The National Democratic Institute (NDI) honored Senator Barbara Mikulski, D-MD, with its W. Averell Harriman Democracy Award for her decades of leadership advocating for democracy and the advancement of women and girls.
The award was presented by NDI Chairman and former Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright at a May 12 luncheon highlighting the efforts of grassroots women’s organizations to promote the participation and leadership of women in politics.
Maka Meshveliani, NDI’s 2015 Andi Parhamovich Fellow, came to Washington, D.C., with a mission.
“Helping more women get elected in Georgia are both personal and professional passions of mine that luckily coincide,” said Meshveliani, a senior program officer in NDI’s Georgia office.
She sat down for an interview in which she describes herself as “invested” in championing women in politics.
Electoral violence disproportionately affects women worldwide. In fact, a study by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems indicated that women voters face violence at four times the rate of male voters during elections.
Nearly 30 members of Niger’s national assembly discussed the relationship between gender and Islam during a one-day forum organized by NDI in Sadoré (40 km from Niamey, the capital of Niger) on March 7. Their objective was to familiarize members of parliament (MPs) with the different schools of thought that exist within Islam on themes connected to gender, human rights and education.