More women entering politics
Organizations that encourage gender equality in politics say there is an emerging worldwide trend toward women's civic engagement. To mark International Women's Day tomorrow, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Congressional Human Rights Caucus held a joint forum Wednesday to review the political landscape women shared in 2007. Anders Johnsson, Secretary General of IPU, a Switzerlandbased organization that works closely with the United Nations and looks into worldwide parliamentary issues, said the ongoing presidential election in the United States is encouraging to him when he thinks about future female involvement in politics. “Everybody in the world is watching this election, and people are inspired by it,” Mr. Johnsson said, pointing out Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, New York Democrat, as a strong female candidate seeking power at the top.
The Washington Times - 7 March 2008

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY: More women in parliament
Women's participation in parliaments throughout the world is growing slowly but surely and this trend is already influencing the work programmes of these legislative bodies, said the Secretary General of the Inter- Parliamentary Union (IPU), Anders B. Johnsson. The effects of this increase of two percentage points over three years are visible in the legislative agendas that have become imbued with gender issues, Johnsson told IPS. For instance, the problem of violence against women is already on the agenda of parliaments, something which was rarely the case before, added the head of the organization founded in 1889 which currently brings together 146 affiliated parliaments. These problems are being taken seriously, with laws being passed and programmes being adopted to protect women and children. A great many changes are taking place on the national agendas of States for the good of society due to higher numbers of women in parliament, the IPU Secretary General concluded.
Inter Press Service (IPS) - 4 March 2008

One in five MPs worldwide female
Nearly one in five parliamentarians worldwide is now a woman, a survey showed – but far fewer are making it to the top government posts. The analysis by the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Geneva looked at 78 chambers of parliament across 63 countries, and found an all-time high of 17.7 percent female representation. It put that down to increasing use of quotas worldwide, but pointed out that women were still finding it hard to break through into the executive branches of government. “Quotas of temporary special measures remain key. In those countries that used some type of electoral quota, the average representation of women was 19.3 percent, as opposed to 14.7 percent for those countries without quotas,” said the IPU in a statement. However, such measures are inadequate to access higher positions. “Unlike in some parliaments, where different measures exist to secure seats for women legislators, in the executive branch of government it is often sheer political will that matters”, said the IPU. The record 17.7 percent figure compares with just 11.3 per cent in 1995...However, overall, women are making a slow advance in executive positions, holding 16.1 per cent of ministerial portfolios, up just 2 per cent from 2005.
Agence France Presse (AFP) - 5 March 2008