Gender
Participation of Indigenous Women in Governance Processes and Local Governments. Case Studies: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru
This study aims to mainstream lessons learnt about indigenous women's participation in governance processes and in local governments - particularly in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru - and to identify critical areas of intervention to strengthen indigenous women's participation in local governance.
Authors:
A Castro; G Cliche; C Ranaboldo
Publisher:
United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women , 2006
Are indigenous women meaningfully participating in local governance processes in Latin America? This study aims to mainstream lessons learnt about indigenous women's participation in governance processes and in local governments, particularly in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru, and to identify critical areas of intervention to strengthen indigenous women's participation in local governance. It reveals that the participation of large numbers of indigenous women in local politics and municipal governments is not in itself a useful indicator of their systematic participation in decision-making. Indeed, an analysis of quota systems shows that, although fundamental to increasing women's overall representation, they do not adequately visibilise indigenous women's perspectives and do not guarantee the exercise of their democratic rights. Rather, indigenous women's organisations and public institutions and policies need to co-ordinate better. Indigenous women's organisations need to strengthen their capacity for dialogue and develop their own agendas, and public institutions need to be more responsive and open to a horizontal and democratic dialogue.
The study argues that it makes more sense to focus efforts on small scale community-based context-specific projects that are adequately monitored and evaluated rather than big scale development programmes based on universal assumptions; to strengthen grass-root indigenous women's and girls' organisations; and to experiment with innovative projects that focus on co-responsibility and co-ownership with the community. Recommendations include: fund initiatives designed to integrate gendered perspectives into local governance; big research institutions should work closely with Latin American local organisations which are already working on similar topics; create spaces where local governments with experience of substantive and meaningful participation of indigenous women can share their experiences with local governments that have just started similar processes.
