The topic of women in politics is on the agenda of many
international, regional and local organizations. The emphasis so far has been on the
number of women in politics and ways to increase their participation -- i.e. the
quantitative aspects.
International IDEA's focus is not only on the quantitative
aspects, but also on the qualitative impact of women on political decision-making. The
Institute's objective is to improve and enhance women's effectiveness in political
positions and to strengthen their impact in decision-making forums. Such forums include
the cabinet; local, provincial and state assemblies; national parliaments; political
parties; the judiciary; labour organizations; NG0s and the media.
International IDEA is in the process of compiling
the most relevant information on women's participation in political structures and on
mechanisms for enhancing women's political decision-making power. A series of "good
practices" handbooks concerning women's participation in politics are planned.
In addition, to ensure that gender issues are squarely on
the Institute's agenda, International IDEA is formulating an internal gender
checklist to facilitate the mainstreaming of gender issues in all its programmes and
policies. This project is discussed in the Applied Research section.
Handbook on Women in Parliament
To gather information for this handbook, International IDEA's gender working
group organized a workshop on "Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers" on 21-22
August 1997. The workshop brought together female parliamentarians from around the world,
international scholars, and observers from inter-governmental organizations to share
experiences and discuss the forthcoming handbook. In the context of this project, the
Institute will also facilitate a meeting of women's organizations and individual women
activists, to further identify the most significant obstacles that impede women from fully
sharing in political processes. The handbook
