Women's Leadership

Ten years of war have severely weakened political life, undermining its role as a peaceful foundation for society in Yemen. CMI is supporting the country’s political parties in restoring their standing, with a strong emphasis on empowering women as a crucial step toward lasting peace. During a workshop held in Amman, Jordan, in November 2024, politicians shared their perspectives on how to strengthen women’s role in politics.

“The first obstacle to women’s participation in politics in Yemen is that their roles are restricted to traditional expectations. We rarely see women involved in critical and sensitive departments within political parties. For instance, women hardly ever work in political or economic departments, and they rarely participate in military or diplomatic matters. This means women are often unaware of or uneducated about these issues.”

Read here the full article published by CMI – Martti Ahtisaari Peace Foundation on 16 January 2025.

Image by CMI – Martti Ahtisaari Peace Foundation

This year, 18 of Africa’s 54 countries went to the polls for presidential or general elections, making 2024 a significant year on the continent. There were high hopes for renewed commitment to fair governance, transparency and equal representation. In particular there were hopes for women’s political participation, for more women to be elected to office to shape policies that address the needs of all citizens.

For more than a decade, we at the human rights organisation Make Every Woman Count (MEWC) have been tracking women’s political participation across Africa. Unfortunately, we did not see the progress we hoped for this year. In 2014, there were three women serving as heads of state across Africa. In 2024, there were two: the president of Tanzania, Samia Suluhu Hassan, and Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, who became Namibia’s first female president-elect on 3 December; the result is being contested in court. Nandi-Ndaitwah was the sole woman among 15 candidates, underscoring the persistent gender disparity in contests for high office.

Ghana also made history by electing Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang as its first female vice-president.

Read here the full article published by The Guardian on 31 December 2024.

Image by The Guardian

Claudia Sheinbaum’s election as Mexico’s president has captured global attention for several reasons. Mexico is the world’s 12th largest economy. Sheinbaum secured a decisive victory, garnering nearly 60% of the vote; she is the first woman to assume the presidency in over 200 years of Mexican independence—all within the context of a deep national crisis of gender-based violence. 

In recent decades, the world has seen a rise of women to power, with gender quota laws in Latin America and 13 of the world’s 20 largest economies having witnessed female leaders. Although Sheinbaum was not Mexico’s first female presidential candidate, her presidency has sparked diverse reactions in Mexico, ranging from unfortunate instances of sexism to critical feminist perspectives, as well as the enthusiastic support of younger generations and women’s organizations who see Sheinbaum´s rise to power as a moment of direct representation in government. 

Although the presence of a woman in leadership does not automatically ensure positive change, empirical evidence underscores the broader impact of having more women in public decision-making roles. This shift is associated with higher economic growth, improved gender equality, and greater social investment in education, healthcare, and environmental protection. 

Read here the full article publsihed by the Wilson Center on 13 December 2024.

Image by Wilson Center

Significant and, arguably, profound changes took place in Baltic high politics over the past four years. The peak pandemic years — 2020 and 2021 — proved quite pivotal for both Lithuania and Estonia, as both saw the emergence of the first most gender-balanced cabinets in the history of these countries, with Latvia following in 2022. The Estonian parliament elected the first woman prime minister, Kaja Kallas, whose cabinet had the largest number of women ministers. For almost a year, Estonia’s top political positions — the presidency and prime ministership — were held by two women, making Estonia the only parliamentary democracy ruled by elected women. Meanwhile, the Lithuanian prime minister, Ingrida Šimonytė, was the second woman to hold this position. Unlike her predecessor, Danutė Prunskienė, who served as the first woman prime minister of Lithuania more than 30 years ago (1990-1991) and was the only woman in her all-male cabinet, Šimonytė’s cabinet was the most gender-balanced in the modern history of the country. With the election of Evika Siliņa in September 2023 as Latvia’s prime minister, all three Baltic prime ministerships were held by women for about ten months — a historical first in the Baltic states’ politics.

Read here the full article published by the Foreign Policy Research Institute on 19 December 2024.

Image by Foreign Policy Research Institute

Ghana made history when the National Democratic Congress (NDC) nominated Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang as the running mate to former President John Dramani Mahama for the 2020 general elections. Her nomination marked a significant milestone in Ghanaian politics, as she became the first female to run for vice presidency on a major party ticket. This bold move by the NDC proves a progressive shift towards gender inclusion and amplified discussions around women's representation in governance.

Nomination by the NDC

The selection of Professor Opoku-Agyemang was met with widespread praise from various quarters of society. As a former Minister of Education and an accomplished academic, her nomination was seen as a strategic and progressive decision by the NDC. John Mahama, in his announcement, highlighted her integrity, leadership, and commitment to national development as key reasons for her selection. The party’s decision to choose a woman of her caliber sent a strong signal about its commitment to promoting gender equality and diversifying leadership.

Read here the full article published by My Joy Online on 9 January 2025.

Image by My Joy Online

MOST often during political elections in Tanzania and across the world, women face a number of gender-based barriers to leadership, something which contributes to their defeat.

Recently, the Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP) in collaboration with the Coady International Institute brought together a number of women who vied for different leadership positions in last year’s civic polls.

On November 27th, 2024 Tanzanians voted for their leaders at local government level whereas posts being vied for included 12,280 village chairpersons, 4,264 street chairpersons, 63,886 hamlet chairpersons, 230,834 village council members and 21,320 street committee members.

The facilitator of a two-day training on psycho-social support, Mayasa Kalinga mentioned several factors which contributes to women being defeated in elections including gender inequality, harassment, psychological torture, cultural norms and stereotypes.

Traditional beliefs often prioritize male leadership, placing women primarily in domestic roles. This perspective limits women's opportunities in leadership positions.

Read here the full article published by IPP Media on 8 January 2025.

Image by IPP Media