The Role of Political Parties on Women’s Participation and Representation: International IDEA Technical Paper 4/2021

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rumbidzai Kandawasvika-Nhundu

‘Leave no one behind’ (LNOB) is the central, transformative promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Hence, SDG 5—‘Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls’—is an intrinsic enabler for sustainable development and representative democracy for each country and the world at large. The SDG 5 stipulates the requisite collective action for transformation and creating conducive environments towards substantive equality for all women and girls. In order to take on the challenge of translating SDG 5 into reality for women and girls across the world, it is fundamental to address the key areas of gender inequality, such as gender-based discrimination in law and in practice, violence against women and girls, the lack of and unequal access to and ownership of economic resources, and women’s unequal participation and representation in both private and public decision-making positions. This Technical Paper focuses on political parties’ responsibilities on achieving gender equality in politics and women’s political empowerment, particularly women’s participation and representation in positions of power and decision making at all levels.

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-107
Author(s):  
Shadiya Mohamed S. Baqutayan

While the world has achieved progress towards gender equality and women’s empowerment under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including equal access to primary education between girls and boys, the women and girls continue to suffer discrimination and violence in every part of the world. The SDGs aim to build on these achievements to ensure that there is an end to discrimination against women and girls everywhere. Although many governments and organizations claim to be tackling the issue of inequality, there are still approximately 1.4 billion women and girls who are still victims of discrimination, violence, and sexism. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to address the issue of gender equality and women’s empowerment in Malaysia context in order to close the gap existed in gender inequality. Data were collected through in-depth individual interviews; the participants interviewed included nine women leaders in the public and private sector. The finding of this research indicated that women need personal, relational, and environmental empowerment that boost gender equality in Malaysia. As a conclusion, this finding will open the eyes of civil society, local grassroots advocacy initiatives, men & women, national governments, religious groups, tribal structures, international community, academia & research, as well as media in solving women related issues. This research carries values to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in enhancing the policy on gender equality; this would be the most appropriate tool in addressing and empowering Malaysian women in particular and ensuring inclusiveness and equality for them, as well as calling on the international community to reduce inequality within and among countries.


2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 31-47
Author(s):  
N. Shvedova ◽  

he 2020 is rich in anniversaries: the world community celebrates the 75th anniversary of the United Nations (UN) and the 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women, a mass meeting of more than five thousand participants in Beijing in 1995. A three-day special event is planned during the September Session of the UN General Assembly in New York (2020), dedicated to the celebration of “Beijing Plus 25”. At these meetings governments from around the world are expected to commit to speeding up and scaling up the promises made in the historic Beijing Platform for Action. And the last 2019 was marked by the fortieth anniversary of the most important document in the field of gender equality – the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women – CEDAW, which is rightfully widely known in the world as “The Bill on the Rights of Women” (1979). Anniversary dates increase motivation to comprehend the role and place of events and phenomena associated with them. Moreover, the UN theme and gender equality is a hot topic, which is due to two main circumstances. 47НАДЕАЖ АШВОИнст иД суА ВД ОНАДЕО ОДЕ суА СКсу ОДДнаАЖдОЖт иы суА ВДнаАЖдОИ иЖНОДнРОсниДInternational Trends. Volume 18. No. 2 (61). April–June / 2020On the one hand, the UN is a unique global organization that has a significant impact on international processes. On the other hand, the problem of gender equality is the basis of social stability, a condition for development and an instrument for creating the quality of life. Bridging the gender gap in all areas of life is vital to achieving sustainable development and fulfilling the promise of the 2030 Agenda. To achieve the sustainable development goals, it is necessary to ensure full and equal access for and participation in women and girls. Despite progress, women and girls are still systematically underrepresented as users and leaders in critical areas of human life. The fight against stereotypes and myths occupies a key place. There is a wide range of options available to address both the causes and symptoms underlying gender stereotypes and social norms. The emphasis on a sound strategy with a gender perspective is something that can contribute to achieving gender equality for the sustainable development of the civilized world, this is what the UN insists on.


