NDP members attend WFD Cross Party ‘Women Lead’ Conference in London

Opposition leader, Dr. Godwin Friday and Opposition Senator, Shevern John attended the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) Cross Party “Women Lead” Conference in London from February 20-21, 2024 which brought together various political parties, leaders and activists from across the United Kingdom and the world on the issue of women’s political participation.

The aim of the conference was to shine a light on political party practices that identify and nurture women candidates and support them in their journey in political representation and leadership, a release from the New Democratic Party states.

Political representatives from around the world showcased and learned about reforms and innovations that political parties can adopt to better support women candidates.

Secretary General of the Caribbean Democratic Union (CDU), Nick Francis, who also attended the conference noted that political parties are the main vehicles through which people representation is achieved.

Therefore, it is critical to continue engagement with our member parties in the Caribbean to ensure greater inclusion of women and youth in the decision-making process at both the party and parliamentary levels. He also expressed gratitude to the Conservatives WFD Programme for providing the sponsorship support for the conference. Friday, president of the NDP, praised the WFD and representatives from across the political party spectrum for organizing this important initiative and thanked fellow attendees for robust conversations on the way forward towards supporting women in the political space. Senator John noted that she was truly inspired and encouraged by the experiences shared with other female parliamentarians which reinforced her resolve to continue fighting for gender equality in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The WFD Women-Lead Cross Party Conference ended with pledges to introduce reforms to further support women’s political participation and leadership within political parties.