WINGS: Women's International News Gathering Service - WINGS #10-24 Parliament Women Lead

Radio Project Front Page Podcast

The International Parliamentary Union (IPU) is an organization currently comprising 180 of the 190 national parliaments currently functioning in the world. One of their activities is ranking countries by the percentage of women in their legislative bodies. As of April 24, 2024, Rwanda still held the top spot, followed by Cuba, Nicaragua and Mexico - Australia was in 32nd place - Canada, 65th. The US was tied with Iraq for 72nd place. These percentages have a lot to do with the countries' electoral systems - as Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, and Irish Senator Lorraine Clifford-Lee explain. New Zealand was ranked in 16th place for percentage of women in Parliament, and Ireland [103rd] one hundred and third. But even at just 37%, Irish women have influence in Parliament. The two women politicians explain the special barriers that women in politics so often face, and the how and why of examples of legislative successes from their respective countries.