Partner News

Throughout her impressive career, Barbara Mikulski, the senior U.S. senator from Maryland, has been one of the fiercest advocates in Congress for the advancement of women and girls. So much so that, over her 30 years representing Maryland in the Senate, Mikulski has assumed the unofficial title of “Dean of Women,” acting as a mentor to newly elected female senators, Democrats and Republicans alike. On May 12, Mikulski will give special remarks at NDI’s annualMadeleine K.

Nearly 30 members of Niger’s national assembly discussed the relationship between gender and Islam during a one-day forum organized by NDI in Sadoré (40 km from Niamey, the capital of Niger) on March 7. Their objective  was to familiarize members of parliament (MPs) with the different schools of thought that exist within Islam on themes connected to gender, human rights and education.

UNDP has been providing training to 25 aspiring women, offering information on advocacy and lobbying tools, and also a chance to network. 

To listen to Julie Bukikkun, UNDP Assistant Representative for Governance in UNDP PNG Country Office, speaking on ABC Radio Australia about how and why women should be more involved in leadership and policy-making please click here.

UN Women together with the European Commission, the Belgian Development Cooperation, and UNRIC is organizing a Comic and Cartoon Competition on Gender Equality.

The UN Commission on the Status of Women concluded its 59th annual session today with an agreement by UN Member States on steps to boost its efforts to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Glancing around the room, it seemed that the Feb. 24 event that NDI’s Gender, Women and Democracy (GWD) team put on had a great turnout. About 60 people from the federal government, academic institutions, multilateral organizations and NGOs were present. Despite the impressive attendance, one startling detail caught my attention as everyone took their seats: nearly everyone was a woman – there was one man on the panel and only two male guests in the audience. This, to me, spoke volumes about the state of the movement for women’s empowerment and gender equality.

Sahanan thought her chance of being elected to the Lampung Provincial Parliament in Indonesia on last year’s parliamentary poll was next to none. 

Tina Chadarsi, jostling for a district parliamentary seat in Gunung Kidul, Yogyakarta, had similar misgivings.  They were running against at least dozens of other candidates from 12 political parties. “As a housewife, I was really pessimistic that could be elected,” Sahanan said.

In many countries around the world, citizens have embraced social media and new technology more rapidly than legislatures—which are, by their nature, often tradition-bound institutions. Helping elected leaders rethink approaches to citizen engagement in the digital age was a central theme of a 10-day parliamentary exchange on “Leadership in the Digital Economy” co-organized by NDI.

The fifty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women will take place at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 9 to 20 March 2015. Representatives of Member States , UN entities, and ECOSOC-accredited non-governmental organizations (NGOs)  from all regions of the world attend the session.

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