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Gender Equality in Elected Office: A Six-Step Action Plan
Dr. Marcin WaleckiOSCE-ODIHR
April 2012
A study by Pippa Norris and Mona Lena Krook
Aims of Presentation
• Introduce Gender Equality in Elected Office: A Six-Step Action Plan
• Stress important role of political parties in promoting women’s participation
• Focus on voluntary measures political parties can adopt to increase women’s participation
The Six-Step Action Plan
1. Constitutional
Rights
2. Electoral Systems
3. Legal
Quotas
4. Party Rules
and Recruitment Procedures
5. Capacity
Development
6.Parliament
Reform
Steps 1-3: Legal Frameworks
• Step 1: Constitutional Frameworks– Equality of women and men enshrined!– Equal ballot access for women and men– Equal rights of men and women to participate in policy processes
• Step 2: Electoral Systems– Legal Framework: Registration, Equal Access to Resources – Type of electoral system– Aspects of electoral system
• Step 3: Legal Quotas– Placement, percentage, sanctions– Temporary special measures– Must be vigilant and comprehensive!
Step 4: Party Rules and Procedures
• Candidate Selection Process– Are women on the Selection Committee?– Are rules transparent and equal for all?
• Party and Campaign Resources– Money, airtime, party property
• Party Activities– Hours of meetings– Overtime, weekends
• Campaigning Culture– Hours, travel– Campaign habits
Voluntary Measures
• Increase ‘Supply of’ Female Candidates– Support training of women as candidates– Establish a fund to pay women candidate deposits
• Increase ‘Demand for’ Female Candidates – Initiate recruitment drives to actively seek and recruit qualified
women as party members and candidates• Integrate Gender Issues into Party Platforms
– Build capacity of women members to develop party policy• Gender Action Plans and Strategies
– Develop specific Gender Strategies and Action Plans– Identify activities, budgets, actors and timeframes
• Develop gender-sensitive Rules of Procedure– Family-friendly meeting hours; meeting places with childcare– Promote democracy internally as well as externally
Voluntary (Political Party) Quotas
• Most OSCE States have voluntary quotas
• But most effective when…– 1) Adopted by many parties, especially large parties– 2) Quotas set relatively high targets– 3) Quotas reflect widely accepted cultural practices and
traditions– 4) Parties have transparent structures and formal nomination
procedures, so rules are enforced
Country % Women in Parliament
Electoral System
Quota Level
Placement Policy
Sanctions Political Party Quotas
Georgia 7% Parallel Mixed
None None None Citizens’ Union 30% (2003)
Step 5: Building Capacity & Awareness
1) Equal opportunity initiatives:- Candidate training, recruitment
initiatives, and knowledge networks 2) Combating stereotypes; Raising awareness:
- Media campaigns, voter and citizen education3) Political party initiatives:
- Women’s sections, fundraising, and women’s parties
Czech politics: Do you really have a choice?
Step 6: Gender-sensitive Parliamentary Practices
Conclusions
• 1) Constitutional Frameworks: – Determine whether are women eligible to run
• 2) Electoral Systems: – Influence whether women are encouraged to run
• 3) Legal Quotas: – Indicate the number of women given the opportunity to run
• 4) Party Rules and Procedures: – Determine which women are selected to run
• 5) Capacity Development: – Helps identify and build the confidence of women who aspire to run
• 6) Parliamentary Rules and Procedures:– Influence whether women want to run again
“Women in Political Parties” Project
• Objective:– Build capacity of political parties to implement
voluntary measures to promote women as party candidates, leaders and decision-makers
• 5 Pilot Countries:– Albania, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova
• Key Activities:– Phase 1: Develop Handbook on Measures to Promote
Women’s Participation in Political Parties– Phase 2: Institute Training Programme for political parties
• Local Partnerships– E.g. Women’s Information Centre, Georgia