State House says five women in the Cabinet are "enough" as former minister Sumaili calls it shameful

State House has defended the appointment of only five women among the ministers President Hakainde Hichilema named after the election, saying the number is enough and the country should move on. Speaking in an interview on Monday, State House Chief Communications Specialist Clayson Hamasaka said there was nothing wrong with the President appointing five women as Cabinet ministers. "They are enough," he said. Sesheke West UPND Member of Parliament Fredrick Misebezi also backed the appointments, describing them as good and well balanced. The President recently appointed Cabinet ministers together with 10 provincial ministers, and only five of the appointees are women. Former religious affairs minister Reverend Godfridah Sumaili has called the figure of five women out of 40 ministers shameful. She said it betrays the President's promise to promote the participation of women in leadership. ## Background The appointments followed the August elections and the start of the President's second term. A new Cabinet has been in place for only a few weeks, and the make-up of that team has been debated since it was announced. The 40 ministers counted by Rev Sumaili are the Cabinet ministers plus the 10 provincial ministers. ## Why it matters Women are about half of Zambia's people, and many of them are farmers, traders and heads of households whose lives are shaped by decisions on land, markets, health and schools. The number of women who sit at the Cabinet table decides whose experience is in the room when those decisions are made. The disagreement is between a government that says five is enough and a former member of that government who says it falls short of a promise made to voters. ## What happens next No change to the appointments has been announced. The row is likely to continue in public as women's groups and political parties respond to the State House position. Source: News Diggers, 3 November 2026, 10:00 (Africa/Lusaka). https://diggers.news/local/2026/11/03