Making Gender Matter in Ethiopian Politics: The Case for Woman Parliament Members and Candidates of Political Parties in Addis Abba, Ethiopia

This project recognizes the recent developments across the world, including in Ethiopia, that have resulted in the rise in the number of women actively participating in politics. First as voters, and later as candidates and elected leaders. The project further recognizes that the existence of elected representatives of women in political spaces with the power to make decisions has not effectively resulted in the expected gender-sensitive public policies, budgets and legislation. The project attributes this to the limited awareness of the elected women leaders of the gender issues in communities; the non-existence of platforms for women in communities to engage with their leaders; and the absence of opportunities for stakeholder collaborations on advancing gender issues through political representation. The project thus proposes to address this gap by piloting a series of interventions in Addis Ababa, over 3 years, aimed at building the capacity of representatives of women in parliament and political parties on gender; building the capacity of women in communities to regularly and effectively engage with their representatives; and establishing networks for collaboration amongst civil society organizations, parliamentarians, political parties, and women in communities.