Author(s):  
Melissa B. Littlefield ◽  
Denise McLane-Davison ◽  
Halaevalu F. O. Vakalahi

Mechanisms of oppression that serve to subordinate the strengths, knowledge, experiences, and needs of women in families, communities, and societies to those of men are at the root of gender inequality. Grounded in the strengths perspective of social work, the basic premise of the present discussion emphasizes gender equality as opposed to inequality. At the core of gender equality is the value of womanhood and the need to ensure the health and well-being of women and girls. Women’s participation in different societal domains including economic opportunities, political empowerment, educational attainment, health, and well-being are all impacted by their roles. Thus, structural weaknesses are major barriers for reforming efforts on global gender equality. Challenging traditional notions of gender, which is defined as behavioral, cultural, and social characteristics that are linked to womanhood or manhood, is the basis for achieving gender equality by attending to how these characteristics govern the relationship between women and men and the power differences that impact choices and agency to choose. Further, both equality of opportunity and equality of outcome are imperative for achieving gender equality among women and girls. Although progress has been made toward gender equality for many women, lower income women—as well as women who face social exclusion stemming from their caste, disability, location, ethnicity, and sexual orientation––have not experienced improvements in gender equality to the same extent as other women. Broad outcomes of gender equality around the globe include decreased poverty, increased social and economic justice, and better well-being and empowerment among men and women. Gender equality is a smart tool for economic development because it can remove barriers to access and enhance productivity gains in a competitive world.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 1112-1120
Author(s):  
Yulfira Riza ◽  
Titin Nurhayati Mamun ◽  
I Syarief Hidayat ◽  
Ikhwan

Purpose: This study aims to describe gender harmonization in al Mu'āsharah's manuscript by Sheikh Abdul Laṭīf Syakūr. This concept is considered as Syakūr's understanding of gender equality, as one of the 17 goals in Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), from an Islamic perspective. Methodology: The analysis of this manuscript uses a descriptive-analytic method to bring up the facts in the manuscript which are then analyzed according to the targets and indicators contained in SDGs 5 formulation on gender equality. Main Findings: This research presents the concept of gender relations in al Mu’āsharah leading to Islamic gender equality as an elaboration of rights and obligations between husband and wife. The existence of women in career and the sustainability of education is fairness according to Shakūr. Likewise, in sexual relations, Syakūr stressed the importance of women getting the same thing as men. Through this research, it is found that there is gender harmonization presented by Shakūr in al mu’āsharah with the concept of fastabiqulkhairat as a form of gender relations in an Islamic family towards real gender equality. Implications/Applications: This research provides an overview of the role of gender harmonization in SDG. Novelty/Originality of this study: Gender equality, which is the goal of the SDGs 5 to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls, has relevance to ancient manuscripts of the archipelago. This study highlights that gender equality can be enjoyed by the people of the archipelago following the evolving culture and customs. Just like the actual gender equality goals of the SDGs, women should be honored and respected, to create a gender equality discourse.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 9-17
Author(s):  
Eric Che Muma

Abstract Since the introduction of democratic reforms in post-independent Africa, most states have been battling corruption to guarantee sustainable peace, human rights and development. Because of the devastating effects of corruption on the realisation of peace, human rights and sustainable development, the world at large and Africa in particular, has strived to fight against corruption with several states adopting national anti-corruption legislation and specialised bodies. Despite international and national efforts to combat corruption, the practice still remains visible in most African states without any effective accountability or transparency in decision-making processes by the various institutions charged with corruption issues. This has further hindered global peace, the effective enjoyment of human rights and sustainable development in the continent. This paper aims to examine the concept of corruption and combating corruption and its impact on peace, human rights and sustainable development in post-independent Africa with a particular focus on Cameroon. It reveals that despite international and national efforts, corruption still remains an obstacle to global peace in Africa requiring a more proactive means among states to achieve economic development. The paper takes into consideration specific socio-economic challenges posed by corruption and the way forward for a united Africa to combat corruption to pull the continent out of poverty, hunger and instability, and to transform it into a better continent for peace, human rights and sustainable development.


2021 ◽  
Vol 124 ◽  
pp. 02002
Author(s):  
Lynn Wee

In accordance with United Nations’ sustainable development goal in achieving gender equality and to empower all women and girls, this paper investigates gender equality and power in marital relationship. Using Resource Theory of Power as a conceptual framework, this paper examines the distribution of marital power among married couples. More specifically, this paper examines to what extent do married couples use money as a bargaining tool to negotiate for more control in two areas: (1) managing economic resources and (2) household decision making. Forty married couples from urban Sarawak were located and interviewed. Results indicate that apart from money, marital power is affected by more influential factors such as ideologies and religious teachings. Consequently, having more money does not necessarily mean having more control over the decision making as decision making in a marriage is often guided by prescribed gender roles in accordance to one’s ideologies, cultural and religious teachings. Hence, gender equality in the management of economic resources and decision making within a household can only occur when an increase in women’s resources is combined with changes in gender roles and ideologies.


