Gender quota

A gender quota is a quota used by countries and parties to increase women's representation or substantive equality based on gender in legislatures. Women are largely underrepresented in parliaments and account for a 26.9% average in parliaments globally. As of November 2021, gender quotas have been adopted in 132 countries. Around the world, quotas vary greatly in their enforcement and the stage of electoral process targeted, creating three main types of quotas: legislated candidate quotas, voluntary party quotas, and reserved seats. Regardless of their prevalence, they are a controversial measure, creating debates concerning their impacts, both negative and positive.