Leading Canberra sports administrator challenges merit of gender quotas

Bronwyn Fagan, a special counsel at Russell Kennedy Lawyers who serves on the Canberra Raiders board, says diversity is important but governance, structure and skills "must be in good shape first".

The ACT government has confirmed it's working to impose 40 per cent female representation on government-funded sporting organisations by 2020.

Ms Fagan said if the Raiders board had to appoint 40 per cent women there would be a huge talent drain.

"You would lose so many networks and skills," she said.

"You have to ask if that's the right thing to do. I think the Raiders board has a great balance and diversity is not an issue."

Ms Fagan said instead of quotas, the government should be assisting sports to develop.

"If you want healthy active kids in well-run sporting organisations that are sustainable and grow through generations, I don't think having a quota is going to help," she said.

"Resources should be made available to help sports with governance, and not just online.

"There should be lots of communication and interaction to help them."

Ms Fagan said there should be a pool created of women who were interested and suitable to serve on boards.

"I don't think all sports have the resources or the capability to know what they need to look for," she said.

Ms Fagan, who has also been involved with cricket, said women were appointed to cricket boards in the past simply because they were women and some were "burned" in the process.

"There wasn't much thought put into the personality and the fit, and what people were trying to achieve," she said.

"Some of the women who came onto the boards felt they were there to represent women, and it was kind of like women against men.

"It should be a case of contributing skills and working together for the sport as a whole.

"You're not going to change something by adding one woman. You have to decide what you actually need."

A spokesman for ACT sports and women's minister Yvette Berry said 28 triennially funded peak bodies had been told they must have 40 per cent female representation on boards by 2020 to retain government funding.

When she announced the policy last year, Ms Berry said she wanted to challenge the pattern of girls stopping sport when they reach their teens.

"While the ACT performs relatively well on sports participation, there is a national decline when girls hit their teens and this can be exacerbated by facilities which aren't female friendly and sporting cultures not as focused on female achievement," she said.

The minister's spokesman said some sports had already met the target, including netball, gymnastics, softball and Little Athletics.

"Others are making positive steps while noting they have up to three years to implement the necessary processes to ensure future compliance," the spokesman said.

"Such processes include identifying appropriately skilled females for future board roles and implementing transitional arrangements for new board appointees."

Asked about the support provided, the spokesman said sporting organisations had been informed of the policy.

"Detail was included in their most recent funding process and associated sport liaison discussions," she said.

"Active Canberra will continue to engage and support sporting organisations as they progress the implementation of the policy.

"Active Canberra continues to make available important training in good governance for local sport and recreation organisations.

"This is primarily through free online training, with relevant components such as board skill assessment, succession planning and constitutional reform embedded within modules."

The spokesman said three years was long enough to ensure that women board members were appropriately skilled.