17 Sept 2010

Equal access and participation of women and men in decision-making is a necessary condition for women’s interests to be taken into account. However, judging by the share of women working at key institutions, most UNECE countries are far from attaining gender equality in decision making.

For instance, the share of women among the members of the national parliaments, government ministers and central bank board members rarely reaches one fifth in UNECE countries. Their median share fluctuates between 18 per cent in the executive branches and 20 per cent in the national parliaments. Among the depicted countries in the chart, Sweden is the only exception where the gender parity has been almost achieved in at least two categories.

More equitable representation of men and women at all levels of decision making is not merely a demand for justice, but rather a tool for addressing gender-sensitive growth strategies. Women, if they are better represented at decision-making forums, could shape policies in a way that gender-specific values and experiences are taken into account.

Source:  UNECE statistical database. Countries are ranked according to the women representation in the national parliaments in 2010.