Parliaments & Representatives

Highlighted Resources

Rally in Paris, France © SERGE TENANI / HANS LUCAS / HANS LUCAS VIA AFP

Violence against women parliamentarians: Causes, effects, solutions

Women account for just over 26% of parliamentarians worldwide according to the IPU’s latest figures. Despite progress made in recent years, significant obstacles continue to block their path to parity with their male counterparts. One of the biggest obstacles is sexism, harassment and...

Women’s representation in India’s parliament: Measuring progress, analysing obstacles

Women’s representation in India’s Parliament is an important metric to evaluate progress in bridging gender inequities in the country. India has a female population of 662.9 million and is the largest and one of the most resilient parliamentary democracies in the world. As the country completes 75...

Action kit: Engaging parliaments in gender responsive budgeting

This action kit is a practical tool for unpacking gender responsive budgeting (GRB) and engaging parliaments and parliamentarians in strengthening scrutiny and oversight of gender responsive budget formulation, execution, and evaluation. As a result of their interventions, the budget process can be...

New Zealand’s Parliament becomes majority female — "about blimmin’ time"

New Zealand made history — or herstory — this week as female lawmakers became the majority, narrowly outnumbering their male counterparts in Parliament for the first time.On Tuesday, Soraya Peke-Mason was sworn in as a lawmaker for the Labour Party, tipping the country’s legislative body to 60...

President of Inter-Parliamentary Union, Duarte Pacheco delivers remarks at the 145th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union that is underway in Kigali from October 11 to 15. Village Urugwiro (The New Times)

Gender-sensitive parliaments can help end conflicts – IPU president

More women parliamentarians can play a major role in addressing global security conflicts, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) president, Duarte Pacheco, has said.Speaking Monday October 11, at a press conference on the side-lines of the ongoing IPU’s 145th assembly taking place in Kigali,...

How did Rwanda become no.1 for gender equality?

In 2008, the Rwanda Chamber of Deputies was the first elected national parliament where women were the majority. The proportion of MPs who are women is at 61.25% today, way above the current global average of 26.4%. Rwanda has been at the top of the IPU’s monthly ranking of women in national...

Women and corruption: What positions must they hold to make a difference?

This paper in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization - Volume 151 examines in what roles women have an impact on corruption by focusing on female labor force participation and their presence in the parliament. Since much of the corruption literature is plagued either by the lack of...

Fawcett Society Report: The Sex and Power Series

The Sex and Power series was first published by the Equal Opportunities Commission fifteen years ago, then taken over by the Equality and Human Rights Commission for several years, and then for 5 years up to 2015 the ‘Counting Women in Coalition’ collected and collated data on women’s...

Women in parliament: Assessing the effectiveness of gender quotas in Poland

Gender quotas aim to increase women’s parliamentary representation. However, the effectiveness of quotas varies. This article explores this issue further by examining the case of Poland, where gender quotas were introduced in 2011. The Polish case presents an interesting puzzle. Although the...

Power to the people? Tackling the gender imbalance in combined authorities and local government

A new generation of young women is ready and willing to participate in politics.The UK general election in June 2017 saw a rise in voter turnout among 18- to 24-year-old women, with participation up from 44 to 53 per cent compared with the 2015 general election. However, so far there is little...

Few, but Mighty: Women and Bill Sponsorship in the Pennsylvania General Assembly

Throughout this report, the authors offer a look at the unique strengths that women bring to policymaking and their impact on government is examined. They start by examining women’s representation in government, highlighting the underrepresentation of women both in the Pennsylvania state...

Book on Financing for Gender Equality: Realising Women’s Rights through Gender Responsive Budgeting

This collection of essays addresses the glaring gap between policy commitments and actual investments in gender equality, ranging across sectors and focusing on development aid, peace-building and climate funds. Casting a spotlight on the application of gender-responsive budgeting in public...