capwip.org/participation/womenchambers.html>.