Feature Article

For some time, professional women have been making significant strides in the workplace and their enhanced presence is producing a positive difference. The attributes, assets and abilities of women wherever they work in their chosen fields contribute

immensely to the benefit of society. Moreover, women’s values, standards and judgments are increasingly being recognized and appreciated. This Newsletter will present evidence of women’s singular contributions gathered from the results of studies, reports, surveys, analyses, and data that appear from time to time that draw attention to women’s positive role and performance in the world at large.

Heightened Presence of Women in the World’s Parliaments – A recent compilation by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), an organization founded in 1889 and now part of the United Nations network, showed that of 181 countries observed, at least 167 have legislatures with seats held by women. Globally, as of October 2003,

the percentage of women parliamentarians in the lower or single chamber (some countries have a unicameral legislature) was a record 15.2%. The highest percentage was scored by Rwanda where, following recent elections, women won 48.8% of seats in the House and 30% in the Senate. Sweden and Denmark were next in line: Women there occupied 45.3% and 38% of seats in their respective one-chamber parliaments. The top ten rankings included seven European countries, two Latin American and one from Africa.

In the United States, women accounted for 14.3% of House of Representative seats and tied with Andorra for 60th place in ranking. There are now 62 women members in the U.S. House and 13 in the Senate. Given its vast population, China had the largest number of women in its single chamber: 650 women out of 2,984. Nine countries had more than one hundred women in their legislature. It should be noted that in some countries a share or quota of seats, by law, is allocated to women.