Women’s Participation in Bangladesh Politics, The Gender Wall and Quotas

This article presents qualitative data from interviews conducted with female national parliamentarians and local government councillors in Bangladesh regarding barriers to women’s participation in electoral politics. The evidence suggests that a gender wall comprised of institutional, historical, socio-economic and cultural factors continues to prevent Bangladeshi women’s full participation in formal politics at both national and local levels. Since Bangladesh now operates a policy of affirmative action through reserved seats for female politicians, the question arises to what extent this can be seen as a useful longer-term strategy to counteract gender discrimination.