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Hungry for good news about politics? Here’s some: more women than ever before are participating in politics worldwide. It’s a global trend that signals positive outcomes for inclusive governance.
The right to vote is unfortunately still not completely accessible to all citizens in North Macedonia. 76 percent of voting stations have stairs and half of them (49% percent) have no access ramps. One third of access ramps cannot be used, due to improper inclination and width. These are some of the findings of the monitoring of parliamentary elections 2020 in North Macedonia conducted by persons with disabilities.
Political parties have a key role to play in addressing some of the long-standing barriers facing PWDs. To support political parties to be more inclusive, WFD Kenya facilitated the review of 11 political parties’ documents – including policies and manifestos – to identify the areas where the documents promote or inhibit the inclusion of PWDs in their activities, practices, and processes.
To support the Parliament of Sierra Leone in its commitment towards providing the best parliamentary services to its citizens, WFD partnered with the legislature of the West African state in developing and unveiling the institution’s service charter.
In these worrying times, here are 4 things parliaments and their members can do to fight back against shrinking civic space
To support women on their pathway to change, WFD provided direct, individual support to around 30 young women politicians in Bosnia and Herzegovina through networking and mentoring, as well as building their skills. Following the programme, young women leaders who took part were at the forefront of a variety of changes and initiatives to benefit the whole of society.
WFD has been working with the parliament of Kenya to continue its journey to become more open and transparent.
Ahead of the 2021 general election in 2023, the nation’s electoral body, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), partnered with WFD to organise a workshop for its members to review the Voter Education Manual.
Working with the parliament in Edo State, WFD has been supporting the adoption and implementation of the Open Government Partnership.
The establishment of a coalition for change rallying government representatives, businesses, education and civil society actors and an important study on the cost on youth emigration, supported by WFD, led to raising awareness on the issue, the inclusion of the cost of youth emigration in the proposal of the government’s Strategy on Economic Migration of the Republic of Serbia and the establishing of the ‘Returning Point” program.
WFD facilitated the establishment of a coalition for change which brought together civil society organisations, youth organisations, members of parliament, government officials, and PWDs, to advocate for significant changes for issues that affect PWDs.
From 1 to 5 March 2021, WFD will be marking Participation and Openness Week – or POW! The week is about celebrating the power of citizens and civil society to participate in democracy and share their thoughts about government and parliaments, their members and their staff.
Ahead of the 2022 general election in Kenya, persons with disabilities (PWDs) in continue to face systemic exclusion. This presents a big challenge with respect to promoting the rights of PWDs. To help address this challenge, WFD held a series of in-person and online trainings for political parties, disabled persons organizations and civil society organizations.
Building a democracy that all Americans can be proud of will take courage and fortitude, and the wisdom to see that that task can never be complete. My greatest hope is that this journey begins now, before it is too late. The whole world is watching.
As democratic representatives of the people, parliaments have the key responsibility of examining policies and their impact on citizens. This is essential in times of a crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. In July 2020, WFD launched a project focused on supporting the Parliament of Sierra Leone by improving its access to crucial gender–sensitive data during the pandemic.