2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 239-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eun Mee Kim

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) began in 2016 with great hopes that they will promote social development, economic development, and environmentally sustainable development with the motto, “Leave No One Behind” (UN 2016). In particular, SDGs’ goal 5, “Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls” (UN 2016). However, persistently high gender gap was found in many countries around the world whether they are developed or developing. The 2016 Global Gender Gap Index (GGGI), which examines gender inequality across four key areas of health, education, economy and politics, showed that the gender gap widened in many countries, and the gap in “economic participation and opportunity” showed the largest gender gap compared to health, education and political participation (World Economic Forum 2016). Interestingly, the GGGI do not match the global ranking of countries based on their GDP size, GDP per capita, or even the level of poverty. Thus, in order to deal with the underlying causes of deep-rooted and persistent gender inequality we must develop more culturally nuanced and contextualized approaches in the SDGs to tackle gender inequality (Song & Kim 2013). Gender inequality is simply not acceptable in the world where half of the world’s citizens are not provided with the same rights as the other half. It is also economically less productive to rely on only half of the world’s labor force to help eradicate poverty. Education, employment, and full empowerment of women and girls must be a priority for the SDGs.


2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 233
Author(s):  
Tanya Henderson ◽  
Camille Nelson ◽  
Zeina Chemali

Lebanon stands out in the Middle East for its relative political openness, religious freedom, and the academic and professional achievements of Lebanese women. Yet, paradoxically, it has one of the lowest rates of women’s political participation in the region. This paper is the result of an initiative undertaken by the Lebanese government in July 2012 to increase women’s political participation. Through this initiative, sex-segregated workshops on women’s political empowerment were held for male and female representatives of Lebanon’s political parties. The goal was to start a productive conversation that would ultimately lead to progress from the 2012 status quo of women constituting only three percent of the National Parliament of Lebanon. In this paper, we will describe the process and content explored during the women’s political empowerment workshops. Opportunities to affect change of the current level of women’s participation will be highlighted and conclusions will be drawn to aid similar initiatives.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Inna Junaenah

Abstract: Decision Against Women's Participation In The Democratic local government management. There have been many studies and settings on the relation of women to decision-making in a government organization. It also encouraged the International in 1995 in the World Women's Conference in Beijing fourth, which resulted in a recommendation by the mention of the Beijing Platform for Action. This declaration has prompted action plans in various countries, including in Indonesia, including to target the achievement of women's representation in Parliament 33.3 percent. Such a declaration of some of the ways that women can participate in decision making. The position of women in parliament is believed to affect directly to influence the established law. Abstrak: Partisipasi Perempuan Terhadap Pengambilan Keputusan DalamPenyelenggaraan Pemerintah Daerah Yang Demokratis. Telah banyak kajian danpengaturan mengenai relasi perempuan dengan pengambilan keputusan dalam suatu penyelenggaraan pemerintahan. Hal itu didorong pula secara Internasionalpada tahun 1995 dalam Konferensi Perempuan se-Dunia keempat di Beijing,yang menghasilkan rekomendasi dengan penyebutan Beijing Platform for Action.Deklarasi ini telah mendorong rencana aksi di berbagai negara, termasuk di Indonesia, di antaranya untuk menargetkan pencapaian keterwakilan perempuan di Parlemen 33,3 persen. Pencanangan yang demikian merupakan sebagian carasupaya perempuan dapat turut serta dalam pengambilan keputusan. Posisi perempuan di parlemen diyakini berpengaruh secara langsung untukmempengaruhi hukum yang dibentuk.  DOI: 10.15408/jch.v1i2.1465


2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vesna Nikolic ◽  
Sanja Stojanovic

According to the European Commission, environment protection is an area in which Serbia will have to make maximum efforts to fully meet European standards and requirements of sustainable development in the future. Problems of waste management is especially serious, and in the environmental protection system, it requires immediate attention of wider scientific circles and experts, but also participation and partnership of all members of our community. Starting from the guidelines and recommendations of a number of policy documents that promote partnership and gender equality as a prerequisite for future-oriented development and broader participation of women in decision-making regarding environmental protection, research interests of the authors of this paper are directed towards the problems of women's participation in waste management. The starting point of the study is a hypothesis that women are not sufficiently involved in the decision-making process relating to waste management issues. Within the descriptive research method, methods of primary and secondary source analysis, a comparative analysis and a non-standardized interview were used. The research sample consisted of employees of Public Utility Companies in the Region of Nis, which is included in the Regional Waste Management Plan. The research results indicate a need for women to organize themselves more effectively and efficiently in order to get access to positions that will allow them more power, and therefore become more influential in decision-making in all spheres of social and public life as well as in the field of waste management and environmental protection. Key words:environmental protection, waste management, women, decision-making, sustainable development


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