- ImpactWe help parliaments to become greener and to implement the Paris agreement.We support democracy by strengthening parliamentsWe work to increase women’s representation in parliament and empower women MPs.We defend the human rights of parliamentarians and help them uphold the rights of all.We help parliaments fight terrorism, cyber warfare and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.We encourage youth participation in parliaments and empower young MPs.We support parliaments in implementing the SDGs with a particular focus on health and climate change.
- Parliaments
Nearly every country in the world has some form of parliament. Parliamentary systems fall into two categories: bicameral and unicameral. Out of 190 national parliaments in the world, 78 are bicameral (156 chambers) and 112 are unicameral, making a total of 268 chambers of parliament with some 44,000 members of parliament. IPU membership is made up of 180 national parliamentsFind a national parliament
The Swiss National Council © The Swiss Parliament
We help strengthen parliaments to make them more representative and effective.. - Knowledge
Discover the IPU's resources
Our library of essential resources for parliamentsGlobal data for and about national parliamentsLatest data and reports about women in parliamentResolutions, declarations and outcomes adopted by IPU MembersRecent innovations in the way parliaments workThe latest climate change legislation from the London School of Economics' database
Publications
This comparative research paper looks at the governance of parliamentary administrations. Parliamentary administrations – responsible for providing the organizational, day-to-day, budgetary and technical functions of parliaments – play a key role in effective functioning of parliaments by offering administrative expertise
The Guidelines seek to provide parliaments and parliamentarians and those who work with them with a common understanding of development cooperation and offer ideas on what they can do to promote more effective and accountable use of aid in particular
This report outlines the President’s activities from October 2019 to April 2020.
The 2019 Impact Report looks back at the results of IPU’s work over the year. Available in English, French, Arabic and Spanish.
The IPU 130th anniversary book describes the IPU’s milestones in promoting peace, democracy, human rights, gender equality and parliamentary diplomacy over the past 130 years. It also mentions more recent IPU goals to empower younger parliamentarians and to mobilize parliaments
The IPU-UN Women in Politics 2020 map shows all-time highs for women heads of state, women heads of government, women Speakers of parliament, and women MPs and ministers.
This year’s report looks back at 25 years of women in parliament on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Beijing conference and its groundbreaking action plan for gender equality.
This handbook, produced with the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH), provides an action-oriented road map to help parliamentarians decide how best to improve health outcomes for women, children and adolescents.
One of the aims of United Nations Security Council resolution 1540 (2004) is to prevent non-State actors from accessing weapons of mass destruction. Unfortunately, the threats and risks that the resolution aimed to tackle 15 years ago are still present
This new guide accompanies the IPU flagship publication Common Principles for Support to Parliaments.
The IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians is the only international mechanism with the remit of protecting and defending MPs suffering human right violations. This map lists the number of human rights cases examined by the Committee in
Reference
These guidelines offer advice and practical information for parliamentarians and parliamentary staff on how to transform parliaments into gender-sensitive environments free from sexism and abuse. Learn more about the IPU's work on gender equality.