Partner News

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

The low representation of women in politics remains one of the most obvious obstacles preventing us from achieving gender equality in the world.

In the Republic of Moldova, a medium income country in Eastern Europe that ranks 50th in the most recent Gender Inequality Index, we want to increase the pace of change and ensure that more women are getting involved in elections as candidates, voters, and electoral staff.

In a context where gender inequality is constantly dismissed as a non-issue, we had to have data to back up our claims and push for change. So we partnered with the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and developed the first-ever national set of statistics related to the participation of women and men in elections.

To our surprise, the first thing we learned was that women in Moldova do get involved in politics.

At the local level, there is a massive representation of women in political parties and in electoral bodies. However, the higher the decision-making level we were looking at, the fewer women we could find. For example, even though membership rates in political parties for men and women are strikingly similar, only 2 out of 46 political parties in the country are headed by women.

This discrepancy is one of the reasons Moldova has recently adopted a 40 percent representation quota for women in governmental offices and on the electoral lists for local and parliamentary elections. But according to our data,this has not led to the expected increase in representation for women.

Quotas for women and men in decision-making positions are one of the most common ways of ensuring that women don’t have to face the glass ceiling when advancing in the ranks of political parties and that they have equal chances to be represented in governments and legislatures.

However, sometimes the provisions of quota legislation can be too weak to have an impact.

In Moldova, the recently adopted law does not make any specifications about the placement of women and men in the candidate lists. This omission may seem innocuous, but the reality is that women often find themselves relegated to the bottom of lists, with only one in five candidates at the top ­being a woman.

We believe that things can only be changed if the problem is acknowledged. To reach that point, three things must happen:

1. The electoral authority must acknowledge the problem and be cooperative in finding ways to fix it;
2. A complete electoral database must be set up to allow for continuous in-depth analysis of data and trends that could be used to redesign public policies and bridge gender gaps; and
3. Partnerships need to be established between the government, civil society, and international organizations like UNDP and UN Women to support the advancement of women in political and public life.

Only then will we be able to say we are moving towards a more equal world for women and men.

Source: UNDP

Tunisia’s Parliament has approved an amendment ensuring that women have greater representation in local politics. This amendment, which applies to both municipal and regional elections, includes a proposal for “horizontal and vertical” gender parity in Article 49 of the electoral law.

Horizontal parity requires that municipal election lists across Tunisia have equal number of both men and women, while vertical parity requires that men and women alternate within each list. Both were adopted by the Assembly of Representatives of the People (ARP), the Tunisian parliament, on 15 June 2016. Out of 134 representatives, 127 agreed to the new measure.

“The adoption of the new electoral law on parity aligns with the democratic path that the country has chosen to take,” said Bochra Belhaj Hamida, a parliamentarian and member of the Commission of Women, Family, Children, Youth and Seniors. “For the first time, 73 women parliamentarians, from different parties, backgrounds and political ideologies, voted unanimously and conducted their own lobbying in favour of the horizontal and vertical parity.”

UN Women joined forces with the advocacy efforts led by civil society for horizontal parity in local elections. On the eve of the plenary session in Parliament for this draft law, a specific session was held in partnership with the International Development Centre for Local Innovative Governance. Women parliamentarians presented arguments and evidence in favour of the adoption of horizontal and vertical parity.

According to the Gender Gap Report 2015, Tunisia is ranked 69th in terms of political empowerment out of 145 countries. Enshrining horizontal and vertical parity in the electoral law increases women’s chances of being elected in the upcoming local elections planned in March 2017, and will allow for better representation in municipal and regional councils. It constitutes significant progress towards inclusive government, equal opportunities and gender equality.

“Besides being a first in our region, the adoption of horizontal and vertical parity in electoral law is a timely achievement because it will guarantee effective participation of women in the upcoming decentralization process in Tunisia,” said Leila Rhiwi, UN Women Maghreb Representative.

In line with its efforts to support women’s leadership and political participation, in March 2016 UN Women initiated a project with parliamentarians in Tunisia that involved advocacy sessions around the legislative agenda, capacity building, networking and support for the implementation of the women’s caucus. This initiative, conducted with Members of Parliament, aims to improve the representation of women in both local and national politics. To date, four sessions have been held.

These efforts are in line with UN Women’s “Step It Up” initiative. At the Global Leaders' Meeting on 27 September 2015, Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid pledged to expand women’s ability to participate in politics and public affairs, saying: “Our experience in democratic transition recently is witness to the fact that women should be represented in all legislative bodies. Hence, we enhance women's ability to participate in politics and in public affairs. This is a commitment.”

Source: UN Women

Tunisia’s Parliament has approved an amendment ensuring that women have greater representation in local politics. This amendment, which applies to both municipal and regional elections, includes a proposal for “horizontal and vertical” gender parity in Article 49 of the electoral law.

