Gender and Post-Conflict Governance: Understanding the Challenges
Publisher: UN Women
Date: 2012
Topics: Gender, Governance, Livelihoods, Protection and Access to Justice
Around the world, as countries undertake transitions towards peace, good governance and democracy, women have asserted their demands for participation, representation, accountability and political freedom.
As universal as these goals are, they nevertheless remain elusive. Progress has been slow in increasing numbers of women in elected representative office – they still average just one in five parliamentarians globally and are also poorly represented in local decision-making bodies, whether as mayors and local council members or in appointed positions in institutions such as the public administration.
However, increasing the number of women in public office is not sufficient. Beyond numeric representation women also need their interests to be substantively represented in order for governance processes to advance women’s social, political and economic outcomes. Gender-responsive governance reforms are intended to connect the numeric and the substantive represen - tation of women. Gender-responsive governance ensures that institutions respond more effectively to women’s needs and priorities; enhance women’s wellbeing, livelihoods and citizen - ship rights; and build government institutions that require and produce more participation by women, and not only by women elites, but also by grassroots women.