Belgium was one of the first countries in the world to bring in such legislation when it introduced gender quotas for parties competing in elections in 1994.
The move was credited to a strong women’s movement in the country that sought to overturn the highly unrepresentative nature of politics up until that point.
Belgium had been one of the last European countries to introduce full equal voting rights for women in 1948, and as late as 1991 fewer than 10 per cent of representatives in the lower house of parliament were women.
More gender quotas followed. Since 2002, Belgian political parties have had to run equal numbers of men and women on their candidate lists in each constituency during elections. The top two candidates on the list – the most likely to be elected – have to be a man and a woman.
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It took time for more equal representation in politics to take effect – but it worked.
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Belgium now ranks fifth in the EU for gender balance in its national parliament, with 42.7 per cent of its members women. The highest is Sweden, with 46.6 per cent, followed by Finland, Spain and Denmark, according to the latest figures from the European Institute for Gender Equality.
The current Belgian cabinet, which took power in 2020 under prime minister Alexander De Croo, was the country’s most gender-balanced ever, with a 50/50 split of men and women. It also broke new ground by including Belgium’s first openly transgender minister, Petra De Sutter.
Since then, reshuffles have tipped the balance further: there are now 11 female ministers and nine men in the cabinet, which faces an election in June this year.
Speaking to journalists recently, De Croo played down the role of quotas and said the most important factor was political will. “It’s just something you need to do. I don’t even think you need to put it in laws,” the prime minister said.
Sometimes called the “Vivaldi” coalition, the government is made up of seven different parties, including liberals, socialists, greens and Christian democrats. The gender balance was part of negotiations as the coalition was formed.
“In government, there was not a strict rule of having 50-50 per cent of women,” explains energy minister Tinne Van der Straeten, of the Flemish greens. “But the prime minister made it very clear from the beginning what he expected from each of the seven parties – he expected half of his government to be women.”
Some point out that though symbolically important, the mere number of ministers does not reflect a true balance of power. There are seven deputy prime ministers, and all but one of them are men.
The gender balance achieved by the federal government is also not reflected in local politics, points out Caroline Gennez, minister for development co-operation and urban policy, from the Socialist Party.
“When you look into all the layers of government or the local layer... gender equality isn’t realised yet,” Gennez says. Only 15.8 per cent of mayors are women, according to the Belgian political research centre Crisp.
As in many countries, women can get more harsh treatment in the public eye than men, particularly when it comes to appearance. But Gennez insists this shouldn’t be a deterrent. “I think we have to change the system from within,” she says. “That’s why I would call for as many young girls and ladies to go into politics, because it’s the main driver of change.”
She credits gender quotas for her own start. “In my own political career when I was a younger woman in politics, I got into parliament because of the quota system.”
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How does Ireland compare?
Since the 2016 general election, Irish political parties have had to put forward at least 30 per cent of women and 30 per cent of men as candidates for the Dáil, or face losing half their public funding.
Despite this, Ireland remains sixth worst in the EU for gender equality in national politics, with women occupying just 23.5 per cent of Dáil seats. That’s well below the EU average of 33 per cent, and only Slovakia, Greece, Romania, Cyprus and Hungary are lower.
In the general election due by 2025, the gender quota for Irish parties will increase to 40 per cent.
It’s no guarantee that this proportion will be elected. Parties can abide by the quota, while still favouring men in constituencies where they are most likely to get elected.
The experience of Belgium suggests that gender quotas work – but it can take a generation to see the full effect.