Theme: Political Empowerment

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Women parliamentary leaders to work for more inclusive politics

The 12th Summit of Women Speakers of Parliament, organized jointly by the IPU and the Chamber of Deputies of Bolivia, will bring together the most senior women parliamentary leaders to address gender issues in parliaments, and explore avenues for more inclusive political institutions where every voice counts.  The Summit will be held on 25-26 April in Cochabamba, Bolivia, one of the few countries to have achieved gender parity in Parliament and enacted specific legislation to combat violence against women in politics.

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Call for zero tolerance towards sexism, racism & violence in parliament

Female parliamentarians worldwide call for immediate reforms to stop sexism, harassment and violence against women in parliaments. This includes urging all parliaments to set concrete targets and deadlines to achieve equal representation of women and men.  Taking part in the 12th Summit of Women Speakers of Parliament on 25-26 April, women MPs urged the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) to lead global reform actions to end all forms of harassment in parliament.

The BGIPU delegation joined with members of the Select Commitee on Women and Equalities to meet young British delegates also attending CSW in 2018

IPU addresses empowering rural women and girls at the CSW

Empowering rural women and girls was the priority theme for the 62nd session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), which took place in New York from 12 to 23 March 2018.  The IPU, in cooperation with UN Women, held a parliamentary meeting at the CSW on 13 March 2018, entitled “Parliaments deliver for rural women and girls”.  MPs discussed ways to remove systemic barriers that rural women and girls face in realizing their rights and overcome the discrimination against them in law and practice. 

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IPU President celebrates IWD and calls for action to advance gender equality

Marking International Womens’ Day 2018, the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Senator Gabriela Cuevas Barron said the IPU proudly joins the worldwide efforts to achieve gender equality. As IPU President, she called upon male and female parliamentarians and men and women of all ages to join the fight for a better society marked by justice, equality and parity.  In its work the IPU focuses on promoting gender equality and increasing the number of women parliamentarians worldwide.

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IPU finds no change in overall average of women in parliaments

The year 2017 saw some positive developments in women’s participation in elections, according to the Women in Parliament in 2017: The year in review, released by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) ahead of International Women’s Day. However, in global terms, the number of women in national parliaments has only increased by 0.1 percentage point from 2016, from 23.3% to 23.4%.  A record number of women contested elections held in 2017, and more seats were won by women than in previous years: 27.1% compared with 22.3% in 2016.

The UK was represented at the 4th IPU Conference of Yopung Parliamentarains by Daniella Rowley MP and Ranil Jayawardena MP.JPG

Young MPs call for greater youth participation

Young MPs from 51 countries have defined a youth-centred action plan that promotes inclusive democratic and socioeconomic policies for all.  More than 120 young men and women MPs attended the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s (IPU) Fourth Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians in Ottawa, Canada on 17-18 November adopting a united approach to end exclusion and marginalization of young people.  The UK was represented by Danielle Rowley MP and Ranil Jayawardena MP. 

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IPU launches petition for #StrongerDemocracies

The International Day of Democracy 2017 marks the 20th anniversary of IPU’s Universal Declaration on Democracy and the 10th anniversary of the International Day of Democracy. These two critical milestones offer an occasion to reaffirm our shared commitment to protect and promote democracy.  The International Day of Democracy is celebrated around the world on 15 September each year.  As part of this year’s IDD, the IPU has also launched a petition in support of stronger democracies.

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IPU launches global campaign for stronger democracies

To mark the dual milestones this year of the 10th anniversary of the International Day of Democracy on 15 September and the 20th anniversary of the adoption of IPU’s Universal Declaration on Democracy, the IPU campaign, Get engaged now, calls for people to take action to strengthen democracy. Such actions can mean voting in elections, speaking out against human rights violations, opposing restrictive laws on freedom of expression and joining a civil society organization.

13th Workshop of Parliamentary Scholars and Parliamentarians

The Thirteenth Workshop of Parliamentary Scholars and Parliamentarians took place from 29 to 30 July. It is part of a series of workshops co-sponsored by the IPU and the Centre for Legislative Studies at the University of Hull. At the workshops, researchers share findings that would be of practical use to parliamentarians.  Among the topics discussed with participants from 20 countries were the challenges of strengthening legislatures, public engagement in parliaments, corruption in legislatures and capacity building.

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World’s MPs to tackle rising economic, political and social inequalities

Taking decisive actions to end economic, political and social inequality will be the focus of deliberations for the more than 650 MPs from 132 countries meeting in Dhaka, Bangladesh from 1-5 April 2017.  Parliamentarians, including 53 Speakers of Parliament, will make concrete proposals on a range of issues, from ending rising inequality to promoting women’s access to financing, during the 136th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) (#IPU136) hosted by the Bangladesh Parliament.