Governance

This paper describes initiatives in Ghana to promote the participation of women in local governance and the role of European support. Local governance is interpreted as the active involvement of the local population within the territorial boundaries of a local government in ensuring improved quality of service and leadership at the local [government] level. It includes greater participation by civil society in decision-making processes and involves consensus-building and civic awareness. In view of this, the paper focuses on efforts to increase women's participation as councilors and as well as initiatives to enhance the involvement of women and women groups in decision-making, requiring accountability and accessing support from local governments. It also presents interventions promoted through local governments to reduce poverty and promote socio-economic development targeted at women and seeking to bridge gender gaps and the European support in these efforts. Beyond this general support, it also looks at the work of the Institute of Local Government Studies in this area and European involvement in this capacity-building and coordinating institution.

The Women's Tribunal was conceived as an opportunity for grassroots women leaders across the country to come together and make a strong statement on the experiences of women who face acute social and economic discrimination - including dalits, denotified & nomadic tribes, adivasis, forest dwellers, Muslim minorities, women with disabilities and single women.

About 400 women from 20 states presented their experiences, testimonies and petitions as part of this effort. The event saw the involvement of distinguished panel of jurists, academia, trade unions, and national networks.

Good governance and gender equality have been at the cutting edge of development debates over the last decade. Empirical evidence shows that both are central to development. This gap between de jure and de facto equality has sharpened the focus on women access to, and participation in, structures and processes of governance. It is now generally accepted that unless women constitute a `critical mass of at least one third of those in decision making, their mere presence makes little difference to the outcomes of governance. The mere presence of women in structures of governance justifiable in its own right in equity terms does not guarantee that gender considerations are mainstreamed in laws, policies and programmes.

Understanding of gender issues in governance, therefore, requires looking at participation and decision making of women and men in the different institutions. Therefore, addressing gender gaps in governance would entail what is the meaning of engendering different institutions and at what levels, for good governance to take place.

In May of 2003, Rwandans ratified a new constitution that requires the participation of women in 30% of decision-making positions. In October of 2003, Rwanda's post-genocide transition officially came to a close with Parliamentary elections. In those elections, Rwandan women earned 49% of seats in Rwanda's new bicameral legislature, through election and appointment. This means that Rwanda has the highest percentage of women in its legislative branch, of any country, anywhere in the world.

Women are not among the major users of existing governance indicators, primarily because the indicators are gender blind and not relevant to women's needs.  Exceptions are the indicator on women's participation in parliaments maintained by the International Parliament Union, and the IDEA International database on electoral quotas for women.  Both have been widely and actively used by women parliamentarians and women's political groups to support lobbying and advocacy to increase women's participation in national parliaments, often through the use of electoral quotas.

Although women have historically played an essential role in politics, revolutionary struggles, and public life in Sub-Saharan Africa, since the early 1990s the number of women in African parliaments has increased significantly. This consolidated response discusses factors stimulating the advancement of women in politics in Sub-Saharan Africa. Some of the highlighted factors include gender quotas in politics, national women's movements, and the spillover effect of democratic values throughout the continent.