The challenge
Rwanda's constitution commits the state to building equality between men and women, including in decision-making organs such as parliament.
The case
Rwanda's Constitution of 2003, as revised in 2015, commits the state to equality between men and women, 'affirmed by women occupying at least thirty percent (30%) of positions in decision-making organs'. It provides that at least 30% of Deputies and at least 30% of elected and appointed Senators must be women, and of the 80 members of the Chamber of Deputies, 24 are women elected by specific electoral colleges in accordance with national administrative entities. According to Inter-Parliamentary Union data published by the World Bank, the share of seats held by women in Rwanda's national parliament was 48.75% in 2003 and stood at 63.75% in 2024 and 2025, against a constitutional minimum of 30%.
Why it worked
Women's representation in Rwanda's parliament has far exceeded the constitutional minimum of 30%; the figures show the change in representation over time but do not, on their own, isolate the effect of the quota from other changes in Rwanda.
Sources
- Constitute Project. Rwanda's Constitution of 2003 with amendments through 2015.
- World Bank, World Development Indicators. Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (%), Rwanda (source: Inter-Parliamentary Union).
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