"Policy makers are beginning to recognize that representation means more than elected politics. It means that more women must have seats at the Cabinet table, more women must be appointed to senior decision-making positions, and more women's voices must be heard and included when major political reform or transformation is undertaken".

- Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers

"The world needs good leaders, regardless of their gender. Political parties must improve their selection process and recognize the potential for leadership among their female members. Local and regional assemblies, as well as parliaments and governments, will be able to make better decisions for their constituents (who, incidentally, are both men and women) when they include women in their leadership".

- Lena Hjelm-Wallén, IDEA Board Chairperson

Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers

This edition of Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers Handbook covers women's access to the legislature in three steps: it looks into the obstacles women confront when entering parliament; it presents solutions to overcoming these obstacles, such as changing electoral systems and introducing quotas; and it details strategies for women to influence politics once they are elected to parliament, an institution which is traditionally male-dominated.

In the eight years since the original Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers Handbook was published (1998), the picture regarding women’s political participation has slowly changed. The past decade has seen gradual progress on women’s presence in national parliaments. This second version incorporates relevant global changes and new and updated case studies.

Little research had been done so far on the extent of female parliamentarians' influence on politics. With this Handbook, the focus shifts from getting more women elected to giving those elected the means to make a greater impact on politics. Key findings include:

• It is not all about numbers - While a critical mass of women is necessary to ensure women’s representation, the quality of the representation is just as important. Training is crucial to avoid the trap of electing “token women”.
  
• Gender perspectives, not gender issues - Women elected at parliament change politics globally: they introduce a women’s perspective into all areas of political life.
  
• Representation means more than elected politics - It means that more women must have seats at the Cabinet table, more women must be appointed to senior decision-making positions, and more women’s voices must be heard and included when major political reform or transformation is undertaken.

The Handbook includes case studies from Argentina, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, France, Indonesia, Rwanda, South Africa and Sweden, as well as regional case studies from the Arab world, Latin America, South Asia and a case study on the Inter-Parliamentary Union.

Written by researchers, politicians and activists, the Handbook targets female parliamentarians and those campaigning for office. It is also of use to activists, academics, researchers, journalists, and others working to advance women in politics.

IDEA's work on women in politics

 Highlights include:

• IDEA’s findings regarding the use of women’s quotas provided substantial input to the December 2005 UN Secretary General report: “Equal participation of women and men in decision-making processes at all levels” for the 50th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women, 27 February to 10 March 2006.
• IDEA is launching an electronic 'knowledge network' for women in politics with partner organizations.
• IDEA will provide hands-on training on capacity skills for women in Peru.  
• IDEA has published a handbook in several languages on women’s access to political decision-making entitled Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers. The findings were disseminated through workshops in Latin America, Africa and Asia.
  
  The materials include 25 country case studies from all regions of the world.
  
  
• IDEA’s products on gender quotas:
• • Global Database of Electoral Quotas for Women (together with Stockholm University) - provides an overview of the use of electoral quotas for women worldwide
  • A series of reports on the implementation of quotas in Africa, Asia, Latin America  and the newly released: The Implementation of Quotas: European Experiences
    
    
• “Ten Years of Progress: Enhancing Women’s Political Participation” – summarizes IDEA’s 10 years of work on women in politics from 1995 to 2005.

IDEA’s Web page on “Women in politics” provides comparative information on how to advance the participation and representation of women in political life.

Contact: Rita Taphorn, Programme Officer, Women in Politics programme