Key Challenges for Women’s Leadership in Local Government Ratna M. Sudarshan Director, Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi

Regional perspective: women’s presence Decentralisation present across South Asia Different systems and levels – three tier structures in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka; two tier in Bhutan, Nepal Reservation/ quota found in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan; no quota in Bhutan, Sri Lanka

Regional systems of decentralisation BangladeshThree tier structure (District, Sub-District and Union Council). Article 9 rep. of women at local level; Pourshava and City Corporation Ordinance reserves 1/3 of total seats for women BhutanTwo- tier: districts and blocks of villages No quota for women. IndiaThree tier: district panchayats, panchayat samitis and gram panchayats 33 percent of seats in local bodies are reserved for women MaldivesNo quota for women

Regional systems of decentralisation NepalTwo tier: district, and municipality and village panchayats Local Self Governance Act reserves 20 percent of seats for women in local bodies PakistanThree tier: zila( district), tehsil (town) and village (union) councils. Devolution of power plan, devolves 33 percent of reserved seats to women Sri LankaThree-tier: municipal councils, urban councils and pradeshiya sabhas No quota

How should we understand women’s ‘empowerment’ in political spaces? - numbers? - ‘equal to men’ – ability to do what is required? - bringing about change?

Key challenges facing women leaders in local government Essential: Getting elected – information, ‘fair play’ and resources Capacity building – knowledge of the system, rights and duties

Key challenges facing women leaders in local government Desirable? Bringing new issues on to the agenda – the specificity of women’s experience Influencing allocations in response to these issues – tangible impact of women’s presence Introducing processes and systems that address care responsibilities and allow more effective participation of women – sensitivity to women’s roles

Structure and agency: is anyone empowered? Indian experience Panchayati Raj Minister - priority areas for action are devolution of functions, finances and functionaries. Functions: active measures to synchronise development works with panchayat bodies. Finances: budget head for each department, so that it could be linked to the Panchayati Raj Institutions Functionaries - greater stress on district level planning in each state

Approach in India Affirmative action through reservations (one third of seats in Panchayati Raj Institutions) India: reservation is 33.3 per cent, actual representation is 37 per cent (ranging from 33 in Andhra Pradesh to 54 in Bihar). Women have been elected both in reserved and unreserved constituencies. System of rotation – EWR doesn’t have the same reserved seat available at the next election (except in Tamil Nadu where reservation is for 10 years)

Ensuring inclusion Innovation – example from Himachal Pradesh: ‘Mahila Gram Sabha’ held prior to regular Gram Sabha to pull together women’s issues.

Observations from the field ‘Whatever you can rightly say about India, the opposite is also true.’ Joan Robinson Frequently observed ‘sarpanch patis’ - de facto governance by male members of the family but also examples of empowered women leaders

Enabling factors: organising and voice Women with experience of being part of a women’s group prior to getting elected to panchayat had the opportunity of  developing qualities of leadership  working in a group  negotiating with men of the village, articulating needs and issues

Constraining factors: can we overcome these? Constraining factors:  limited decentralization of powers  little scope to decide use of funds  established arrangements (often with stated percentage payments) – women toe the line, allow sarpanch patis to decide, do not extend the boundaries of the discourse