Women’s Political Participation

Strategies

Through innovative programs that strengthen women’s political skills, emphasize how women are impacted by public policy, and improve the perception of women in political life, NDI has demonstrated its commitment to making democracy deliver, even in challenging environments. The Institute leverages its high-level political relationships to encourage leaders to understand and actively promote the benefits of gender-balanced politics. NDI focuses on training women as well as on the inclusion of a gender perspective in every NDI program. This dual approach has strengthened the Institute’s ability to build women’s skills and organize women across ethnic and political lines, as well as create the opportunity for women from diverse backgrounds to converge around shared goals to solve problems in ways that contribute to the development and well-being of their societies.

To reach the widest range of women leaders and activists, NDI uses a broad spectrum of inventive and inclusive strategies and techniques that are uniquely adapted to best fit the local cultural and political contexts of the communities in which we work.

Working with women at the local level

NDI trains, supports and encourages women at various stages of engagement in the political process, including at the local level. Through its women’s political participation programs, NDI helps women develop political skills and strengthen constituent relations at the community level.

In Burkina Faso, NDI provided assistance to over 100 women mayors, deputy mayors and municipal council chairs and distributed the Cahier de la Conseillere, a manual and resource to each of Burkina Faso’s 5,000 women local councilors. This manual contains concrete information on municipal council administration, the decentralization process, and the roles and responsibilities of local councilors.

NDI’s local women’s program in Azerbaijan focused on a group of concerned women citizens and activists looking to make a difference in their communities. The program, which strengthened advocacy skills and engaged women in civic life, resulted in the creation of a new Internet center for women, repair of crumbling roads, the establishment of regular constituent office hours with local politicians, and a hotline for questions about marriage contracts and early marriages. Several of the women activists trained by NDI were even elected to chair their neighborhood action committees.

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Working with women in national parliaments

Working with women at in national parliaments

One of NDI’s strengths is its multifaceted approach to democracy and governance programming. In addition to working with women at the local level, NDI consistently carries out a wide range of programming for women at the national level.

Originally established with the support of NDI, the Macedonian Women’s Parliamentary Club, made up of women MPs, has made impressive strides in addressing the rights of women. One of its first achievements was to amend the electoral law to mandate that 30 percent of candidates on party lists be women and to introduce a list placement system, which mandates that every third place on the list go to a woman candidate. With these amendments in place, 36 women MPs were elected in 2006. The club held policy briefings on women’s issues, passed an amendment to Macedonia’s Health Care Law mandating free mammograms and presented a legislative initiative to strengthen the Law on Domestic Violence.

NDI often incorporates its global initiatives into women’s political participation programs. As part of its Win With Women program, NDI worked with more than 124 female federal and state legislators, candidates, party leaders and their staffs from three political parties in Mexico. NDI trained the women on various political techniques so they could work more effectively in the political area. Training focused on message development, media management techniques, and negotiation.

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The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide through citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.