It will take some 370 years for the number of women in the Dáil to reach 50 per cent, at current rates of increase, writes Marie O'Halloran
The Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Ms Coughlan, pointed out that just 15 of every 100 councillors are women. "In the 1999 local authority elections, a total of 1,838 candidates sought election to 883 seats, and of those candidates 310 were women", of whom 134 were elected.
Some 45 per cent of women in the Dáil are from politically active families, and over the past 10 years female representation in the Dáil has increased by 1 per cent. Ms Coughlan was speaking at a Fianna Fáil conference to mark International Women's Day, entitled "Local Government Needs Women".
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, speaking outside the conference, pledged that a major push will be made by Fianna Fáil to increase the number of women involved in local politics. While women represent 37 per cent of Fianna Fáil's membership, they account for just 12 per cent of the party's councillors in local government.
The Labour Party will also focus on having a large number of women candidates to face the electorate for next year's local elections. Deputy leader Ms Liz McManus said: "The best way for the Government to mark International Women's Day would be to take real and constructive steps to make good its stated objectives of increasing the number of women participating in Irish politics and State boards and agencies. Sadly, I believe that Fianna Fáil and the PDs have neither the will nor the ability to do so."
The Fianna Fáil conference was one of a number of events around the country to mark the day.
These included conferences, the launch by the IFA of a campaign to increase women's participation in the farming organisation, and an anti-war protest outside the Dáil on Saturday by an ad hoc group "Irish women say no to war".
On female participation in politics, Mr Ahern said that "it has proven difficult to increase the representation of women but we will be putting forward more women candidates than ever before in the local elections".
Ms McManus pointed out that women now make up a third of Labour's Dáil representation and 40 per cent of the party's representation in the Seanad.
"On International Women's Day in 1992, there were no female TDs in the Labour Party. On International Women's Day in 2003, there are seven. This did not happen by accident but came about because of an effective policy within the party to include more women in all sections of the party, including the parliamentary party," she said.
IFA equality officer Ms Mary Carroll said the organisation "is determined to put women in the farming picture, and to get more women involved at decision-making levels in the association". A new equality initiative has resulted in the election of seven women to national IFA committees. The action plan includes holding an annual conference for farm women.