Women’s representation in political decision-making continues to rise slowly, with slight improvements since 2017, according to the data presented in the 2019 edition of the biennial IPU-UN Women map of Women in Politics. The map, which presents global rankings for women in the executive and parliamentary government branches as of 1 January 2019, shows the proportion of women ministers is at an all-time high at 20.7 per cent (812 out of 3922), 2.4 percentage points higher compared to 2017. It also shows that the types of portfolios women ministers hold are diversifying.

As part of the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 on gender equality, the National Assembly of Mali and the IPU organized a workshop on improving women’s representation in parliament from 27 to 28 February 2019 in Bamako. The

Joint Statement by the IPU and the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women International Women’s Day 40 th Anniversary of CEDAW Women’s leadership and the equal participation of women and men in public affairs and decision-making

According to the IPU’s yearly analysis, the share of women in national parliaments increased by nearly one percentage point last year, from 23.4 per cent in 2017 to 24.3 per cent in 2018. This 0.9 percentage point increase confirms the continuing rise of women in parliament, at a slightly faster rate of change compared to previous years. Countries with well-designed gender quotas elected significantly more women to parliament than those without, respectively, 7 points more in single or lower chambers, and 17 points more in upper chambers.

IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong speaks about the challenges faced by the current architecture of multilateralism and the importance of making it relevant again. He was at the IPU-UN Parliamentary Hearing, held from 21-22 February 2019. Watch the other videos

Philippe Gosselin, parliamentarian from France, speaks about the challenges faced by the multilateral system and explains how parliaments can reinforce the public's confidence in international organizations. He was at the IPU-UN Parliamentary Hearing, held from 21-22 February 2019. (Video in