Advancing Women's Political Participation (NDI) - Advancing womens political participation (NDI- new finance code Främja kvinnors politiska deltagande (NDI) The National Democratic Institute has applied to Sida for funding of 13 601 800 SEK to carry out the "Advancing Gender Equality through Women’s Political Participation" in North Macedonia during the period 2020-2023. 

The project aim is to reduce the institutional, socio-cultural and individual barriers to women's empowerment, and thereby to increase women's meaningful political participation and to advance gender equality at local governance level and within the political parties.

The proposed concept is set to:
- Improve gender equality in political parties, by supporting in overcoming the internal barriers that impede women's political participation and leadership. Raising awareness on the importance and the benefits in streamlining the gender equality within the political party structures would be attended through cross-section work with the political parties. Building capacity for politically aspirant young women and men to take leadership positions within political parties is an added value that would intensify the above process.
- Provide women candidates with the skills to campaign successfully during the local elections in 2021 and to govern at the local level. Good governance practices training shall be provided for the elected women officials in order to equip them with skills to ably carry out their roles.
- Reduce violence against women in politics (VAW-P), by utilizing the information of the research undertaken under USAID funding on the scope  and depth of VAW-P to  provide guidance to municipalities that enact gender focal points and equal opportunity committees to create safe local governance environments for women to exercise leadership and decision-making power. Public awareness raising and education on VAW-P shall be attended through implementing the "It's Not OK" campaign.  
  
The suggested program duration is 32 months and the requested budget is 13 601 800 SEK. National Democratic Institute (NDI) har ansökt om finansiering på 13 601 800 SEK för att genomföra projektet "Advancing Gender Equality through Women’s Political Participation" i Nordmakedonien under perioden 2020-2023. 

Projektets syfte är att minska de institutionella, sociokulturella och individuella hindren för kvinnors egenmakt och därigenom öka kvinnors meningsfulla politiska deltagande samt främja jämställdhet på lokal nivå och inom de politiska partierna.

Insatsen ämnar att
- förbättra jämställdheten inom politiska partier genom att bidra till att övervinna interna hinder som hämmar kvinnors politiska deltagande och ledarskap. Detta inkluderar aktiviteter för att öka medvetenheten om vikten av och fördelarna med att integrera jämställdhet inom partistrukturerna. Att bygga kapacitet hos politiskt aspirerande unga kvinnor och män att ta ledarpositioner inom politiska partier är ett mervärde som väntas intensifiera ovanstående process.

- ge kvinnliga kandidater kompetens att framgångsrikt bedriva kampanjer under lokalvalet 2021 och att styra på lokal nivå. Utbildning inom förvaltningsarbete ska tillhandahållas för de framröstade kvinnliga politikerna för att förse dem med färdigheter för att kunna utföra sina roller.

- minska 'våldet mot kvinnor i politiken' (VAW-P) genom att använda information från forskning som visar omfattningen och djupet av VAW-P. Informationen ska ge vägledning till kommuner som antar jämställdhetsfunktioner och jämställdhetskommittéer för att skapa trygga miljöer för kvinnor att utöva ledarskap och beslutsfattande makt. Allmänhetens medvetenhet och utbildning om VAW-P kommer belysas genom kampanjen "It´s Not OK".

Insatsens projektlängd är 32 månader och den begärda budgeten uppgår till 13 601 800 SEK. The project's overall goal is to lower the individual, socio-cultural, and institutional barriers to women's political participation through a series of interrelated interventions. 
The project objectives are to:
- Improve gender equality in political parties by working with a cross-section of political parties to raise their awareness of the importance and benefits of streamlining gender equality within political party structures
- Provide women candidates with the skills and a supportive environment to campaign successfully for and govern at the local level and in the Parliament  , by providing technical assistance to women candidates for municipal councils, mayoral positions and Members of Parliament, and training the elected women officials in good governance practices in order to equip them with the skills to ably carry out their roles
- Reduce violence against women in politics (VAW-P), by supporting the municipal authorities with guidance to create safe local governance environments for women to exercise leadership and decision-making power. Raising public awareness of VAW-P will be implemented with a national educational campaign "It's Not OK".
The project is developed based on 20 years experience of NDI and their work in the country.
The project responds to the Results strategy for Swedens reform cooperation with Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans and Turkey 2014  2020, and it is backing the task of Swedish support to help ensure that gender equality issues are given greater political priority and that initiatives strengthen womens and girls empowerment and opportunities to enjoy their rights. It contributes by "altering about gender-stereotyped attitudes and unequal gender roles".
Moreover, strengthening political participation of women is among the 13 priorities in the governments initiative Drive for democracy, and an objective of the Swedens feminist foreign policy.
The political parties, local authorities and individual women candidates for leadership positions in politics as well as the general public are to be affected by this project, and they will be influenced to change their attitude, to become more gender aware and supportive to gender equality in politics.