The current reform processes in Sudan afford important opportunities to support and bolster women’s political participation. States emerging from conflict or transitional offer important for the inclusion of a gender perspective in the establishment of new institutions and in policy development. Different entry points to support women exist. Women as candidates Women candidates for election can be supported in several ways. In terms of entry points, some of the following can be identified: • Provision of information on the legal framework, electoral laws and how the quota for women works in practice; • The pool of potential women candidates needs to be broadened. As women typically have less access to moneyed and political networks, they may require skills enhancement. This may be provided by training in different areas such as in fundraising and how to run an effective political campaign, and confidence building. • Political parties need to be targeted to ensure that they: o Seek out women candidates and promote their candidacies o Comply with the quota law, which will require that 25 percent of the seats in legislatures are held by women o Have women in all decision-making structures of the party, including in candidate nomination at local and national levels Women as voters Regarding women’s participation as voters, it would be useful to consult the UN Handbook on DPKO/DFS–DPA Joint Guidelines on Enhancing the Role of Women in Post-conflict Electoral Processes (2007), which can be accessed on the ACE website . Another useful resource is the OSAGI, Women and Elections: Guide to promoting the participation of women in elections (2004), available on the Eldis Website. The guides comprehensively cover every aspect of women’s participation in the electoral process, and provide suggestions of methods to ensure that the process is gender sensitive, such as: ensuring women are registered for election and can participate effectively in the polling process; that women are adequately informed about polling procedures and have information about candidates and political parties; and that women are not intimidated during the voting process. These activities could be more easily acted upon if the electoral management body adopts a gender policy or plan to facilitate women’s participation in elections. Julie Ballington Program Officer for Partnership between Men and Women, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).