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Empowering Women for Stronger Political Parties

How women participate in political parties – and how those parties encourage and nurture women’s involvement and incorporate gender-equality issues – are key determinants of women’s political empowerment. They are also key to ensuring gender-equality issues are addressed in the wider society. If strategies to promote women’s involvement in the political process are to be effective, they should be linked to steps parties can take across the specific phases of the electoral cycle – the preelectoral, electoral and post-electoral phases – and to the organization and financing of the parties themselves. 
 
The most effective strategies to increase women’s participation in political parties combine reforms to political institutions with targeted support to women party activists within and outside party structures, women candidates and elected officials. These strategies require the cooperation of a variety of actors and political parties from across the political spectrum.
 
The Guide identifies targeted interventions that political parties can take to empower women. It is structured according to four phases, following an electoral cycle approach.

Democracy With Women, For Women

This publication presents an overview and brief analysis of the first round of grants issued
by the UN Democracy Fund (UNDEF) in partnership with the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). Both organizations are engaged in advancing gender equality and democratic governance around the world. The following pages probe, in a concise fashion, what was achieved through seven grants to improve women’s political participation in a diverse set of countries and regions.

A series of project profiles, drawn from reports and independent evaluations, summarizes objectives and activities, results, challenges, lessons and ideas for future work. Collectively and individually, the profiles shed light on effective strategies in implementing gender and governance programmes. This information may be useful for people carrying out or funding similar initiatives, or for gender advocates, governance specialists and researchers interested in a concise overview of recent experiences illustrating advancements in women’s political participation.

Since 2006, UNDEF has provided grants to strengthen democratic governance in over 100 countries. UNIFEM works with about 10 percent of UNDEF projects to inject its long-standing expertise in gender equality and governance. While all UNDEF projects contribute to realizing gender equality goals, UNIFEM puts deliberate emphasis on ensuring that women have an equal voice in all aspects of governance, peace and security and public decision-making. Globally, progress towards a gender balance in politics is being made, but the pace of change is slow, and the number of women in political offices remains low.

In 2006, the first round of UNDEF proposals awarded $36 million to 125 projects. Grant awards ranged from $50,000 to $500,000. UNIFEM assisted 10 projects in Argentina, Cambodia, Ecuador, Haiti, Morocco, Nepal, Nigeria and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Tanzania participated in a Great Lakes regional project, while Inter Press Service International implemented an Africa regional project in Benin, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Swaziland.

Consolidated Response on the Prevention of Family Voting

This consolidated response includes descriptions of family and proxy voting and provides recommendations on how to eliminate family voting through holding trainings and public awareness campaigns, strengthening legislative frameworks, and sensitizing election commissioners and observers on issues faced by women.

Consolidated Response on Financing Women Candidates in Muslim Countries

This consolidated response highlights barriers faced by women in Muslim countries in funding their political campaigns and participating in public life. The consolidated response also discusses the impact of existing legislation, political parties, women’s organizations and international institutions on women’s participation in politics in these countries and provides strategies to overcome it.

Assessing Women’s Political Party Programs: Best Practices and Recommendations

The assessment is designed to identify the specific elements and approaches which were most effective in encouraging women’s participation and leadership in political parties. Although drawn from NDI programs, the information gathered in this assessment is intended to be used by both individuals and organizations as a road map to help facilitate women’s political leadership worldwide.

Facing Challenges and Pioneering Feminist and Gender Studies: Women in Post-colonial and Today's Maghrib

This paper reveals the positive role that Maghribi women have been playing in the overall development of their countries. Four major interrelated domains where these achievements are significant are considered: women’s reproductive rights, women’s movements, women’s legal rights, and women’s knowledge production. Issues related to these domains are analyzed from a broad comparative perspective which involves an overall political and economic contextualization.

Women, Nationality and Citizenship

This report highlights discrimination against women in nationality laws by examining laws that differentiate between women and men. It specifically looks into the acquisition and retention of nationality of women, including the nationality of their children, and examines how international law is used to address discrimination cases in nationality laws.

Video: Gender-Responsive Budgeting: Morocco

This documentary illustrates, when the needs of women living in a particular geographical and cultural context are addressed, the entire community benefits. To view the video, please click on the play button on the screen below:

Poster for Women Voters in Morocco

This poster was used as a part of a media campaign targeted at women voters in the 2002 legislative elections in Morocco.

Women Rights in Focus: Morocco

This report presents the findings of a study on public attitudes towards women's rights in Morocco. These findings reveal a general sense of women's progress in Morocco, broad support for women's educational and political rights, changing views in support of women's right to work, and divided views on women's social and family rights. The report also determines that Moroccans’ understanding of Islam strongly informs their views on women’s freedom.