Women’s participation is a central element of democracy, and the nature and degree of women’s participation is a key indicator of the quality of democratic culture.

A high-level roundtable convened in 2011 gathered 150 policymakers, practitioners and academics working on various aspects of gender equality and democracy to review the UN’s work at the critical juncture between promoting gender equality and strengthening democracy worldwide. Their conversations revealed both challenges and opportunities for the UN in this area, based on lessons drawn from both research and practice.