G20 brings together 3,067 women members of parliament and 840 women senators
The women´s caucus in the parliaments representing the world’s largest economies, gathered at the G20 international cooperation forum, totals 3,067 women members of parliament and 840 women senators. Many of these leaders are expected to convene in Brazil this year during the First P20 Meeting of Women Parliamentarians.
According to data from the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the House of Representatives or unicameral Parliament of G20 countries averages 29% of female representation, which is above the global average of 25% in other parliaments.
Just as the G20 exhibits economic inequalities between industrialized and developing countries, the map of seats in the legislature reveals differences in female representation. However, the wealthiest countries do not always have more women in powerful positions.
Mexico leads the G20 countries in terms of female parliamentary representation, with women occupying half of the seats in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. In the IPU’s global gender equality ranking, Mexico’s parliament ranks fourth out of 186 countries. This position is the result of gender parity policies in legislative candidacies, adopted through a constitutional reform in 2014.
Two other developing countries, South Africa and Argentina, follow closely in the list of G20 parliaments with the highest percentage of female representatives, with 46% and 42% respectively in the lower house.
With 18% female members, Brazil ranks only 16th among G20 countries in terms of the number of women in parliament. Nonetheless, the current women’s caucus is the largest in the history of the Brazilian Congress and has grown significantly in recent years. In 2018, women occupied only 10% of the seats in the House of Representatives—equivalent to the number of female members in Japan, the G20 country with the lowest number of women in parliament.
