Advocacy & Lobbying

Advocacy and lobbying are effective tools for gender advocates, male champions, civil society, and other stakeholders to hold leaders accountable to their commitments on concrete, measurable actions that guarantee women can fully and equally enjoy their rights. These include the ability to exercise freedom and choices, go to school, live free from violence, earn equal pay for equal work, and meaningfully engage in decision-making and political processes. Advocacy groups can collectively put pressure their leaders for legislative reforms to protect and promote women’s rights and concerns, which may require coalition-building, fundraising, civic education, awareness-raising and consensus-building on key issue platforms. Influencing legislation itself may require lobbying to convince policy makers and legislators to address specific issues relevant to gender equality and women’s empowerment, which may involve introducing or revising legislation and policy.

News

19.03.2025

AU Strategy for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment

19.03.2025

AU Strategy for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment

A summary

The African Union strategy on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) 2018-2028 which was launched during the AU Summit February 2019 is based on an inclusive and multisectoral approach and builds on the lessons learned from the 2009 gender policy. It is transformational in that its outcomes aim to mitigate, if not eliminate the major constraints hindering gender equality and women’s empowerment, so that women and girls may participate fully in economic activities, political affairs and social endeavours.

The GEWE Strategy is a framework document to strengthen women’s agency in Africa and ensure that women’s voices are amplified and their concerns are fully addressed through, among others, effective implementation of legislation and proper financing of gender equality work. It is a guiding document on the implementation of the AU’s GEWE commitments and is to be used to design transformational programmes that bring results for African women and girls on the continent and in the diaspora.

The strategy has four pillars and each pillar outlines outcomes and proposed activities that should be implemented in furtherance of that specific pillar.

Pillar 1 focuses on maximising opportunities, outcomes and e-tech dividends. It recognises, amongst others, that for women to be economically empowered, and to be able to effectively contribute to sustainable development, they must have access to quality education and control over productive resources. The GEWE strategy proposes to mount a continental campaign to declare “illiteracy a harmful traditional practice and make “out of school” a punishable offence; and to advocate for and lobby e-Tech firms and financial institutions to fund start-ups and innovation hubs which promote gendered solutions and increase women and girls’ equal and effective participation in the technology space.
Pillar 2 focuses on dignity, security, and resilience and recognises that the rights of women and girls to dignity, security and bodily and psychological integrity are often compromised when women are subjected to violence and violations, which often times happen in the context of violence against women and harmful traditional practices such as early-child marriage and female genital mutilation. The GEWE Strategy proposes to implement AU guidelines on Ending Violence against Women and Girls (VAWG) and fund national projects to penalise VAWG.
Pillar 3 highlights the need for effective laws, policies and institutions. Whereas Africa has made progress in progressive laws and policies and institutions to promote and protect women’s rights, there is still a huge deficit when it comes to effective implementation and gender machineries remain among the weakest public institutions at a time when they are needed the most to push the gender agenda forward. The GEWE Strategy proposes to design and implement a new initiative called “All for Maputo Protocol Programme”, which will support the full and universal ratification, domestication and implementation of the Maputo Protocol.
Pillar 4 focuses on leadership, voice and visibility. This pillar recognises that for women to have a voice, they need to be equally represented in all areas of decision-making and be able to participate with impact, through the removal of all forms of barriers. The strategy proposes to integrate gender in the rewriting of the African narrative. The former AUC Chairperson, H.E Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, once said, “If we don’t put women in history books, they get edited out of history”. WGDD has also prioritised knowledge development and management and will be publishing a number of products: among others, A State of Women’s Rights report in Africa, A Historic African women’s booklet documenting the stories of the African women who gallantly fought in African liberation struggles.

Reah here the full article published by the African Union on 19 March 2025.

Image by African Union

19.03.2025

Iran: Authorities target women’s rights activists with arbitrary arrest, flogging and death penalty

19.03.2025

Iran: Authorities target women’s rights activists with arbitrary arrest, flogging and death penalty

Iranian authorities have escalated their crackdown on women’s rights defenders, journalists, singers and other activists demanding equality or who defy compulsory veiling using arbitrary detention, unjust prosecution, flogging, and even the death penalty in a bid to quash Iran’s women’s rights movement, Amnesty International said today.

Since International Women’s Day (IWD) on 8 March, the Iranian authorities have arbitrarily arrested at least five women’s rights activists. These arrests come amid an intensified crackdown that has included summoning women’s rights activists and journalists for interrogation, and arresting women singers for performing without the mandatory hijab while shutting down their social media accounts. In the lead up to IWD, the authorities flogged a male singer 74 times for performing a protest song against Iran’s discriminatory compulsory veiling laws and, in February 2025, sentenced a women’s rights activist to death.

