Women’s Leadership
IWDA works towards meaningful shifts in gender relations and gender equality.
The dramatic underrepresentation of women in social and political leadership roles across the world must be addressed if we are to achieve positive change.
We support the diverse women across our region who are strengthening their skills, building confidence to lead, and with their community’s support, accessing positions of influence in political, civic and business decision-making roles.
We do this through partnership – working with local organisations to run workshops and skills training, advocacy, research, evidence and learning. IWDA ensures power holders and institutions are responsive to and accountable for women’s rights and status.
IWDA supports a strong women’s movement that aggregates and amplifies women’s power and priorities. We support women’s forums at the local, national and international level, and work with diverse women to generate self-respect, creativity, new working relationships and unity of purpose in advancing women’s leadership and action.
We are deeply proud of our current Regional Women’s Leadership program – WAVE – which addresses all domains of leadership – from the individual to political and governance systems – and sees women leading transformative sustainable change towards gender equality, enabled by strategic feminist engagement.
Our impact in 2016
11,777
Women across the Asia Pacific region took part in leadership training
7,014
Women received the training to participate in local and national governance
717
Women assumed regional or national leadership roles as a result of our programs
Women’s Action for Voice and Empowerment
IWDA’s Women’s Action for Voice and Empowerment (WAVE) is a civil and political participation program focusing on equal representation and visibility of women and men.
WAVE is funded by the Government of the Netherlands under their FLOW 2016-2020 policy framework.
Taking place in six countries of the Asia Pacific region, WAVE aims to build demand and capability of women to take their place in governance and decision making.
WAVE is also a movement, bringing women’s organisations and the public together to challenge widespread imbalances of power and priority that negatively affect women and their human rights. WAVE has five years (2016-2020) to deliver on its promise to women, including to women already in politics, women and young women with potential for political or civil leadership, and advocates for women’s empowerment spanning all genders and tiers of society.
We Rise
We Rise is a dynamic, learning Coalition, led by four independent and feminist organisations:
Fiji Women’s Rights Movement is a multiethnic and multicultural non-government organisation committed to removing discrimination against women through institutional reform and attitudinal change. It strives to empower, unite and provide leadership opportunities for women in Fiji, especially for emerging young leaders.
FemLINKPACIFIC is a feminist media and policy network committed to empowering women, people with disability and under-served communities in the Pacific through a vibrant information and communications network which is enabling women to be seen and heard in local and national governance structures.
Diverse Voices and Action for Equality, is a growing feminist Fiji LBT (Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender) national collective of high need and marginalised lesbians, bisexual women, transmasculine and gender non-conforming women and people working on issues of human rights and social justice, including gender and sexual, social, economic and ecological justice. Their vision is “All women, all people, all human rights and social justice, everywhere”.
The We Rise Coalition partners offer a unique range of skills and regional networks, while representing a breadth and depth of constituencies that gives visibility to stigmatised, marginalised and socially excluded women, including women with disabilities, widows, rural women, young women and women of lesbian and transgender orientation.
Our partners for change
