Women in Latin America and the Caribbean - Cepal

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Latin America has seen progress on the adoption of legislation to promote political participation,
and the positive results of this effort have helped to make parity a feasible democratic objective. Quotas
have proven to be a valuable strategy, especially when combined with appropriate electoral laws, and
have garnered broad support across society. In the Caribbean the process is still slow and incipient, and
political elites tend to reject the idea that quotas need to be adopted on a temporary basis. The significant
number of women serving in government cabinets as a result of the political will of governors and parties
constitutes a slightly more encouraging picture in the Caribbean than in Latin America, but the situation
in this respect is unstable in both subregions. This is an ongoing process which requires careful
monitoring to ensure that women’s political participation can be consolidated in the terms set forth in the
Beijing Platform for Action and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women.