The African continent has achieved major milestones in women’s participation in political decision making during the past decade, the African Union (AU) Commission has said.

“Throughout the decade, considerable progress was made in translating commitments into measurable action as most African countries took giant steps to elevate the status of women through legal and constitutional means, institutional gender mechanisms as well as creating conducive environments for women to realize their potential,” the AU said in a statement issued over the weekend.

On 12 August, International Youth Day 2020, the IPU celebrates the 10th anniversary of its resolution, Youth participation in the democratic process.

Identifying obstacles and focusing on long-term solutions to propose strategies for equal representation

Former minister Dasho Dorji Choden, the first female minister, addresses the challenges Bhutanese women politicians face before her fellow participants during the Bhutan Women Parliamentary Caucus orientation workshop held in Paro in November 2019.

Creating women’s wings within political parties allows women greater influence over policymaking

Nang Tin Shwe Oo is a member of the Pa’O National Organization (PNO), an ethnic political party from the Pa’O region in Myanmar’s Shan State. The PNO is one of 41 political parties in the country that has created a women’s wing with support and training through the European Union-funded ‘Support to Electoral Processes and Democracy (STEP Democracy)’ programme in Myanmar.