Cambodian women continue to be poorly represented in government following commune elections in May, the Committee to Promote Women in Politics said yesterday.

This reality, the committee said, is endangering the Kingdom’s chances of meeting its UN Millennium Development Goals.

“In order to achieve higher representation of women, we strongly urge that all political parties set up target indicators aimed at increasing [the] number of female candidates, including positions of leadership at the subnational level,” a statement says.

The number of elected women rose by only 1.77 per cent in elections held between 2009 and 2012, with 70 more women elected during the council elections this year, the statement says.

Cambodia’s UN Millennium Development Goals aim for women to make up 25 per cent of lawmakers at the commune level and 30 per cent at the national level by next year.