Women's Leadership
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TOKYO -- Two strong, prominent female leaders have found themselves facing very different political futures in neighboring countries on the Bay of Bengal.
On Feb. 1, Myanmar marked the third anniversary of the military takeover that overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi, who led the civilian government as state counselor, was detained and has been convicted on myriad charges in what critics call sham trials. The country's democratic forces, shorn of the charismatic leader, are mired in an armed struggle with the army.
In Bangladesh, the ruling Awami League achieved a resounding victory in the general election on Jan. 7, which was boycotted by the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). The vote paved the way for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's fourth consecutive term and her fifth overall, making her the longest-serving female head of state in the world.
Click here to read the full article published by Nikkei Asia on 13 February 2024.
Image source: Nikkei Asia
The Women's Political Participation Program is committed to reshaping the narrative and reality of women's political engagement in the Arab region. At the heart of this initiative lies the belief that women's political participation is not just an aspect of gender equality, but a fundamental component of robust and resilient democracies. We view women's involvement in politics not merely as a matter of representation, but as a vital force in shaping public policy, governance, and the very fabric of political life.
Click here to read the full article published by the Arab Reform Initiative on 9 February 2024.
Image source: Arab Reform Initiative
In a sector where women are rarely seen at the forefront, 33-year-old Shoko Kawata made history by becoming Japan's youngest female city mayor when she was elected in Yawata, southern Kyoto Prefecture last year. Her victory was unexpected — but for some is a welcome change.
Despite having no direct ties to the city, Kawata successfully appealed to the almost 70,000 people residing in the city, backed by the support of three political parties. Previously, the record for youngest city mayor was held by Sawako Naito, who was 36 years old when she was elected as Tokushima’s mayor in 2020.
Click here to read the full article published by The Japan Times on 6 February 2024.
Source image: The Japan Times
Countries all throughout the world struggle with providing equal opportunities and positions in regards to women when compared to their male counterparts (Brennan & Elkink, 2015). The People’s Republic of China is not an exception to this trend. In order to combat gender inequality in politics, a quota for women cadres was introduced in 1995. This would ensure that at least one woman holds a head or deputy position in regional governments (Jiang et al, 2023). Despite this quota, women in China still struggle to participate in politics. This statement will be supported by these following arguments; (1) The society and culture in China view women as subordinate, thus lacking support and belief in women when in leadership and political positions, (2) The few women that do end up in positions in government struggle to receive prestigious promotions compared to their male counterparts; and finally (3) In order to attain these promotions these women need to outperform and display similar characteristics to their male colleagues in order to attain similar positions. This issue is important to understand in order to see whether mere gender quotas are sufficient in solving gender inequality in politics or are there other factors we as a society must willingly work to fix.
Click here to read the full article published by Modern Diplomacy on 6 February 2024.
Image source: Modern Diplomacy
This podcast series tells the stories of women as civil society actors, activists, authors, leaders, health and humanitarian workers, youth representatives, traders and entrepreneurs in the Sahel and West Africa. We gather first-hand examples of their outstanding work within local communities as well as their important contributions to advancing gender equality and positive change. These conversations also aim to better connect the Sahel and West Africa Club’s evidence-based analysis with civil society advocacy and action through dialogue and knowledge exchange.
Edith Efua Chidi is co-convener for the CSOs Cluster on Decentralisation and Participation. She is also the advocacy manager for SOS Children’s Village in Ghana.
Our host for this podcast episode is Dr Olajumoke (Jumo) Ayandele. She is a postdoctoral Research Fellow at New York University Centre for the study of Africa and the African Diaspora.
Click here to listen the podcast published by the OECD on 30 June 2023.
Image source: OECD/SWAC - Sahel and West Africa Club
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Click here to read the full article published by MINT on 23 January 2024.
Image by Mint
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