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This pilot study was conducted over a two-month period in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Seventeen women from different socio-economic, educational, religious, and ethnic backgrounds were interviewed and they were encouraged to talk about the following: family life while growing up, marriage, work and education, the war, religion, excision, politics, their take on empowerment and general concerns about Salone society. The report includes transcripts from some of the interviews. …

At the Millennium Summit world leaders committed to reducing extreme poverty through a series of targets encompassed within the MDGs, with a deadline of 2015. One of these was to promote gender equality and empower women, and the ‘proportion of seats held by women in national parliament’ was set as a key indicator. With the MDG Review Summit meeting in September 2010, this is an opportunity to consider whether the proportion of women in parliament continues to be the most adequate proxy for women’s political empowerment. This IDS Bulletin explores what the quota has meant as a motorway to women’s accession to political power by drawing on research findings from the Pathways of Women’s Empowerment Research Programme Consortium (‘Pathways’), as well as a series of articles from a special seminar in the Brazilian National Congress as part of this programme, and contributions from other country case studies. …

Egypt has recently passed a new quota law, reserving 64 seats for women in addition to its 454 member parliament. While the executive regulations were not issued at the time of writing, the political messages conveyed about the quota are highly relevant: for example, additional seats were allocated rather than existing ones shared. This article speculates on whether the quota will challenge power hierarchies within and among parties. While the quota will undoubtedly increase women's representation in parliament, the political configurations of the existing context – a highly authoritarian one – raise questions as to which women are most likely to occupy these seats. …

This chapter reflects on the quotas for women experience of Latin America, where their implementation, in a context of affirmative action policies, has figured as a major goal in women’s struggles for access to power structures. It asks two main questions: to what extent have quota systems in Latin America served as a pathway of women’s political empowerment? And what lessons can be learnt from this experience? …

Over the last 20 years, the problem of low levels of representation of women in political office has been mobilising women, and especially feminists, throughout the world. The adoption of quotas has become a much-used tool to address the challenge of increasing women's political representation, and as a route to enhancing women's political empowerment. In Latin America, many countries have adopted quota systems, but with widely varying effects. This article takes stock of Latin American experience and asks to what extent quota systems have served as a pathway of women into politics. …

The promise of democratic equality has not arrived for women. In all societies said to be democratic, women have had an arduous struggle and are still fighting for access to rights common to any male citizen, for example an equal salary for equal work, promotion opportunities, the right to physical integrity, and access to work. Gaining the right to vote and the right to run for office as elected representatives has not in practice meant the right to be elected under the same conditions as men (Petit 2007). In the immense majority of representative democracies, women are far from having won political equality. …

An eighty-six page literature review and bibliography with study tables. The chapters in the literature review are: Types of quota; Structural factors that affect the implementation and effectiveness of quotas; Campaigns for women’s representation and influence; Challenges women representatives face in promoting their power and influence; Beyond ‘presence’: enhancing women representative’s power and influence; Questioning quotas. The annotated bibliography sections are: Conceptual Articles and Reviews; Regional comparison and analysis; Country case-studies; Useful web-pages. …

By focusing on three different national level women's organisations in Bangladesh, this article looks at how the movements have used different strategies to become an effective voice for women's interests and empowerment at civil society and state levels. The importance of framing their issues in a non-contentious way, building alliances with like-minded groups and the strength of personal networks can be clearly seen. Reaching out to these diverse groups has meant the organisations at times making strategic choices, which allowed the groups to create space and legitimacy for their agenda. Relying on personal networks is shown to carry certain risks for sustainability and their ineffective engagement with political parties can reduce their influence, but ultimately their strategies for mobilising support and building constituencies has gained these organisations greater legitimacy and strength as advocates of women's issues. …

This paper presented to 'Pathways: What are we Learning?' Conference held in Cairo from 20-24 January 2009, explores how three national level women’s organisations mobilize various constituencies including their own members and negotiate with political parties, the state bureaucracy and allies within civil society, for attaining specific gender justice related goals. The focus is on two different processes: a) how these organisations ‘create meaning’ around an issue (i. e. , justify and represent) for constituents, members and allies; b) how they create support for their cause among potential supporters and allies. …

By focusing on three different national level women's organisations in Bangladesh, this chapter looks at how the movements have used different strategies to become an effective voice for women's interests and empowerment at civil society and state levels. The importance of framing their issues in a non-contentious way, building alliances with like-minded groups and the strength of personal networks can be clearly seen. …

As Bangladesh turns 40, improvements in women’s wellbeing and increased agency are claimed to be some of the most significant gains in the post-independence era. Various economic and social development indicators show that in the last 20 years, Bangladesh, a poor, Muslim-majority country in the classic patriarchal belt, has made substantial progress in increasing women’s access to education and healthcare (including increasing life expectancy), and in improving women’s participation in the labour force. The actors implementing such programmes and policies and claiming to promote women’s empowerment are numerous, and they occupy a significant position within national political traditions and development discourses. In the 1970s and 1980s development ideas around women’s empowerment in Bangladesh were influenced by an overtly instrumentalist logic within the international donor sphere. …

This research report describes and analyses how three national level women’s organisations in Bangladesh mobilized support around a particular issue among their membership and allies. The research uses resource mobilisation theories and feminist studies on the state and social movement for grounding this research. The focus is on the decade of 1990s and the present decade. Through these case studies the research aims to capture the diversity of the strategies used by these organisations for building constituencies internally and externally, i. …

The 'Women in Politics: Women's Political Effectiveness' Roundtable aimed to explore and highlight examples of support and training which are effective in promoting women's participation in politics. …

What does sexuality have to do with women’s empowerment? Research from the Pathways of Women’s Empowerment RPC shows that sexuality affects women’s political and economic empowerment in a number of important ways. For example, in the ways that women experience seeking election to political office, how women are treated and respected (or disrespected) in the workplace and in public, and how families and communities place expectations on how women should behave. Being exposed to sexual harassment and sexual violence and not being able to exercise choice in their sexual relationships affects women’s well-being and ultimately undermines political, social and economic empowerment. …

What does sexuality have to do with women’s empowerment? Research from the Pathways of Women’s Empowerment RPC shows that sexuality affects women’s political and economic empowerment in a number of important ways. For example, in the ways that women experience seeking election to political office, how women are treated and respected (or disrespected) in the workplace and in public, and how families and communities place expectations on how women should behave. Being exposed to sexual harassment and sexual violence and not being able to exercise choice in their sexual relationships affects women’s well-being and ultimately undermines political, social and economic empowerment. In this policy paper, we demonstrate why sexuality is so important for women’s empowerment, drawing on evidence generated by research carried out by the Pathways of Women’s Empowerment RPC and collaborative initiatives with the DFID-funded IDS Sexuality and Development Programme. …