In many developing and developed nations, women’s roles in politics have traditionally been usurped by men. National Democratic Institute President Kenneth Wollack recently spoke with the House subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights and Oversight on reasons and strategies for increasing the number of politically involved women internationally.

From the testimony:

“Women’s meaningful participation in politics affects both the range of policy issues that are considered and the types of solutions that are proposed. Research indicates that a legislator’s gender has a distinct impact on policy priorities, making it critical that women are present in politics to represent the concerns of women and other marginalized citizens and help improve the responsiveness of policy-making and governance.”