women leaders

Remarks of Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Women Executive Director, at the UN Broadband Commission Working Group on Gender, New York, 20 September 2013.

We invite our users to read the complete speech here

The four female incumbents in the field of about 30 governors seeking reelection in November 2014 are doing something considered incumbent upon any female executive who wants her job back: playing up their accomplishments. The quartet includes three Republicans: New Mexico's Susana Martinez, Oklahoma's Mary Fallin and South Carolina's Nikki Haley. The lone Democrat is New Hampshire's Maggie Hassan. All are emphasizing their ability to get things done as evidence of why they deserve to be reelected to second terms next year.

I have a story in this week’s magazine about the 20 Senate women and their growing—and positive—influence on the Upper Chamber. You can credit the tight, bipartisan bonds that these women have formed for not only seeding the compromise that reopened the government, but the vast majority of the legislation passed this session.

With the federal government at shutdown's door, the 20 female Senate members are setting new standards for civility and bipartisanship. Look out, old boys' club.

One evening, in a conversation with a group of impressive Afghan women activists in Kabul, the first participant started the conversation by making a simple but profound statement. She said, “Stop looking at us as victims, and look at us as the leaders that we are.” She was right. All too often when we look at women struggling for their rights in Afghanistan, we see them solely as victims. To be sure, many have been victimized, but they are also on the front lines of progress, working to create a better future for their country.

Filing a nomination to stand in next year’s Afghan presidential elections is, unless you happen to be one of the ‘chosen few’ backed by your personal ‘private army’, akin to signing your own death warrant. And when the person who files, a complete unknown in political circles, happens to be a woman, then she really is putting her life on the line.

Chilean presidential candidate for the ruling party Evelyn Matthei was the target of her competitors’ criticism during a televised debate in which she brushed aside hopefuls’ aspirations arguing that it was obvious that the race was between her and Michelle Bachelet, who did not participate.

The debate caused a storm in Chilean politics, with Matthei crossing accusations with independent candidate Franco Parisi and Bachelet saying that “debates are for presenting serious proposals and not just any proposal.”