Six years of conflict have taken a tremendous toll on the Syrian people, particularly women and girls. Not only is sexual violence used as a weapon of war, but the conflict has exacerbated many forms of violence against women and girls, from rape and sexual assault to forced and early marriages. Most communities have few resources to support survivors, with little medical or psychosocial care equipped to meet their needs, limited or non-existent judiciary and law enforcement institutions to pursue cases, a culture of impunity, and persistent stigmatization of survivors.

Women in Somalia continue to face significant obstacles that limit their political participation. Along with institutional and financial constraints that prevent women from running for office, women also face technical capacity challenges and other barriers including the central role of clan-based power in the electoral process. This central role of clan-based power traditionally opposed women’s political participation and inclusion in decision-making and heightened the harassment and intimidation women candidates faced by their male counterparts and traditional elders.

On March 20, NDI kicked off its fifth Week of Women (WoW), an annual event held in Kosovo to draw attention to the need for more women in politics, provide training and networking opportunities for women leaders, and foster institutional support to promote women within parties and within the political process more broadly.

In Guatemala, women are underrepresented in politics and face significant barriers to entry in the political arena, including discrimination and violence. Although women comprise 51 percent of the population, they only hold 15 percent, or 24 out of 158, of the seats in congress. To reduce obstacles and increase political participation, NDI trains women candidates and recently elected women to build skills to effectively govern and advocate for initiatives that are beneficial to all women.

Guinean women in local political parties and civil society organizations (CSOs) are frustrated over the current state of women’s political inclusion in Guinea:  “We are tired of singing and dancing,” said Mama Kouyate of the ruling Rally of the Guinea People (Rassemblement du Peuple Guineen - RPG Arc en Ciel) during a recent advocacy workshop organized by NDI.