Women in Power

Women account for approximately two-thirds of the 1.4 billion people globally who live in extreme poverty, but are being shut out of decision making that has a profound impact on their lives. VSO is campaigning against this injustice.

Women still remain unheard in many parts of the world.

All over the world, women suffer the most from poverty, but have the least say in what is done to tackle it. They account for approximately two-thirds of the 1.4 billion people globally who live in extreme poverty, but are being shut out of decision-making that has a profound impact on their lives and those of their families.

Globally, only 20% of parliamentarians and 15 heads of government are female. Only 20% of local government officials are female. Based on current trends, women will not be equally represented in parliaments until 2060, and will not make up half the world’s leaders until 2118.

Read our stories from across the world about how decision-making power among women ensures their specific needs and interests are promoted and defended.

2015: our chance for change

2015 is an important year for gender equality and international development.  In September all UN Member States will agree the post 2015 development framework – the Sustainable Development Goals. The process for negotiating the new framework is now underway. VSO is part of the action/2015 campaign, pressing for a strong post-2015 framework that will have the maximum impact on poverty reduction.

Our recommendations to all member states include:

• A strong standalone goal on gender equality and women’s rights.
• A target to increase the participation and influence of women at all levels of decision making in public and political life.
• Specific indicators that measure the real extent of women’s involvement and influence across all decision making structures.

The process for developing global indicators is now underway. As part of the Gender and Development Network, VSO has helped develop a joint briefing paper (PDF) setting out recommendations on global indicators on women’s participation and leadership at all levels of decision-making.

Increasing women’s participation in decision-making has the potential to improve the lives of countless men and women living in poverty around the world.  We need to seize the opportunity that the post-2015 framework presents to drive forward progress on this critical issue.

VSO resources

• Women in Power: beyond access to influence in a post-2015 world – August 2013
• Volunteerism and the Post-2015 agenda: full report and two-page summary
• Measuring progress on women’s participation and influence in decision-making in the SDGs: Recommendations to the Inter-agency and Expert Group and UN Member States (PDF)

 External resources

• Beyond 2015 response to the ‘final draft of the Post-2015 Development Agenda outcome document’ (July 2015)
• Lima Declaration signed at IVCO 2014 (October 2014)

Press release

• DFID vision for women and girls an important commitment and action must tackle harmful norms and attitudes
• VSO says excluding women from politics is a barrier to ending global poverty