Horizontal parity requires that municipal election lists across Tunisia have equal number of both men and women, while vertical parity requires that men and women alternate within each list. Both were adopted by the Assembly of Representatives of the People (ARP), the Tunisian parliament, on 15 June 2016. Out of 134 representatives, 127 agreed to the new measure.

“The adoption of the new electoral law on parity aligns with the democratic path that the country has chosen to take,” said Bochra Belhaj Hamida, a parliamentarian and member of the Commission of Women, Family, Children, Youth and Seniors. “For the first time, 73 women parliamentarians, from different parties, backgrounds and political ideologies, voted unanimously and conducted their own lobbying in favour of the horizontal and vertical parity.”

UN Women joined forces with the advocacy efforts led by civil society for horizontal parity in local elections. On the eve of the plenary session in Parliament for this draft law, a specific session was held in partnership with the International Development Centre for Local Innovative Governance. Women parliamentarians presented arguments and evidence in favour of the adoption of horizontal and vertical parity.

According to the Gender Gap Report 2015, Tunisia is ranked 69th in terms of political empowerment out of 145 countries. Enshrining horizontal and vertical parity in the electoral law increases women’s chances of being elected in the upcoming local elections planned in March 2017, and will allow for better representation in municipal and regional councils. It constitutes significant progress towards inclusive government, equal opportunities and gender equality.

“Besides being a first in our region, the adoption of horizontal and vertical parity in electoral law is a timely achievement because it will guarantee effective participation of women in the upcoming decentralization process in Tunisia,” said Leila Rhiwi, UN Women Maghreb Representative.

In line with its efforts to support women’s leadership and political participation, in March 2016 UN Women initiated a project with parliamentarians in Tunisia that involved advocacy sessions around the legislative agenda, capacity building, networking and support for the implementation of the women’s caucus. This initiative, conducted with Members of Parliament, aims to improve the representation of women in both local and national politics. To date, four sessions have been held.

These efforts are in line with UN Women’s “Step It Up” initiative. At the Global Leaders' Meeting on 27 September 2015, Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid pledged to expand women’s ability to participate in politics and public affairs, saying: “Our experience in democratic transition recently is witness to the fact that women should be represented in all legislative bodies. Hence, we enhance women's ability to participate in politics and in public affairs. This is a commitment.”

Source: UN Women

Tunisia’s Parliament has approved an amendment ensuring that women have greater representation in local politics. This amendment, which applies to both municipal and regional elections, includes a proposal for “horizontal and vertical” gender parity in Article 49 of the electoral law.

Horizontal parity requires that municipal election lists across Tunisia have equal number of both men and women, while vertical parity requires that men and women alternate within each list. Both were adopted by the Assembly of Representatives of the People (ARP), the Tunisian parliament, on 15 June 2016. Out of 134 representatives, 127 agreed to the new measure.

“The adoption of the new electoral law on parity aligns with the democratic path that the country has chosen to take,” said Bochra Belhaj Hamida, a parliamentarian and member of the Commission of Women, Family, Children, Youth and Seniors. “For the first time, 73 women parliamentarians, from different parties, backgrounds and political ideologies, voted unanimously and conducted their own lobbying in favour of the horizontal and vertical parity.”

UN Women joined forces with the advocacy efforts led by civil society for horizontal parity in local elections. On the eve of the plenary session in Parliament for this draft law, a specific session was held in partnership with the International Development Centre for Local Innovative Governance. Women parliamentarians presented arguments and evidence in favour of the adoption of horizontal and vertical parity.

According to the Gender Gap Report 2015, Tunisia is ranked 69th in terms of political empowerment out of 145 countries. Enshrining horizontal and vertical parity in the electoral law increases women’s chances of being elected in the upcoming local elections planned in March 2017, and will allow for better representation in municipal and regional councils. It constitutes significant progress towards inclusive government, equal opportunities and gender equality.

“Besides being a first in our region, the adoption of horizontal and vertical parity in electoral law is a timely achievement because it will guarantee effective participation of women in the upcoming decentralization process in Tunisia,” said Leila Rhiwi, UN Women Maghreb Representative.

In line with its efforts to support women’s leadership and political participation, in March 2016 UN Women initiated a project with parliamentarians in Tunisia that involved advocacy sessions around the legislative agenda, capacity building, networking and support for the implementation of the women’s caucus. This initiative, conducted with Members of Parliament, aims to improve the representation of women in both local and national politics. To date, four sessions have been held.

These efforts are in line with UN Women’s “Step It Up” initiative. At the Global Leaders' Meeting on 27 September 2015, Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid pledged to expand women’s ability to participate in politics and public affairs, saying: “Our experience in democratic transition recently is witness to the fact that women should be represented in all legislative bodies. Hence, we enhance women's ability to participate in politics and in public affairs. This is a commitment.”

Source: UN Women