Geneva, 4th March 2016
 
 An increase in the number of women Speakers of Parliament during 2015  and some regional successes were among the few highlights in what
 proved to be yet another disappointing year for women¹s participation  in parliament, says the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).
 
 IPU¹s ³Women in Parliament 2015: the Year in Review² released ahead of  International Women¹s Day on 8 March, showed that for the second year
 in a row, the number of women Members of Parliament (MPs) across the  world rose by a worryingly low 0.5 percentage point. Women now account
 for 22.6 per cent of the world¹s MPs.
 
 Although this figure is an all-time high and represents the continued  upward trend for women in parliament, the rate of progress in 2015 was
 another setback from the 1.5 percentage point increase witnessed in  2013. That leap forward had raised hopes that if such a level of
 progress could be sustained, gender parity in parliament could be  achieved within a generation.
 
 With the percentage of women MPs in the world growing by just 6.4  points in the past 10 years, the snail-pace of 2015 has done little to
 inspire confidence that the trend will change any time soon.
 
 ³The world has set new goals on gender equality and women¹s full and  equal participation at all levels of decision-making within 15 years.
 IPU¹s 2015 statistics on women in parliament underline the urgent need  for creative solutions and changing mindsets if there is any chance of
 meeting goals on political participation and empowerment,² says IPU  Secretary General Martin Chungong.
 
 The low increase among women MPs is in sharp contrast to the  relatively more positive development concerning women parliamentary
 leaders. The number of women Speakers of Parliament jumped from 43 to  49 (out of the 273 posts globally). Women now account for 17.9 per cent
 of all Speakers.
 
 This 2.1 percentage point increase from 2014 figures means that the  number of women Speakers is also at a record high. History was made in
 Namibia and Nepal, whose parliaments now have their first ever woman  Speaker. It was made in the United Arab Emirates too, where the first
 woman Speaker of the Federal National Council also became the first  woman Speaker in the Arab world.
 
 As parliamentary leaders are among the most powerful political figures  in their countries, women Speakers are not only critical role models
 and mentors for other women MPs, they are also vital to changing  mindsets on delivering change.
 
 Regional highlights
 
 In a year where parliamentary elections took place in 58 countries,  some regions did better than others and a few individual countries
 made dramatic progress.
 
 The Americas, which has consistently held the highest regional average  for women in parliament, once again bucked the global trend. Larger
 numbers of women candidates or their placement higher up on electoral  lists, as well as the implementation of quotas or gender parity laws
 saw the Americas increase its regional average for women MPs by 0.8  percentage point. Women now account for 27.2 per cent of all MPs in the region.
 
 In sub-Saharan Africa, where violence and conflict marred elections in  a number of countries, women MPs nevertheless increased their numbers
 by 0.7 percentage point. With a regional average of 23.2 per cent  women MPs, strongest electoral gains were made in Ethiopia and
 Tanzania, due mainly to quotas.
 
 In Europe, voluntary quotas adopted by political parties in the United  Kingdom or an equality law in Spain saw national milestones reached in
 both countries with the highest ever number of women MPs elected.  Overall, Europe¹s regional average increased by 0.4 percentage point
 to 25.4 per cent for women MPs.
 
 The Arab world continued to move forward on women¹s political  participation, increasing its regional average by 0.3 percentage point
 to 17.5 per cent. A new parliamentary law in Egypt, defined after IPU  provided guidance on enhancing women¹s political participation in the
 country, and a national electoral law in Sudan contributed to the progress  made in this region.
 
 Both the Asia and Pacific regions, however, remained virtually static  with just a 0.1 percentage point increase in their numbers of women
 MPs.  Over 10 years, these regions have seen the least progress on  women¹s participation in parliament.
 
 The top five countries where women MPs made the biggest gains were  Suriname, Egypt, Ethiopia, Myanmar and the UK. Increases in numbers
 there ranged from 15.7 to 7.4 percentage points respectively.
 
 The most dramatic national setbacks were in Andorra, Croatia and  Burkina Faso. Here, the percentage of women MPs dropped by 14.3, 8.6
 and 6.3 percentage points respectively, with an absence of quotas the  main cause for the slide in Andorra. The number of parliaments in the
 world with no women at all also rose from five to seven.
 
 The way ahead
 
 Parliamentary election results in 2015 showed once again that quotas  and proportional representation systems are more effective in getting
 more women into parliament. However, success continues to depend on  how such measures or systems are implemented.
 
 The IPU report also highlights the need to tackle impediments to women  running for office, such as the lack of adequate finance for their
 campaigns, and reiterates the critical role of political parties in  changing the status quo.
 
 The decision by individual political parties in some countries to  field higher numbers of women candidates or to place them in winnable
 positions shows what political leadership, will and vision can do to  bring positive change,² adds Secretary General Chungong. ³What we saw
 more of in 2015, however, was government leaders, including in Canada,  increasingly setting the pace on women¹s equal participation at
 ministerial level. Parliaments must not lag behind.²