We and our partners strongly believe that the political inclusion of women is key in strengthening democracy. The political participation of women makes for more prosperous and stable societies and a functioning democracy builds on equal representation. Still, despite strong arguments in favor of increasing female participation in politics and international commitments such as Sustainable Development Goal 5, women remain underrepresented in political decision-making around the world.
Challenges women face vary from economic to social, religious and cultural ones, and need to be addressed in different ways. But, as political parties are one of the most important gate keepers and have a significant impact on facilitating women’s political participation, we together with the European Partnership for Democracy have published a Fact Sheet on Women in Policy-Making. This fact sheet gives an overview on how institutional reforms, like party bylaws, quotas and women’s wings can be used to facilitate female participation.
Download the Fact Sheet here.