{"id":421,"date":"2013-02-06T08:00:46","date_gmt":"2013-02-06T13:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/ssn\/?p=421"},"modified":"2013-02-08T11:26:29","modified_gmt":"2013-02-08T16:26:29","slug":"womens-overseas-political-representation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/ssn\/2013\/02\/06\/womens-overseas-political-representation\/","title":{"rendered":"Promoting Women\u2019s Political Representation Overseas"},"content":{"rendered":"

Women make up over half of the world\u2019s population \u2013 but they hold only about one-fifth of the seats in national legislatures across the globe. American foreign policies are pushing to increase this important form of women\u2019s representation, using tactics ranging from training programs for female politicians to constitutional assistance and subtle diplomatic pressures. Efforts have stepped up sharply over the past three decades. Back in the 1980s, my research suggests, U.S.-funded efforts to promote democracy around the world paid almost no attention to women\u2019s political engagement. In contrast, today, about ten percent of all such projects deal with women\u2019s rights and political representation.<\/p>\n

Why are U.S. officials spending millions of dollars each year to increase the female presence in the world\u2019s legislatures? We can\u2019t say that it is because the United States leads the world by example. According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the United States is tied with Morocco as just the eighty-second \u201cbest\u201d country in the world in terms of women\u2019s representation. Regardless of the work still to be done at home, U.S. leaders are pushing women\u2019s cause abroad because they think it is both the right thing to do and the smart thing to do. The degree of gender equity in a country has been linked to economic development and democratization. In addition, aid supporting women in politics is something even foreign dictators are willing to tolerate. This strategy is therefore appealing not only for U.S. diplomats, but also for non-governmental organizations with U.S. funding that are trying to gain a foothold in closed societies.<\/p>\n

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Malawi’s first female president Joyce Banda is a champion of women’s rights. Photo by UK Department for International Development via flickr.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Progress toward equal participation and greater political leverage for women can, however, be tricky. Increasing women\u2019s numbers in national legislatures around the world is a goal that has been pursued especially through legally-enforced gender quotas. But scholarly research shows that such quotas can be a mixed bag. There are upsides and downsides, and American foreign policymakers would be well advised to look for additional tools in certain circumstances.<\/p>\n

What Gender Quotas are Supposed to Do<\/h3>\n

\u201cGender quota\u201d laws designed to increase women\u2019s political representation come in various forms. Gender quota laws can reserve a special set of seats in the legislature for women, so that only women can run for election to those seats. Quotas can also require a certain number of women to be on the lists of candidates that go to voters, leaving voters to make the final choices.<\/p>\n

As with any kind of affirmative action, critics of gender quotas have raised various concerns about their fairness and efficacy. But despite ongoing controversies and questions, quotas are increasing in number \u2013 and have now spread to every region of the world. In fact, quotas influence national parliamentary elections in more than half of the world\u2019s countries, according to data compiled by the Quota Project, an initiative of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, which promotes democratic practices around the world.<\/p>\n

The Good News about Quotas<\/h3>\n

<\/div>Research shows that quotas can improve women\u2019s representation in politics \u2013 both by reliably increasing the number of females elected to office and by changing the substance of policy-making.The good news: research shows that quotas can improve women’s political representation.<\/span><\/p>\n