Swan Hill Rural City Councillor Yvonne Jennings.

Media Release

Wednesday, 4 November 2009

Swan Hill Rural City Councillor Yvonne Jennings has been named as one of 21 Ambassadors from around Australia for the International Year of Women in Local Government for 2010.

Cr Jennings, the only ambassador from regional Victoria, said she was delighted to be named as an Ambassador for 2010.

“I feel honoured that the Chief Executive Officer of Swan Hill Rural City Council nominated me for the Ambassador role and for me, this is a natural progression from the SOAR with Support Women's Leadership program,” Cr Jennings said.

“It is really exciting to see the progression of what we have been working on for many years, that is, to see women and youth achieve their full potential and the ambassador program is a positive step towards this progression.

“Furthermore, the Ambassador program was open to both men and women, and women achieving their potential is just not possible without the support of good men at home and in the community,” Cr Jennings added.

During the next 18 months the Ambassadors will become role models and champions for the advancement of women in Local Government and will make a valuable contribution towards the success of the Year of Women in Local Government 2010.

“I am looking forward to this Ambassador role during the next 18 months and promoting the advancement of women within the Local Government sector, both in terms of management and Council level,” Cr Jennings said.

“We are still seeing only 20% of women in senior management roles in the Local Government workforce, which has not changed since 1996, while only 5% of women are chief executive officers or general mangers, and less than 30% of women represent elected officials.”