“In the wake of the Woman Life Freedom uprising of 2022, the Iranian authorities consider the widespread defiance of women and girls demanding their rights as an existential threat to the political and security establishment. Instead of addressing systemic discrimination and violence against women and girls, they are attempting to crush Iran’s women’s rights movement,” said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa Regional Office.

“Ahead of a key UN Human Rights Council session tomorrow to deliver findings on the human rights situation in Iran, and in the context of the Council’s ongoing negotiations to extend the mandates of the Special Rapporteur on Iran and the UN Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, the international community must stand up against impunity and for the rights of women and girls in the country.

Read here the full article published by Amnesty International on 17 March 2025.

Image by Amnesty International

11.03.2025

Confronting backlash against women’s rights, 193 nations commit to speed action on gender equality

11.03.2025

Confronting backlash against women’s rights, 193 nations commit to speed action on gender equality

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Confronting a rising backlash against women’s rights, the U.N.’s 193 member nations made a commitment Monday to accelerate action on more than a dozen fronts to achieve gender equality.

A political declaration adopted at the start of the annual meeting of the U.N.’s preeminent body promoting equality for women and girls recognizes that men and boys must be “strategic partners and allies” to achieve the goal.

The declaration — approved by consensus and a bang of the gavel by the chair of the Commission on the Status of Women — coincides with the 30th anniversary of the Beijing women’s conference where the world’s nations adopted a 150-page roadmap to achieve gender equality.

While it recognizes progress toward implementing the Beijing platform, the declaration also recognizes that after 30 years no country has achieved gender equality and that progress has been “slow and uneven,” with major gaps and obstacles to overcome.

A report released last week by UN Women, the agency focused on empowering women, found that nearly one-quarter of governments worldwide reported a backlash against women’s rights in 2024. Its policy and program director, Sarah Hendriks, told a news conference the number of countries reporting a backlash is likely underreported and reflects “an increasingly hostile environment.”

Read here the full article published by AP News on 10 March 2025.

Image by AP News

07.03.2025

International IDEA at the CSW69 / Beijing+30

07.03.2025

International IDEA at the CSW69 / Beijing+30

In 2025, the global community will mark the 30th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and the unanimous adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. In celebration of this milestone, the sixty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69), taking place at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 10-21 March, will bring together representatives of Member States, UN entities, ECOSOC-accredited non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and other stakeholders from all regions of the world to discuss the implementation of the Beijing Declaration of 1995.

Coinciding with International IDEA’s 30th anniversary and its year-long #DemocracyForAll digital advocacy campaign, this milestone reaffirms the commitments made in 1995 that women's equal participation in decision-making, alongside equal rights, opportunities, and access to resources, is essential for democracy, peace, and human rights, ensuring a just society that protects the interests of all.

At #CSW69, International IDEA will advocate—through statements, analysis, and events—for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls as essential to vibrant and inclusive democracies.

Analysis

Beijing+30: Will it take another 30 years for gender equality?

At the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, 189 countries adopted the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA), outlining 12 critical areas of concern for gender equality and women’s empowerment, including violence against women, armed conflicts, women's participation in decision-making, and the protection of their human rights. At that time, member states were convinced that the achievement of equality, development, and peace was connected to women’s empowerment and their full participation in society, including in political decision-making. Countries also believed that equal rights, opportunities, and access to power and resources for women were crucial to the consolidation of democracy more broadly.

Beijing+30: Taking Stock of Progress on Gender Equality Using the Global State of Democracy Indices

The Beijing Declaration in 1995 recognized that gender equality is essential to democracy. Yet, 30 years after, progress remains uneven and at risk, with backlash against gender equality, and democratic values threatening hard-won gains. Drawing on International IDEA’s Global State of Democracy Indices, this article explores advances, setbacks, and gaps in women's political participation since 1995. As threats to gender equality and democracy grow, the CSW 2025 Political Declaration must reaffirm that women’s equal participation in decision-making is fundamental to democracy—and that both must be protected.

Check here the full list of event where International IDEA is involved.

10.02.2025

A Call for Inclusive Governance in Fiji

10.02.2025

A Call for Inclusive Governance in Fiji

The National Forum on Women in Politics brought together diverse voices to explore how Temporary Special Measures (TSMs) can foster inclusive governance in Fiji.

The event featured insights from Leena Rikkilä Tamang, Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific at International IDEA; Honorable Lenora Qereqeretabua, Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Deputy Speaker of Parliament; and Dr Kerryn Baker, a Fellow at the Department of Pacific Affairs at the Australian National University, who provided a research-based perspective on women's political participation in the Pacific.

