Category: News
For the past 10 years, WPL has emerged as a global force in increasing the number and influence of women in political leadership positions. WPL efforts have been supported by partnerships and contributions of many outstanding leaders. In recognition of the many achievements of the past decade, WPL invites members and partners to mark WPL’s […]
The Women’s Political Careers report spells out the non-legal barriers for women in politics. It is based on survey responses from women politicians in 66 countries seeking to better understand the motivations and challenges shared by women who decide to pursue a political career. The report is the result of a partnership between the Global […]
The Munich Security Conference (MSC) is the world’s largest conference on international security policy held annually since 1963. Peace and Security has long been a men-dominated arena where women leaders have persistently been underrepresented, despite some progress. For this reason, Women Political Leaders (WPL) has partnered since 2016 with MSC to ensure that more women […]
Press Release – February 1, 2023 – WPL is honoured to announce the appointment of Obiageli “Oby” Katryn Ezekwesili, Founder & President of Human Capital Africa (HCA); Founder & Chair, SPPG/FixPolitics; Senior Economic Advisor, The Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative (AEDPI), as Chair of the WPL Board as of the 1st of February, 2023. The […]
The Women Political Leaders (WPL) Trailblazer Awards honour the achievements of The Rt. Hon. Bidya Devi Bhandari, President of Nepal, and Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, National Leader of Belarus and Head of the United Transitional Cabinet. Press Release – November 9, 2022 – The awardees of the WPL Trailblazer Award were announced today at the 2022 Reykjavík […]
The #WPL4Peace Initiative will be awarded the Silver Rose Award for Peace and Common Security during an official ceremony in the European Parliament in Brussels. The #WPL4Peace campaign emerged in support of the open letter dated February 13th, 2022 addressed to Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Iceland, Þórdís Kolbrún R. Gylfadóttir, Minister for Foreign Affairs, and […]
Iceland, 16 March 2022 – Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister, Birgir Ármannsson, Speaker of Parliament, and Silvana Koch-Mehrin, Founder and President of Women Political Leaders (WPL) signed an agreement in the Prime Minister’s Office today. The agreement entails the continuation of the cooperation between the Government of Iceland, Parliament, and Women Political Leaders which will see […]
Brussels, March 2022 – Women Political Leaders (WPL) is honoured to welcome Delphine O as WPL Special Envoy for Generation Equality. Delphine O has served as a Member of the French National Assembly from 2017 to 2019 and has recently been appointed as the Secretary-General of the Generation Equality Forum in 2021. As a […]
Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Minister Þórdís Kolbrún R. Gylfadóttir, Mayor Dagur Bergþóruson Eggertsson, Iceland is the country of peace, and Iceland is the world champion of women in leadership. WPL as the global non-partisan network of women politicians appeals to you as the leaders of Iceland to immediately offer an invitation to the President […]
Women Political Leaders (WPL) has been closely monitoring the developments in Afghanistan since the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces – which was completed at the end of August. Despite the Taliban’s repeated assurances to the international community about establishing an inclusive government that represents all parts of society, Afghan women politicians are not only […]
It is estimated that it will take 145.5 years to attain parity between men and women in politics. Not only is women’s access to entering politics around the world hindered by structural, socioeconomic, institutional, and cultural barriers, but also those who have managed to break the political glass ceiling can be confronted with yet more […]
High-quality leadership is at the heart of successful response to challenges, which are now amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. WPL is appointing Global Ambassadors, renowned women who will contribute their expertise and knowledge to help drive global discussions on topical issues such as vaccination and climate. WPL Global Ambassadors are: Aminata Touré, Prime Minister of […]
This year’s theme for the International Women’s Day 2021 is “Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world.” In alignment with the Generation Equality campaign, the theme commemorates the tremendous efforts by women and girls around the world in shaping a more equal future and recovery from a global crisis. The perspectives […]
Out of 152 countries in the world, only 10 have a woman leading as Head of State, and Estonia is among them. In 2021, this Baltic nation shattered yet another glass ceiling, becoming the first country in the world to have two women concurrently serving as both Head of State and Head of Government. The […]
The family picture of G20 leaders has been recently circulated worldwide. The reality is stark: one must look very closely to find the women in this group. And this problem is by no means exclusive to the G20. Consider any similar high-profile assembly – summits of the African Union, APEC, the European Union, the OECD, […]
In 1986, US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev met in Reykjavík, Iceland, at the emblematic Höfði House, and progress achieved at that summit led to the end of the Cold War. Women, however, were conspicuously absent from that gathering. This year, during the Reykjavík Global Forum 2020, women Presidents, Prime Ministers, and […]
The Women Political Leaders Trailblazer Award 2020 recognises the outstanding achievement of six women Presidents and Prime Ministers who are paving the way for others by breaking the glass ceiling. Every year, they are presented on the occasion of the Reykjavík Global Forum – Women Leaders, which took place this year, on 9-11 November. […]
A WPL-Centene report casts light on how COVID-19 is impacting mental health This year, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected billions of people and has subsequently impacted many people’s mental health. According to the World Health Organisation close to 1 billion people are living with a mental disorder, 3 million people die every year from the […]
Members of the Women Political Leaders Board affirm that COVID-19 presents the opportunity to create a ‘new normal’ to return to; one that fosters equality and delivers on promises of equitable leadership. On the occasion of the Global Webinar they shared their visions on how women leaders can establish this new normal through 1) restructuring […]
On World Refugee Day 2020, Women Political Leaders wishes to amplify the power of acceptance and the power of recognition. Alongside the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ (UNHCR) campaign Every Action Counts, WPL highlights that women’s journeys count. Refugees, and women refugees in particular, endure crises that are more intense and harmful than many […]
What will the future in front of us look like? When will we get out of this epochal pandemic? What are the best practices to achieve so? Have you ever asked yourself how can the global community make better decisions and promote best practices surrounding COVID-19 testing and de-confinement worldwide? Women political leaders have already […]