Gender Equality in Elected Office in Asia Pacific: Six Actions to Expand Women’s Empowerment

The UNDP publication Gender Equality in Elected Office in Asia-Pacific: Six Actions to Expand Women’s Empowerment provides an overview of women’s political representation in Asia-Pacific member states, and reviews the impact of a series of six fast-track institutional reforms which can contribute towards the attainment of gender equality in elected office. These six “windows or opportunity” include an examination of legally binding quotas, constitutional rights, political party recruitment, capacity building initiatives, parliamentary reform and political party recruitment. The six-step action plan is structured so national policy makers and practitioners working to increase women’s political involvement can select one window of opportunity to expanding women’s political participation most relevant to their specific context. The action plan is targeted to countries in the Asia-Pacific that wish to identify strategies relevant to their national context for achieving political equality. It has relevance for a wide range of stakeholders including political parties, parliament, government ministries, civil society and international organizations and development agencies that provide programming support for women’s political participation. While the six-point action plan provides guidance to how political equality can be realized women must step forward and take their rightful place in decision-making. With access to established networks of influence, resources, role models, mentors and family and community support, women’s participation in the political arena will be more likely to become a reality for the Asia-Pacific Region.