World’s Top Women Leaders 2011

Women’s Political Participation – September 19, 2011

The United NATIONS

Making Gender Equality in Politics a Reality

United Nations, New York — At a high-level event next week during the 66th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, women political leaders will strongly call for increasing women’s political participation and decision-making across the world. Stressing that women’s participation is essential in all contexts — during peace, through conflict and post-conflict, and during political transitions — the leaders will sign on to a joint statement, as a call to action, with concrete recommendations on ways to advance women’s political participation.

WHAT: Women’s Political Participation – Making Gender Equality in Politics a Reality

WHEN: Monday, 19 September 2011, 3:00–5:00 p.m. EDT

WHERE: UN Headquarters, North Lawn Building, Conference Room 3

World’s Top Women Political Leaders, 2011

• H.E. Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil

 

• The Honourable Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

 

 

• H.E. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State of the United States of America

 

 

• Rt. Hon. Baroness Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission

 

 

• H.E. Roza Otunbayeva, President of the Kyrgyz Republic

 

 

• Lilia Labidi, Minister of Women’s Affairs, Republic of Tunisia

 

 

• Helen Clark, Under-Secretary-General and Administrator, UN Development Programme

 

 

• Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director, UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

 

 

Background:

• Women make up less than 10 percent of world leaders.
• Globally, less than one in five members of parliament is a woman.
• The 30 percent critical mass mark for women’s representation in parliament has been reached or exceeded in only 28 countries, of which at least 23 have used quotas.
• Local governments in all world regions are far from achieving gender balance.
• Women continue to be on the frontlines of wars — facing mass rapes to mass displacements. Yet women’s roles and rights continue to be overlooked at peace talks.
• Since 1992, fewer than 10 percent of peace negotiators have been women and fewer than 6 percent of reconstruction budgets specifically provide for the needs of women and girls.

 

Webcast: The event will webcast live at www.un.org/webcast .

Twitter: Live tweeting with hashtag #WomenLeaders.

A Celebration of Women

sends our gratitude to all these WOMEN of ACTION that devote their lives to

 the Empowerment of ALL WOMEN

Brava Women Leaders !!!