“Gender Quota Now”: A roadmap to endorse the Gender Quota Law in Municipal Elections

This event represented a pivotal milestone in advancing inclusive, representative, and democratic governance in Lebanon, with a focused emphasis on increasing women’s participation and representation in decision-making positions and political life. A key recommendation repeatedly emphasized by participants was the urgent need for Parliament to pass the gender quota law as an urgent and expedited legislation. This measure is deemed essential to guaranteeing women's representation in upcoming municipal elections.

In her remarks, UNDP Resident Representative, Ms. Blerta Aliko, emphasized Lebanon’s need for action, stating: “Today in Lebanon, women hold only 6.25% of seats in the parliament, and 5.4% in municipal councils. These figures are among the lowest in the region, highlighting the urgent need for more effective measures, particularly gender quotas, to drive meaningful change”. Ms. Aliko confirmed UNDP’s commitment “to advocating for the adoption of the gender quota law, which fosters greater inclusion and representation towards a more equitable and democratic society. By supporting women’s equal and meaningful political participation in Lebanon, we are strengthening the country’s governance and advancing gender equality." 

Ms Geilan Al-Messiri, UN Women Resident Representative in Lebanon, stated: “We are proud to partner with the government of Canada and UNDP through this project that aims to promote women’s leadership and political participation in decision making bodies. We are encouraged by the constructive discussions on how to accelerate the achievement of gender-balanced participation and representation in decision making bodies in Lebanon.” 

The event opened with remarks from the President of “Fifty-Fifty,” Ms. Joelle Abou Farhat, who posed a direct question to policymakers: 

“If women do not need a quota, why have they not reached these positions until now? And if you truly believe in the role of women, why don’t you support them without implementing the quota?” She added, “The reality contradicts what we often hear. This is why the quota law must be enforced to ensure that political parties appoint women and include them on electoral lists.”

After the opening remarks, a presentation was delivered explaining the rationale and information related to the proposed gender quota law. This was followed by a moderated open discussion, providing stakeholders and experts with an opportunity to share their perspectives, concerns, and recommendations for advancing the law.

The roundtable provided a critical platform for key stakeholders, including decision-makers, members of the parliament, international community representatives, and legal and elections experts to engage in strategic dialogue on forward-moving the adoption of the gender quota law…  

 The proposed gender quota law was developed as a temporary special measure to promote women’s political representation and participation in municipal elections. It was drafted by legal and electoral experts, with support from UNDP in collaboration with Fifty-Fifty. The proposal provides for a 30% reserved seats quota for municipalities with 9 and 12 members, and a 50% reserved seats quota for municipalities with 15, 18, 21, and 24 members. This will result in an estimated 40% overall women representation in all municipalities.

Following the standard legal procedure, the law proposal was signed by 10 Members of Parliament, marking significant progress in legislative advocacy efforts, and was introduced to the agenda of the relevant parliamentary committees for further discussion and approval, before being submitted for endorsement during the plenary parliamentary sessions.