Women's Leadership
Despite the narrative that women in the north are not as ‘active’ in frontline politics as women from other regions of the country, there are many examples that dispel that notion. In three of the last four general elections, there has been at least a prominent gubernatorial bid by a woman in a northern state.
In 2011, after serving as the first northern female deputy governor, Pauline Tallen contested the Plateau state governorship election as a member of the Labour Party and finished second behind her boss, Jonah Jang. In 2015, Aisha Alhassan, popularly known as Mama Taraba, sought to get elected in Taraba and similarly finished second. However, her bid was closely followed because she was a candidate of the eventual ruling All Progressives Congress and had been declared winner by a court injunction – the first such announcement.
Click here to read the full article published by The Centre for Democracy & Development (CDD-West Africa) on 10 May 2023.
The growth in the number of female leaders has plateaued around the world, while representation in national parliaments remains static
On a recent speaking tour in Australia, Barack Obama offered up his idea on how to turn the tide on more than a decade of democratic erosion, to steer the world on to a path of sustainability and peace.
“I am actually convinced that if we could try an experiment in which every country on Earth was run by women for just two years … I am confident the world would tilt in a better direction.”
Obama’s interviewer – former Australian foreign minister Julie Bishop – replied saying female leaders would only need six months. Data, however, shows that even the far more modest goal of gender parity in global leadership remains distant.
Fewer than a third of the UN’s 193 member states have ever had a female leader*, and while the last two decades have seen a huge proportional rise in the number of women at the top of global politics, the actual numbers remain incredibly low.
Click here to read the full article published by The Guardian on 5 April 2023.
The top three countries with the happiest populations were led by women, the latest World Happiness Report has revealed.
Finland, led by Prime Mininster Sanna Marin, was crowned as the happiest population in the world. The Scandinavian country of 5.5 million has topped the world for six years, according to the standards laid out by the report, which was released earlier this week in conjunction with International Day of Happiness — a UN initiative that commenced in July 2012 to promote the global “pursuit of happiness is a fundamental human goal.”
Coming in second place was Denmark, whose Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has served as leader since June 2019. Third place went to yet another Scandinavian country — Iceland, whose Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir has been in the role since 2017.
Other top-ranking countries led by women include Sweden (ranked sixth) with Magdalena Andersson serving as Prime Minister from November 2021 to October 2022, New Zealand (ranked 10th) with Jacinda Ardern, who stepped down from the role earlier this year, and Lithuania (ranked 20th) with Ingrida Šimonytė, Prime Minister of Lithuania since December 2020.
Click here to read the full article published by Women’s Agenda on 21 March 2023.
During the Summit for Democracy Year of Action, the S4D cohort on Gender Equality as a Prerequisite for Democracy identified recommendations for strengthening democracy by promoting gender equality, Statement and Roadmap of recommendations. The co-leads of the gender cohort – Sweden, Romania, Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and International IDEA encourage governments and civil society to consider the recommendations and proposed actions.
The Gender Cohort strongly supports the themes for the Regional Summits for Democracy 2023. The regional themes have a critical link to gender equality and democracy nexus and the Gender Cohort has developed specific briefs on gender for each theme: Youth; Anti-Corruption; Free, Fair and Transparent Elections; Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) and Media Freedom.
Statement and Roadmap of Recommendations
The recommendations and proposed actions were identified in consultation with the cohort consisting of over 100 representatives of governments and civil society from all regions of the world. Governments and civil society are encouraged to consider the recommendations as tools for strengthening democracy by promoting gender equality. The recommendations focus on three pillars: inclusion; legislative and policy frameworks; and conflict prevention, peace and security. Each thematic pillar is fundamental for gender equality in democracy processes.
Read the statement of recommendations >>
Read the roadmap of recommendations >>
Briefs of the Democracy Cohort on Gender Equality
Gender equality is fundamental to the electoral process because it enables women—as voters, candidates and elected officials—to influence public policy and advocate for their interests. However, women face significant obstacles to political participation, including the use of targeted gender-based violence and intimidation meant to discourage them from running for office or exercising their political rights. Challenges and risks are even greater for women from historically marginalized communities. Additionally, women are less likely to be recruited and selected as candidates, are less likely to have equal access to campaign funds and face greater challenges to proportional representation.
Summit for Democracy Cohort on Gender Equality as a Prerequisite for Democracy Anti-Corruption
Corruption undermines democracy and justice because it impedes the ability of the public to benefit fully from government institutions. Combating corruption requires a gender perspective in order to gain a full understanding of its scope and impact. Women have unique (but not uniform) approaches to anti-corruption and are also impacted differently by corruption which drives inequalities and undermines opportunities for healthy democracies.
Summit for Democracy Cohort on Gender Equality as a Prerequisite for Democracy Youth
Youth are the leaders of the future. Yet, people under the age of 35 are rarely found in formal political leadership positions, with fewer women than men in these roles.2 Research by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) found that out of 2.2 per cent of parliamentarians under the age of 30, less than 1 per cent are young women. The marginalization of youth—including young women— from politics leads to missed opportunities to strengthen democracy-building processes and institutions. Gender equality as a prerequisite for democracy requires tailored efforts to engage both young women and men. Barriers to the inclusion of youth in politics must be addressed, including gendered forms of discrimination and violence.
ICTs have the potential to close gender gaps in women’s political participation. They can serve as tools for women to influence policy agendas, increase women’s access to campaign resources, strengthen networks of solidarity, and increase women’s representation in democratic agendas and processes. With social media, blogs, podcasts and promotional videos, women have bypassed traditional media outlets, such as TV and radio, to elevate their profile directly and access political decision-making.
Summit for Democracy Cohort on Gender Equality as a Prerequisite for Democracy Media Freedom
Media freedom and the safety of women journalists are fundamental to the strength of democratic processes and institutions. Yet, women are not equally represented in the media. A 2020 study of the news media in the UK, US, Kenya, India, South Africa and Nigeria found that women comprised only 15–30 percent of the subjects of news reports.
As revealed by International IDEA's recent research, in many countries worldwide, women who serve as electoral officials face numerous challenges in the online space that threaten their mental well-being and physical and online safety. From devaluation of work to being falsely accused of electoral fraud, and from sexual objectification to death threats, these women are massively subjected to gender-based disinformation and a wide range of other profoundly harmful behaviors in the online space.
“I was warned ahead of time that I would become the target of these attacks as a woman chair of the electoral body. The expectation was that since I am a woman, I am not strong enough and I’ll decide to resign.”
The issue is rooted in the larger problem of gender inequality in the political and electoral spheres. Previous research by International IDEA shows that only 22 per cent of the electoral management bodies (EMBs) across the world are being led by women. Women are vastly underrepresented in positions of power and are often portrayed as incapable of fulfilling these roles, perpetuating gender stereotypes and biases. This not only limits women's opportunities for leadership in electoral management but also reinforces harmful gender-based practices, including discrimination, harassment and gender-based disinformation campaigns. Such attacks can silence women’s voices and discourage them from meaningfully participating in social and political life.
Click here to read the full article published by International IDEA on 7 March 2023.
Filipino women are progressively breaking down barriers and assuming leadership roles as public officials in a variety of disciplines and making substantial contributions to society.
Being at the forefront of driving change and leading development—from government officials to community leaders—women involved in governance offer a distinct viewpoint to the table and frequently bat for measures that promote gender equality and social justice.
Click here to read the full article published by Philippine Information Agency on 11 March 2023.