Political participation
"If you want democracy, then the starting point must be equality."
Fernando Henrique Cardoso
Women began to get the vote a century ago. But a hundred years later, countries across the world are still ruled overwhelmingly by men.
In many countries, formal and informal barriers deny women the right to participate equally in public service, business and all aspects of public life. And women continue to be badly under-represented in parliaments and government.
But where women have been given a more powerful voice, we have seen a welcome change in priorities reflecting the broader views and needs of the community.
We need to build on this progress to remove barriers to participation and enable more women to take senior positions in politics, business and public life.
Across the world, women are on the march politically. Chile has elected a woman as head of state. So has Liberia. Rwanda has become the first country where women make up over 50 per cent of MPs.
Even in countries where women were long denied the vote, they are now gaining ministerial positions. Women voted for the first time in Kuwait in 2005 and the first woman minister was appointed a month later.
But despite this progress, there is a huge amount more to do. There are still five men for every woman in parliament around the world. Women are much less likely than men to hold senior positions in government institutions, the corporate sector and even civil society. Only the Nordic countries as a region come close to political equality.
This is not a gender imbalance which is restricted to the developing world. There are more women in parliament in Angola than the UK, and in Bangladesh than the USA. But in all parts of the world, women face barriers based on deep-seated prejudices which discourage them from running for office, prevent them being selected as candidates and reduce their chances of being elected if they stand.
This inequality has a real and damaging impact on the directions that societies take and how successfully they tackle the challenges they face. Studies - and experience - show that women are more likely in parliament and government to focus on improving a country's health, on children's education, welfare and the environment - all vital for a country's strength and prosperity.
It is important for a country's future success to support steps to bring about more equal representation. The use of quotas, for example, to bring women into elected office is on the increase, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, and in post-conflict countries.
We must also tackle the informal barriers to women playing a more active role in governance such as the lack of role models, discrimination in the selection of political candidates and the undervaluing of women's views in the media and in public debate.
The more female role models that women and girls can see, the more likely they are to follow in their footsteps. This is why the election of women to positions of power, as well as improving access to training for positions of responsibility, is such an important step towards achieving political equality.
Although there remain many challenges to overcome, equal representation of men and women in political life is a seminal step towards true equality in all aspects of life.