Leena opened the discussion by giving examples of special measures.

"Gender quotas come in different forms, as do the political and electoral systems in which they are implemented,” she said.

Read here the full article published by International IDEA on 7 February 2025.

31.01.2025

Papua New Guinea: Yombon urges women to participate in PNG Politics

31.01.2025

Papua New Guinea: Yombon urges women to participate in PNG Politics

Bradley Yombon, the Papua New Guinea Pacific regional Representative for the Commonwealth Students Association, has called on women in the country to actively participate in politics.

Yombon, who also holds positions as Patron for the University of Papua New Guinea Cancer Association, PNG Ambassador for Global Leadership Dentistry & Sciences, UNESCO Higher Education Youth Advisor, and International Relations Coordinator for PNG National Volunteer Services, emphasized the need for greater female representation in PNG’s political landscape.

During a youth meeting with UN Women Regional Director for Asia Pacific, Her Excellency Christine Arab, Yombon highlighted the historical underrepresentation of women in PNG politics.

Read here the full article published by Post Courrier on 30 January 2025.

Image by Post Courier

15.01.2025

The most affected by terrorism, women seek space in the reconstruction of Niger: 'Villages should live in peace'

15.01.2025

The most affected by terrorism, women seek space in the reconstruction of Niger: 'Villages should live in peace'

Women have always been at the forefront of people’s struggles in Niger. The example of Saraounia Mangou is emblematic and became a film. In the 1890s, while most of the chiefs of the West African country were submitting to colonial power, the chief and priestess of the Hausa people led the fight against the French troops of the Voulet-Chanoine colonial mission, also called the Central African-Chad Mission.

More than a century later, history has repeated itself. If that overthrew former president Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, 2023, women also took to the streets of the capital Niamey and played a leading role in expelling the 1,500 French soldiers from the country.

This is what Hassia Issa, a member of the NGO Millennium Africa, which works for the rights of Nigerien women, explains. “From the beginning to the end, women were involved in patriotic participation and Niger participation. They mobilized to hold meetings. They mobilized to take care of various points that were blocked,” she says.

Read here the full article published by Brasil de Fato on 10 January 2025.

Image by Brasil de Fato

09.01.2025

Increasing Women's Political Participation in Baluchistan

09.01.2025

Increasing Women's Political Participation in Baluchistan

The Youth Association for Development (YAD), Quetta, Pakistan, has completed a transformative initiative titled "Women’s Participation in Elections, Politics, Leadership, Democracy in Pakistan". This project aims to enhance women's political participation in Quetta, Baluchistan, a region known for its male-dominated social and political landscape.

The project focuses on supporting women as voters, and candidates—as well as their collective voices—by intertwining their aspirations with artistic expressions and institutional reforms. Through creative outlets such as radio broadcasts, theater performances, and art exhibitions, the initiative seeks to amplify women's voices and foster greater engagement in democratic processes, particularly in the country’s 2024 elections.

What sets this project apart is its innovative use of artistic and cultural platforms to challenge societal norms and raise awareness about gender inequality in political participation. By organizing women through Women Empowerment and Political Participation Groups (WEPPGs) and Democracy Action Groups (DAGs) and engaging them in creative activities, the project brings women’s political issues to the forefront in non-traditional ways.

Read here the full article published by Uthe UN News on 26 December 2024.

Image UN News

29.11.2024

UNDP brings together women parliamentarians to advance gender equality in Papua New Guinean politics

29.11.2024

UNDP brings together women parliamentarians to advance gender equality in Papua New Guinean politics

On 25 November 2024, women members of the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea and the Bougainville House of Representatives gathered in Port Moresby for the second stakeholder consultation of the Joint Parliamentary Women’s Caucus this year.

The occasion, which was facilitated by UNDP with the support of the Australian Government, brought together policymakers, civil society representatives, private sector leaders, and international organizations to devise strategies for implementing policy reforms and systemic changes to promote women’s representation in politics and leadership roles in Papua New Guinea.

"This consultation is a crucial step in amplifying the voices of women leaders and encouraging collaboration across Papua New Guinea and Bougainville. It provides an inclusive platform to address pressing issues, share perspectives, and drive solutions that reflect our diverse needs. Through this dialogue, we reaffirm our commitment to advancing gender equality and empowering women in leadership,’’ stated Gov. Rufina Peter, the Co-Chair of the Joint Parliamentary Women Caucus and Governor of Central Province in her remarks to the participants.

Read here the full article published by UNDP on 27 November 2024.