Democracy and the equal participation of men and women in the political arena are closely intertwined. No parliament or any decision-making body can claim to be representative without the participation of both men and women. As stated in the Universal Declaration on Democracy adopted by the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s Member Parliaments in 1997, "The achievement of democracy presupposes a genuine partnership between men and women in the conduct of the affairs of society in which they work in equality and complementarity, drawing mutual enrichment from their differences."
Recent years have seen a steady increase in the number of women in parliament, though the world average of less than 22 percent remains far from the goal of parity between women and men. The election of women to the highest positions of state and government in several countries has also contributed to the changing face of politics.
While the road to election is a difficult one, the challenges for women do not stop there. Once women enter parliament or other bodies, they are faced with many new challenges. Parliament is traditionally a male-oriented domain where the rules and practices have been written by men. It is, therefore, an ongoing challenge to transform parliament into a gender-sensitive environment, to ensure that actions are gender-sensitive and to guarantee that gender is mainstreamed throughout the legislature.
India ranks 148th in a list of 193 countries based on the percentage of elected women representatives in their national parliaments.
The in-person segment of the 13th Summit of Women Speakers of Parliament (13SWSP), convened by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), in close coop
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With less than a decade to go to 2030, the deadline for the Sustainable Development Goals, women constitute just 11% of MPs and 18% of councillors in Botswana: well below the gender parity target and among the lowest proportions in Southern Africa.
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Kathy Hochul will take Andrew M. Cuomo’s place as governor of New York State once his resignation goes into effect in 14 days.
It's no coincidence that a wave of Indigenous women have won leadership roles previously held only by men, say leaders and advocates.
Parliament's gender problem is as old as the institution itself.
Today on The Signal, a story of an alleged workplace assault in the 80s that's never been publicly heard before.
PETALING JAYA: A Young Women’s Parliament will be held next month, with 222 young delegates debating policies on women’s issues, gender equality, social issues and more in a bid to encourage more female participation in politics and policymaking.