In 1995, the year of the signing of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action on gender equality and empowerment, the proportion of women holding seats in parliament was 11.3%. Twenty-five years later, women hold only 25% of seats in parliament. Women account for more than half of the world’s population, yet representative inequalities in national parliaments prevent their voices, concerns, and needs from being heard.

The same is true for socio-economic legislation that upholds the principle of equality. According to the 2020 Women, Business and the Law Report, only eight economies fully enshrined gender equality in their socio-economic legislation and policies.

Ending gender inequalities relies on improving other areas of development, such as decision-making structures, education, economic opportunity, and vice versa. This paper, in keeping with the underlying principle of the interconnectedness of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, maintains that when more female parliamentarians are able to take a seat at the decision-making table, and champion gender-sensitive socio-economic policies, all of society benefits – not just women.